Michael B. Jordan isn't an "up-and-coming Hollywood" star anymore. After roles in Creed, Fruitvale Station, Black Panther movie, the Just Mercy film with Jamie Foxx, Jordan is a major player in Hollywood. And he was even named the Sexiest Man Alive by People two years ago.
He's definitely already got the acting chops and the look down. Now he has to maintain them both. He does that by hitting the gym--hard.
“I go so hard,” he says. “I want to feel it, you know?”
You May Also Like
For each new role he takes on, Jordan trains how the character he’s playing would train. This “method training” is something that keeps his mind and body from getting bored and allows him to sharpen his skills and avoid the dreaded workout plateau (when no matter how hard you go, you stop seeing results).
According to Nike, who has some of Jordan's workouts now available on their Nike Training Club app here, Jordan’s work ethic wasn’t born in the weight room. He had to grow to love seeing results from the gym.
And you can see the results in the trailer for the new Creed III movie, the latest installment from the Rocky movie frachise spin-off. Michael looks incredible and chisled in every crevice of his body.
The actor says as a kid he was teased a lot because of his name. You know the whole comparison to the basketball legend, but Michael B.'s calling wasn't basketball.
But that only made him want it more. He had a chip on his shoulder with something to prove.
“It made me work hard for sure,” he says.
He uses his name to motivate himself to train aggressively — calling it “my healthy chip.” Though he initially turned to sports to prove those bullies wrong, that mentality evolved into his daily mantra. “I feel like I’ve got to work twice as hard in life,” says Jordan. “I told myself at a young age that I was going to dedicate my 20s to work. I don’t go out all the time. I don’t party…I try to evolve and grow and work on myself.”
Even with this 24/7 focus and dedication, Jordan has moments when working hard during a session feels tough (he’s human, after all). Here, he shares his top four tips for overcoming the urge to quit.
I. Turn Stress Into Fuel
“I’m usually really stressed when I walk into the gym. I think about what’s bothering me at the moment, what I want to leave in the gym. Then I just work it out. And somewhere within the workout, I find myself not thinking about it anymore. And sometimes I realize that the problems and the stress aren’t as bad as I thought they were walking into the gym. It can change the way I react to certain things.”
II. Think of a Workout as a Way to Live Better
“You only get one body, and you’ve got to take care of it as much as you can. And if you’re not in good shape,...
... if you’re not mentally strong, if you’re not physically fit, being energized and getting through a busy day is going to be really tough.”
III. Make A Commitment
“Finish a set, finish a routine. You can’t just stop halfway through…I can’t just stop in the middle of a take. I can’t just stop in the middle of a relationship. Quitting is something I try to never even let into my mind.”
IV. Move in a way that moves you
“Boxing. It’s like, everything is connected when I connect. When you hit it clean, you just know it. You feel it. It just flows and it connects. Searching for those perfect punches is cool.”
