Jackie Chan and martial arts are inextricably linked. The popular actor and stuntman began to practice kung fu as a child, studying at a special boarding school, where he had the strictest discipline. Since the choice of profession after graduation was not great, Jackie decided to connect his fate with stuntmen and cinema, in which he achieved great success.
From the answer that Jackie Chan himself answered on Quora, we can clearly see what martial arts and fighting techniques he learned: “When I was young, I learned Southern Style, Northern Style, then after that, I learned Wing Chun, Hapkido, karate, boxing…all kinds of things. So my style is chop suey: everything.”
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Jackie Chan martial arts experience
Sport has been close to Jackie since childhood. The guy’s parents, persecuted by the Chinese authorities, were forced to emigrate to Australia, sending Jackie to the Peking Opera School. There the boy studied and developed his first martial art, kung fu.
As a young man, Jackie managed to act as a stuntman in several films that did not enjoy much success with a wide audience. Chan lacked mastery of only basic kung fu techniques, he mastered the Northern and Southern styles.
After school, Little Dragon continued to improve in the chosen form of martial arts, which was useful to him in Hollywood films and works of his own production. He never used stunt doubles, doing and working out all the tricks himself.
Now an actor, businessman, producer, he owns hapkido, taekwondo, judo. Jackie mixed all kinds of martial art on the sets, which allowed him to create his own style.
Jackie Chan workouts
The actor’s daily set of classes takes about 3 hours. Jackie begins his workout with a run, 8 km or 5 miles, then does stretching. The Hollywood star prefers a system of exercises with its own mass like squats, pull-ups, and push-ups. At the same time, he tries to diversify the workout using different combinations. For each exercise, Jackie performs at least 5 sets.
Jackie loves to work out on simulators. He constantly includes hyperextension and kettlebells in the complex of classes. Favorite exercises are lifting weights to the sides, “pendulum”. The actor has a rule not to use critical weights.
When doing the barbell press, the actor takes the minimum mass but quickly exercises in 4 sets. The actor strengthens his legs through squats. A pleasant addition to your workout is gymnastic exercises.
Jackie Chan body workout
- Cardio. Every day Jackie starts with a run of 8 km or 5 miles, but if he ate something unhealthy, then he runs 20 minutes longer. Workouts on the Master Step simulator are performed approximately every other day. And of course, doing martial arts, which contributes even more to weight loss than running.
- Legs. In addition to running that partially uses his legs, Jackie also does squats on one leg: 4 sets for each leg, and performs various kicks.
- Chest. Bench press at a fast pace 20-30 kg: 4 sets of 20-30 reps, and push-ups on the fingers: 4 sets.
- Back. Pull-ups: 5 sets. Hyperextension: 5 sets.
- Press. Various crunches on the bench.
- Shoulders. Various exercises with small weights.
- Stretching. Jackie Chan’s stretching is very good and does it regularly. He trained it from a young age, and continues to do it to this day, every day.
Jackie maintains his speed and endurance due to persistent practice of punches in his favorite types of martial arts.
We are stunts, so we always have to keep fit. I make my team train every day. We must always be light and mobile.
How does he manage all this? “Sports activities teach you to concentrate, find a balance between body and spirit”. They help to maintain a clear mind, feel inner joy, and protect the mind from external influences.
Jackie Chan’s nutrition
The action star has never hidden that he loves to eat. Chan focuses not on the quantity of food, but on its quality. The actor recognizes only healthy, fresh food. Favorite breakfast – oatmeal porridge and a glass of freshly squeezed juice.
Fried foods and fatty foods are not mine. For me, such food is not only harmful but also not tasty at all. I prefer steamed or oven-cooked food.
Jackie Chan’s Simple Nutrition Rules:
- exclude fried, fatty foods;
- reduce the consumption of meat to a minimum;
- increase in the diet the amount of seafood, fresh vegetables, fruits, cereals in the range.
The actor, like any Chinese, loves rice, allows himself spicy dishes.
Being actively engaged in martial arts and stunts in the cinema, Jackie Chan received many injuries, the consequences of which and his age (65 years) led to the fact that now the actor practically does not act in film, but continues to monitor his health.
