Bryan Danielson recently spoke with GQ to promote AEW ALL IN 2023 on Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
During the discussion, “The American Dragon” explained why he isn’t concerned with putting on extra size in AEW, as well as how his training has changed as he has started to get older.
Featured below are some of the highlights from the interview where he touches on these topics with his thoughts.
On how his training routine has changed since he has gotten older: “How my training has changed? More stability stuff, more making sure everything’s in alignment, and moving through proper motion. And getting strong. For example, the paraspinal muscles. When you’re 27, you’re not even worried about it, right? At 42, I am. So I’m like, contracting my paraspinals, making sure everything like that strong. I recently tore my labrum on my right shoulder, so it’s like when stuff like that happens, rehab comes first before doing any sort of pressing movements. Before the MJF Iron Man match, I could probably do well over 100 push-ups in a row. After the MJF Iron Man match, I couldn’t do one push up. You go through these things where you’ll have physical setbacks. Before, I might have made myself do push-ups or made myself do pressing stuff, I don’t do that anymore if my body can’t do it. It’s like: Focus on things that are going to improve stability. Focus on things that are going to get me to the point where I can do five push-ups without pain, then ten push-ups without pain, then 20 push-ups without pain. So that’s the difference in how I work out now.”
On how he is not as concerned with beefing up in size since most of the AEW roster is on the smaller side anyways: “Because AEW is a smaller roster—not everybody is a giant like it was in WWE—I don’t feel the need to be as big. And that’s so much better for my body, because for years and years and years, I was always trying to be big. For somebody who’s not naturally big, lifting heavy weights all the time is really hard on your body. And now I still lift heavy weights, but I cycle in and out of it. So I’ll progressively get heavier on my deadlift. Take a week off from deadlifting, or two weeks off, or even three weeks off from deadlifting, go back at a lighter weight, and then start cycling kind of back up again. So just a smarter training regimen and not being afraid to take a day off from what would be considered intense training and do something lighter, like yoga. And as I’ve gotten older, I’ve gotten more into the yoga and that sort of thing than I was earlier in my career.”
Check out the complete interview at GQ.com.
