"I train like an athlete every day, believe it or not."
We believe you, Usher.
We met up with The Voice star at Gleason's Gym in Brooklyn this summer while he was in training for Hands of Stone, the upcoming movie in which Usher plays boxer Sugar Ray Leonard. Now, he's gracing the cover of the special 25th anniversary issue of Men's Health, on newsstands this month.
Usher and Leonard are about the same height, 5'10", but Leonard was a welterweight (146 pounds) for the fight that made him a legend, against Roberto "No Mas" Duran. Usher estimates he weighed about 180 pounds when he accepted the role. "I've been cruising my way down to 174, 172," he says.
Usher's desire to come closer to an authentic fighting weight led to a fateful decision. He bought a bike and began cycling. "My second day I decided to ride to the gym," 10 miles from his home in Atlanta. "So I rode there. Boxed. Rode the bike back home."
Big mistake.
(Usher is helping Men's Health celebrate its 25th Anniversary by signing 25 copies of the November issue to give away to you! Enter today for your chance to win!)
"Mentally, I'm the type of person who can ignore the pain. Put it somewhere else and allow my body to just go there," he says. "But I always suffer. You can't box, ride a bike for 20 miles in the heat—Georgia heat—and then go to the studio and rehearse. That's not happening."
He credits the biggest lesson he learned to another former ring champion. "Sugar Ray Robinson said the most potent weapon in boxing is rest," Usher says. "Now I realize you can't push yourself all the way. You have to pull back a little bit."
That advice doesn't apply to Usher's acting, however, as he transformed himself completely to play Leonard. "My commitment to this character demands that I not only physically get ready, but also become him," he says. "The hair, the personality, the manner he conducts himself in—all that. He's an incredible man."
(Usher is helping Men's Health celebrate its 25th Anniversary by signing 25 copies of the November issue to give away to you! Enter today for your chance to win!)
And so is Usher—a singer, dancer, television star, and the man with the best abs in the entertainment industry. He's the perfect guy to grace our 25th anniversary cover.
For the full story and interview, pick up your copy on newsstands or download your interactive digital edition today.
