FIGHTING FIT

"Hurricane" John Walters

In the words of John Walters ...

I initially got into physical fitness when…

I was always an active kid. Between playing basketball, volleyball, and football throughout school, I was always doing something sports related. I started lifting weights my senior year in high school when I decided to start playing football. I was 18 and weighed about 135 lbs. It was a long, hard road with a lot of bumps. I went on to play college football and that's when I started to hit the weights hard. The summer before my freshman year in college, I gained about 25 lbs. I was in the middle of my growth spurt and was eating like a horse. This went on for two years of college football. Then I decided to start wrestling and I geared my workouts from power exercises to toning exercises so I could "look the part".

I work out because I love it. There are always going to be days where I don't want to go to the gym for whatever reason, but those are the days that mean the most. Anybody can stay home and watch TV, but it takes someone with true dedication and perseverance to make sacrifices. I know that without a good body, the fans may not take me as serious as they would if I look tough. I know that without being in the best cardiovascular shape, I can't wrestle those 20-30 min matches without huffing and puffing. I guess overall, I feel better about myself as a wrestler and a person. Too many guys don't look like wrestlers, I want to be one that does.

I don't have one particular accomplishment in my fitness career. In April of this year, I wrestled Luis Ortiz in a match that went almost 30 mins. It was a non-stop, action packed match. After the match, I felt that I could wrestle another match. That made me feel good and I knew then that the hard work I put in was working. Also, wrestling 3 times in the NEI tourney (over 45 mins of wrestling in one night) and making it seem as though I wasn't tired, although I was, made me feel great. I can't pinpoint one accomplishment, but I guess being known as a guy who can take care of himself and his opponent no matter the circumstances makes me pretty damn proud. It makes me continue to work hard and watch what I eat. Not only do I owe it to myself and to the business, but I owe it to my opponents.

I don't think people realize how important cardiovascular conditioning is in the ring. A 400 lb. bench press will do nothing for you in the ring. Sure it might make you look stronger, but in this particular game of leverage and technique, I'd rather be in excellent shape then be a monster. The part of the match that people are waiting for is the finish, and if you are not in good enough shape to make the finish look crisp and realistic, then a great match could turn into the shits instantly. Basically, the extra reps I decide to do and the extra strain I decide to put on my body are examples of the extremes I am willing to go to in order to perfect my conditioning. My goal is to not let a single person blow me up in the ring. I take a lot of pride in being in superior shape and think matches would be that much better if everybody was in great shape. Therefore, fitness is a must of mine when it comes to my professional wrestling career.

That's a tricky question. There is a difference between in ring shape and cardio shape. I think in ring training is by far the most important type of training in order to perfect your conditioning. Think about it, there is no better way to train to wrestle, than to train in the ring. I know some guys who don't look good at all, don't workout all that much, but damn those guys don't run out of steam. So, I think that being in ring shape is more important that being in treadmill type shape. However, it is not easy to get into a ring as often as some people would like, so, any type of cardio is good. But I don't think you would be as good a worker if you did not work out in the gym. Again, looking the part is a big part of this business.

My workouts never last more than 60 mins. I get in the gym, and I get out. My workouts are very intense and I tend to time my rest in between sets. Otherwise, I find myself sitting around. All my workouts are geared towards burning my muscles out. My favorite body part to work is probably shoulders and neck. I feel as though these are very important muscles when it comes to wrestling. These particular body parts take a lot of stress and strengthening them makes it a lot easier. The body part I hate doing is abs. For small muscles, these hurt the most.

Heavy lifting! Lifting very heavy hurts my joints and increases the chances of injury. Anybody can come in to a gym and bench press 300 lbs., but how many guys can run 3 miles and then come in and bench 300? Not many. Therefore, when it comes to wrestling, I don't think heavy lifting is as beneficial as circuit training.

Going to a wrestling school. However, don't go there to get in shape. Be in respectable shape getting there and your progress will be quicker and smoother. Too many people go to wrestling schools to get in shape, BIG MISTAKE! So my advice is, get in shape, stay in the gym and stay in the ring, very simple.

I never lift 5 consecutive days because of my work schedule. I usually workout on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. My workout is broken up into 3 different workout and I alternate them. Week 1 would go 1, 2, 3, 1, 2 then the next week would go, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1. All the way until the 6 week cycle is complete. I won't go into specifics.

A lot of protein, a lot of carbs, and a lot of water. I eat 5-6 meals a day based on protein and carbs. I eat a lot of chicken, turkey, eggs, rice, potatoes, bread, veggies, fruits, and always water.

Supplementation: The only supplementation I use are protein powders and bars when I don't have time to eat, like at work, on the road, at shows, etc. Fat burners, creatine, etc. is a waste of money and I do not use those kind of supplements.

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J-Winger & J-Guru

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