January+February 2016

[GeneChing]

There's a sneak peek at our next cover in my latest ezine offering, Daniel Wu on INTO THE BADLANDS. Note that this ezine article is completely different from the next cover story.



This issue appears on the newsstands on December 1, 2015. Subscribers will be sent their issues next week.

[GeneChing]

The Table of Contents for our JAN+FEB 2016 issue are now online.

[GeneChing]

Our JANUARY+FEBRUARY 2016 issue is now available for your smart phone or tablet!

[GeneChing]

Read INTO THE BADLANDS With Daniel Wu

[GeneChing]

[GeneChing]

Well, that first one created quite a stir on fb (as we knew it would ). This next one is more reaffirming.

[sanjuro_ronin]

I guess doing both would waste too much Chi, LMAO !

[GeneChing]

There are a lot of short vids if you follow the link.

How Daniel Wu balances body and mind with martial arts



June 1, 2016
Chinese-American actor and martial artist Daniel Wu has performed in more than 60 films in Asia. His new U.S. show “Into the Badlands” was recently renewed, and he has a huge role in the film “Warcraft” that opens in theaters today.

In this edition of Inside & Out, Mark Niu catches up with Wu as he prepares for the Hollywood grind by balancing body and mind. Studies have shown that martial arts can help improve concentration as well as reduce high blood pressure and stress.
In Oakland, California, Wu stays in shape physically and mentally before filming for season two of “Into the Badlands” begins.
He’s trained in Shaolin Kung Fu, Wushu, Muay Thai, and western boxing. Five days a week, he works out for two-and-a-half hours.

But his body has suffered in his 41 years. He’s had numerous injuries, including an ACL tear. That’s why he’s now focusing on Martial Arts Yoga — which keeps him flexible, efficient, and fully aware of his body and mind.
“What I’m really trying to do in my practice now in the downtime when we’re not shooting the season is getting my body limber and ready,” Wu said. “That’s why I do a lot of the yoga practice – so that I’m fully aware of my body and have body control.”

Daniel Wu on the importance of spirituality in martial arts:

His trainer Matt Lucas, who owns Open Matt said that Wu is one of the best students.
“I’m trying to get across changing the mind from a goal-oriented mind to a longevity oriented mind,” Lucas said.
“I feel all great martial artists know how to punch and kick, but the idea is get deeper to where the kicks don’t erode your body, where the techniques actually expand your body and don’t erode it away.”
Wu said that when he first practiced martial arts as a child it had a greater spiritual element.
“My first teacher Y.T. Chaing always made sure that we practiced meditation that we learned about how to eat during different times of the year, different seasons, what foods are good for you and what are not, and also teaching us how to do Chinese brush painting,” Wu said. “…to be a good person in this society and that was the spiritual side of it to me.”

Daniel Wu on how he overcame injuries in his martial arts practice:

After he spent more time studying martial arts, he viewed it more as a sport which divorced it from history and tradition, he said.
“Wushu, especially modern wushu especially is almost like a gymnastics floor routine. The spiritual side is not really there, we don’t practice medication,” Wu said.
“Now that I’m older now I’m going back to that, because I feel that there’s a huge value in all of that.”
Wu said that he’s had to overcome injuries such as a torn ACL.
“I’ve seen a lot of my mentors, Jackie Chan and Jet deal with chronic pain and injuries,” Wu said. “So I pulled myself away from the martial arts completely and I didn’t really even practice martial arts for a while until probably two or three years later and I was slowly getting back into it. I realized that martial arts doesn’t have to be about these crazy fancy kicks and all that there’s a whole system there and it’s more about health and well being.”
On the set of Into the Badlands, Wu is the only actor in the main cast with a martial arts background, so they regularly look to him for advice.
He offered some basic martial arts advice to CCTV America: “Don’t straight, do a cross hook. What I wanna do is sell that reaction. No matter how good that punch is the reactor doesn’t react, then it’s worthless.”

Daniel Wu on his career as an actor and martial artist:

Starring as an evil orc in the movie Warcraft, Daniel Wu’s has literally had a transformative year. As executive producer, and star, of Into the Badlands, the actor smashed through bad guys and Hollywood barriers.

Daniel Wu on importance of diversifying martial arts practice:

Wu plays Sunny, the show’s conflicted hero – a rarity for Asian Americans, made rarer by the fact that he’s in a romantic relationship. Wu says Into the Badlands has been the hardest work of his life—having to double duty with drama scenes and fight scenes more complex than anything on U.S. television.

Daniel Wu on how he played an orc:

“The orc I play is the most evil, he’s a kind of leader of all the orcs, in the script it said he’s the not only the ugliest, but the oldest orc. This character, he’s constantly in a horse stance, he’s crouched over the whole time,” Wu said.
“Good thing I’ve done hours and hours of horse stance training when I was a young kid. Because that’s what I was doing the whole time, walking like that walking in a crouch and walking like this orc.”

[GeneChing]

Read my latest feature for Den of Geek: Into the Badlands: What’s Next For Daniel Wu.



Threads
Into-The-Badlands
January-February-2016

[GeneChing]

Daniel Wu Shares the Martial Arts Workout He Used to Prep for American Born Chinese
The action star walked us through the routine he used to portray the legendary Monkey King.

BY BRETT WILLIAMS, NASM PUBLISHED: JUN 6, 2023

preview for 'American Born Chinese' Star Daniel Wu's Martial Arts Fight Training | Train Like | Men's Health

WATCH: Daniel Wu | Train Like | Men's Health

DANIEL WU IS a martial artist with a background in Wushu, but the actor doesn't depend on one strict discipline to bring heart-stopping fight sequences to the screen. "In onscreen fighting, there's no real one style," he told Men's Health when we caught up with Wu to check out his training routine. "You have to mold yourself to fit into the choreography or the style of the character that you're fighting with."

In fact, his flashiest moves, deployed in movies and shows like The Man With the Iron Fists and AMC's Into the Badlands, might not even be useful to defend yourself IRL. "Sometimes you're doing crazy movements that are martial arts-related, but you'd probably never do in a real fight—but are really cool onscreen." Wu pointed to wire work, stunts that make it appear that the characters are able to defy the laws of physics, as a great example of this. While these maneuvers might not be technically possible off-screen, actors like Wu still have to be in incredible shape to make the stunts look real. "To be able to execute those kinds of things, not only do you need a good martial arts base, but you also need a strong body to be able to withstand all that and be able to move with all that," he said.

Wu brought his high-flying maneuvers to the Disney+ series American Born Chinese with his portrayal of the Monkey King, an iconic character in Chinese literature. He shared his fight choreography prep workout routine with MH, giving us a look at how he gets ready for showstopping stunts. Wu worked through a long warmup to prep his body for movement, using tools like a clubbell and kettlebells, before being joined by his striking coach Dr. Jason Park, PT, DPT, SCS for pad work.

This is a very specific routine, so you might not get results by following it to the letter—but if you're interested in the types of movement Wu uses for his fight scenes, you can use some of these principles in your own workouts.

Daniel Wu's Martial Arts Training Routine
Clubbell Shoulder Warmup
Elbow Supination
10 reps per side

Elbow Pronation
10 reps per side

Overhead Circles
10 reps per direction

Single-Arm Halo
10 reps per side

Wushu Stance Training
Horse to Bow Stance Transitions
Kettlebell Mobility and Strength Circuit
Rear Lunge Overhead Press
3 sets of 10 reps per side

Front Rack Toe Walks
3 rounds of 50 foot walks

Kettlebell Squat Jumps
3 sets of 5 reps

Kettlebell Rotational Swing
3 sets of 10 reps

Martial Arts Training
Shadowboxing
Punch Isometrics
Mitt Work
Pad Work



BRETT WILLIAMS, NASM
Brett Williams, a fitness editor at Men's Health, is a NASM-CPT certified trainer and former pro football player and tech reporter who splits his workout time between strength and conditioning training, martial arts, and running. You can find his work elsewhere at Mashable, Thrillist, and other outlets.

American-Born-Chinese
January-February-2016