Former WWE Champion AJ Styles recently appeared on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, where he addressed fan observations that he looks to be in the best shape of his career.
Despite speculation that he bulked up, Styles clarified that his physical transformation is actually the result of weight loss, not muscle gain.
On His Physique and Weight Loss:
“Everybody thinks I bulked up,” he said, “I lost weight. I was not any heavier than I was before…”
Styles credited his strict dietary approach, particularly fasting, for his impressive conditioning.
On His Fasting Routine:
“Fasting is a big part of my diet as well.”
He detailed some of the extreme fasting periods he has undertaken, revealing that he did a three-day water fast just before his return to ensure he was in top shape.
“A three-day fast, just water…maybe a week before I came back so I was shredded.”
More recently, he challenged himself even further with an even longer fast.
“I literally just got through doing a six-day fast, just water. That sucked too.”
Beyond just diet and training, Styles emphasized that achieving peak physical condition requires a shift in mindset—specifically, embracing discomfort.
“But again, anything worth doing is hard,” he stated.
He compared fasting to other challenging yet simple physical practices, underscoring the mental toughness required to push through.
“All you got to do is sit in that cold plunge. That’s all you gotta do is sit down. All you gotta do in a sauna is just sit there. All you gotta do is not eat and drink water, these things are easy to do, or they should be, but we’re addicted to so many different, lifestyles of being easy and nice.”
Styles noted that the real struggle comes when life is comfortable, explaining how forcing oneself into discomfort is essential for growth.
“You know what the worst time to get the cold plunge is? Is when you’re comfortable. It’s perfect outside, it’s perfect inside. Oh, it’s great, and then you get the cold plunge,” he explained.
His core philosophy? Train your mind and body to handle discomfort, and success will follow.
“But if you can get used to being uncomfortable, it’s not that hard to be uncomfortable.”
Styles’ mental and physical discipline has clearly played a major role in his incredible conditioning and longevity in the wrestling business.
