Jake Gyllenhaal’s Secret To Buff Biceps: Parkour
First Published: April 6, 2010 11:39 AM EDT Credit: Disney
Caption Jake Gyllenhaal in ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Jake Gyllenhaal sports a buffed body in the upcoming “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” but the actor says he didn’t get ripped in the gym – he bulked up scaling walls and leaping over barricades.
“[I] never did anything this intensive before [to change my body]. It’s a physical role. And when I commit to playing a part, it’s 110 percent,” Jake told People, saying he studied the French martial art of Parkour – also referred to as “free running.”
“We worked really closely with David Belle, who invented Parkour. I worked with a lot of gymnasts. I started jumping off of a lot of things that were padded and learned the fundamental stuff, and then slowly started working on harder surfaces, really carefully,” he explained. “And I’d say, ‘OK, I’ll try it,’ and then I’d say, ‘Oh God. Oh, please!’ But then I’d get it, and we’d go a little further and a little longer and a little higher and just kept it up.”
The 29-year-old actor said he loved doing some of his own stunts for the upcoming Disney action movie – but admitted there were a few scenes that pushed him to his limits.
“It got a little bit dicey there near the end, when they saw that I liked doing things that were dangerous,” he continued. “I tried my hand at things that were pushing it a little bit. There was this big 35 foot jump that I did that got a little hairy.”
The actor said he plans on keeping up with his “Prince” workout regime.
“I enjoy being active as part of my daily insanity anyway,” Jake said. “So, I’ll keep doing that.”
“Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” opens in theaters on May 28.
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