John Cena Opens Up About Why He Really Started Working Out As A Kid

Though actor John Cena mostly makes headlines these days for starring in some of the biggest film franchises in history, the "Suicide Squad" star began his career as a wrestler (via WWE). Cena began his wrestling career over two decades ago and has won 16 world championships in that time. The powerhouse has even been dubbed the "greatest WWE superstore of all time" by Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle (via Talk Sport). The NCAA Division 1 champion said, "John was consistent and dominant for 15+ years. Nobody has done it that long specifically in WWE."

Part of the reason why Cena has achieved such impressive heights as a wrestler is his dedication to fitness and his intense training. While it's hard to imagine the 44-year-old without thinking about his huge muscles, Cena wasn't always so physically strong. In an interview with People, the "Bumblebee" star explained the surprising reason why he began working out as a child.

John Cena explained to People that he experienced bullying in his youth because of the way he dressed and expressed himself. This lead the heavyweight champion to develop a desire to become stronger to protect himself. He explained, "As you're an adolescent, social cliques form and I didn't fall into any one of those. So I got tired of getting beaten up and I asked my dad for a weight set and he got me one at 13. I started working out and I haven't stopped since."

The Massachusetts native's passion for fitness led him to pursue a degree in exercise science and kinesiology from Springfield College. After his graduation, Cena moved to Los Angeles to put his degree to use. While working in the protein shop at a Gym, the actor met many people involved in wrestling and was invited to train to become one. He explained, "It wasn't like, 'Yeah, this is my chance to make it big in the WWE,' it was like, 'Yo, this would be a sick a** hobby, so when I worked my ass off during the week, I can go be a personality on the weekends, I'll try it." Cena learned how to fall down in the ring and went on to become one of the greatest entertainers of all time.