I train like an athlete everyday': Usher shows off results of his intense fitness regime in sizzling shirtless photo shoot

By: Unknown on 14:38

He is set to play boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard in upcoming film Hands Of Stone.

And Usher is very committed to the role - and has the body to prove it.

'I train like an athlete everyday, believe it or not,' said the 34-year-old on preparing for the part, as he showed off his buff body in the November issue of Men's Health.

'I train like an athlete': Usher shows off the results of his intense fitness regime in a sizzling new Men's Health photo shoot

'My commitment to this character demands that I not only physically get ready, but also become him', he said of the boxer. 'The hair, the personality, the manner he conducts himself in - all that. He’s an incredible man.'

But working his body so hard does have its drawbacks, admitted The Voice judge.

'My second day I decided to ride to the gym. So I rode there. Boxed. Rode the bike back home. Mentally, I’m the type of person who can ignore the pain. Put it somewhere else and allow my body to just go there. But I always suffer.
'You can’t box, ride a bike for 20 miles in the heat—Georgia heat—and then go to the studio and rehearse. That’s not happening,' he added.

Working it: Usher, who is set to play boxer Sugar Ray Leonard in an upcoming film, was seen training in another picture

In the accompanying photo shoot, Usher displays his enviable physique.

In one picture, he stands shirtless as he trains, punching a speed bag with gloved hands.
And on the cover, he stands in a black vest, his head thrown back in laughter.

Sure to fly off the shelves: On the cover, he shows off his muscular arms in a black vest, his head thrown back in laughter