Danai Gurira is an American actress, playwright, and activist who is best known for her roles as Michonne on The Walking Dead and Okoye in Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.
Danai is definitely one of the coolest women in Hollywood. The women she plays are smart, strong, and generally badass, both physically and emotionally. She is also a very talented playwright who likes to write about strong women to who she can relate to.
Even though we looked into Danai Gurira workout and diet, this is not her exact routine. Instead, it’s a collection of Danai’s thoughts on society, interviews she’s done, and advice from experts in the field.
What We Know Now
- Height: 5’7″
- Weighs: 120 pounds
- Age: 44 years
- Birthdate: February 14, 1978
- Awards: Her play Eclipsed was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play. Her play In the Continuum, which she co-wrote and starred in, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
Workout Principles
Danai Gurira has been in great shape for all of her life. She makes sure to work out regularly, lift weights, do strength training, and do high-intensity intervals to keep her heart rate up and blood flowing. Danai stays in shape in part because she knows exercise is good for her. She loves the endorphin high she gets after a hard workout.
During her workouts, she tries to fix muscle imbalances and improve her strength, mobility, and heart health.
Danai Gurira Workout Routine
Danai Gurira has been working out with AJ Fisher for almost five years, and she says that he is the reason she has such a great body. Their workouts together include circuit training, moves that are like Pilates, and exercises that focus on her glutes.
This post has a lot of Danai Fisher’s workouts that she did while getting ready for Black Panther and The Walking Dead.
Here is the Danai Gurira workout routine:
Monday – Upper-Body Strength Training
Danai Gurira trains her upper body often to get stronger, build muscle mass, and keep her stamina up so she can do fight scenes and other stunts as the powerful general Okoye in Black Panther and a zombie fighter in The Walking Dead.
- Pull-up (3 sets, rep till failure)
- Press from above (3 sets, five reps)
- Row a dumbbell (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Plank (3 sets, hold for 30 seconds)
- Deadbug (3 sets, 15 reps on each side)
- V-Up (3 sets, 12 reps)
- Curl hammer (3 sets, 12 reps)
- Push up (3 sets, 10 reps)
Tuesday – Cardio
On Tuesday, Danai does a workout that focuses on cardio. She has always loved swimming. When her older sister was taking lessons as a child, Danai jumped in the pool and insisted on learning with her.
- 10 minutes on the rowing machine to warm up
- Twenty minutes of short sprints on the treadmill
- Swimming for 1 hour
Wednesday: Strength training for the legs
Danai Gurira and her trainer, AJ Fisher, always work on her glutes when they work her lower body. Having strong glutes is important for keeping your whole body strong. Glutes help us walk, run, jump, and go up and down stairs. They should be worked out regularly.
- Deadlift (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Goblet squat (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Lateral lunge (3 sets, 10 reps)
- Move your hips (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Rear lunge (3 sets, 10 reps)
- Glute bridge (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Calf raises while standing (3 sets, 8 reps)
Thursday – Yoga
Danai works out every week by swimming, running, and doing yoga. This gives her a nice balance and a break from lifting weights. She goes to a yoga class every Thursday to stretch and work her muscles in a low-impact way.
Friday – Bodyweight Circuit Training
Danai does bodyweight circuit training when she is on the road or away from her trainer to keep her strength up. Here’s a circuit training workout she probably does:
- Split squat (3 sets, 12 reps)
- Air squat (3 sets, 12 reps)
- Climber of mountains (3 sets, 20 reps)
- Push up (3 sets, 8 reps)
- Toadstool (3 sets, 12 reps)
- Burpee (3 sets, 5 reps)
- Jump lunge (3 sets, 12 reps) (3 sets, 12 reps)
- V-Up (3 sets, 12 reps)
Saturday: DVD of Jillian Michaels
Danai Gurira likes the workout DVDs by Jillian Michaels, and it’s common for her to have them in her trailer on any set she’s working on. The workouts are hard and help her shape her body, fix muscle imbalances, improve her posture, and get stronger overall. When she is on the road and can’t see her trainer, these DVDs are a great way for her to work out.
Sunday – Day of Rest
She takes a break from the gym on Sunday after a long week of pushing her body to new limits.
Danai Gurira’s Diet
Danai Gurira eats mostly healthy foods and stays away from sugar, processed foods, and simple carbs. She doesn’t drink coffee and rarely eats something she shouldn’t, but when she wants to, she gives in. Danai doesn’t eat much meat or carbs. Instead, she gets protein from beans, quinoa, nuts, and grains, among other things.
Danai’s characters in The Walking Dead and Black Panther are very thin, so she ate in a pretty strict way to stay thin and fit.
Here is Danai Gurira’s diet:
Breakfast
- Green smoothie with vegetables and spinach
- 3 whites of eggs
- Almonds
Lunch
- Grilled salmon
- Baked sweet potato
- Mix of brown rice and quinoa
Dinner
- A bowl of black beans, avocado, and quinoa.
- Garden Salad
Supplements
Danai focuses on a few essential vitamins and supplements to help her muscles recover and keep her immune system healthy. This helps her get those killer abs and insanely toned legs.
- Whey Protein
- Multivitamin
- Creatine
Summary
Danai Gurira is a strong woman with a strong mind and a strong passion for her work. This is clear whether she is raising awareness for women’s rights around the world, killing zombies in The Walking Dead, or saving the world in Black Panther.
Danai puts her whole heart into everything she does, whether it’s an intense workout or writing a play that was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. She does it all, and many people look up to her.
Also, read Dominique Thorne Workout Routine & Diet Plan.
