Plus, find out about his go-to workout routine and favorite sandwich in this interview.
Reviewed by Dietitian Jane Leverich, M.S., RDN
Key Points
- John Cena’s favorite breakfast includes sourdough or baguette with poached eggs and a flat white.
- The actor also loves building an Italian-inspired sandwich with Swiss cheese and veggies.
- Cena prioritizes strength, mobility and holistic wellness after retiring from WWE in 2025.
It’s hard to say what comes to mind when you think of John Cena. The answer could be any number of television shows, movies, WWE highlights or even his philanthropy. But how about his bread expertise?
Nature’s Own recently tapped John Cena as its “Breeder,” spreading the word about the brand’s reformulated loaves, which now contain 38% fewer ingredients and are all non-GMO certified.
Timed with this partnership, we chatted with Cena about his approach to fitness post-WWE retirement, his go-to breakfast order and his surprise cameo on The Bear.
You’ve travelled a lot throughout your career and have a lot of opinions on food, like your brutal review of the flat white Enjoy your food served you. Which city do you think has the best bread?
I know I got an interpretation of a flat white, and everyone online was like, “Oh man, we saw you be judgy on this one.” But I kid you not, for that one flat white, I’ve had thousands of beautiful ones. I’m actually sipping on a well-made flat white from Maru Coffee in a to-go cup right now, and it’s absolutely divine.
I gotta say, [my wife and I have] been to some great cafés in London, Paris, Budapest, Nice, Los Angeles, San Diego and Tampa. There’s a few in New York that do plain and simple just beautifully, like a good breakfast baguette or slice of sourdough with two perfect medium poached eggs and a 7-ounce flat white. That’s kind of my go-to. I’ll make that a breakfast that lasts like 90 minutes.
What’s your favorite sandwich?
My favorite to make is sort of a hodgepodge cold cut sandwich, but Italian-style: turkey, turkey pepperoni, low-fat ham, Swiss cheese, tons of greens and lettuce on there, thick sliced tomato, pickle and a little spicy mustard in between two slices of [Nature's Own] Protein Wheat, thrown on the panini press.
How has your approach to fitness and health changed since retiring from the WWE?
So, I want to choose my words carefully. I don’t think the change to my approach to fitness happened after retirement. I think the change was a catalyst to decide to retire, because now at 49, I really love strength training, I love fitness and wellness, I’ve fallen in love with flexibility and mobility and being a performing WWE superstar truly takes a toll. I was reaching the point—and this is just my personal journey, every performer has their own timeline and what they’re capable of—where it took so much effort to prepare to perform, and there’s so much effort on the backside to fix all of the ailments that I was doing to myself by performing at a high level.
After 23 years, it was time to look at my fitness goals. I want to be strength training in my 80s and 90s, and hopefully, make choices to live a long and healthy life. It was a long look [at things] to say, “Be grateful for the two-plus decades you’ve had to perform in front of audiences, but also understand that hopefully, you’ve got so much road left.” That realization came to me at about 45 years old, of, “OK, it might be time to close this chapter.”
What does your fitness routine look like now?
From an activity standpoint, much more listening to my body. I still do enjoy, as a mentor of mine used to say, “sweating out the fatigue”—pushing the limits of my body. But I’m much more attuned to, I guess, a holistic approach of listening to my body: How I feel emotionally, mentally, if I’m focused, if I’m not and how can I correct these things to get back in and start moving around.
My routine now consists of cardiovascular sessions, a warm-up heart rate, a compartmentalized strength training session, and then 40 to 45 minutes of mobility at the end of every activity. It’s no longer these three to three-and-a-half hour sessions of trying to be the absolute strongest I can.
We’re big fans of the show The Bear and loved your cameo in season 3. How did that opportunity come about?
I am just like you, I’m a huge fan. Some people got word of that, and Chris [Storer]the creative mind behind that show, invited me for a cameo. I have never been so starstruck, and, man, the day was incredible. They do shoot fast because they have a lot to do, and the way it’s filmed has that same intensity the show has, which I love.
It all went by so fast. But, man, the wife and I got to go to the original Chicago Mr. Beef and [the fine-dining restaurant] Alinea, so we experienced the Chicago food scene in both its simplest form, like the origins of The Bearand then what The Bear became, which was fantastic. We got to meet the cast and say hi to everybody, and I got to share screen time with everyone, and tell them how much their work provides a smile to my face and entertainment in my life. And, gosh, their last season’s coming up soon, and I’m wishing them the most success.
If you were a loaf of bread, what type of bread would you be?
Oof. The knee-jerk reaction is definitely Protein Wheat. But man… boy do I love some brioche buns. And after, you know, 40 years of doing squats, maybe I’ve curated a set of brioche buns. So I’ll go with brioche buns.
Why did you decide to become Nature’s Own “Breaducator”?
The thing I’m floored with is that you have an industry leader who, for no other reason than wanting to be better to its customers, chose to rehash their whole line and do a product line change of 38% less ingredients, all non-GMO verified. That statement alone puts Nature’s Own so far ahead of any competitors when we’re trying to make good choices in the grocery store and live healthy. I really urge people to, at the very least, go to naturesownbread.com or take a look at their products in the store, because these people did not have to do that. That’s the sign of a good group of folks. And I’m very proud to be their Breaducator.
Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
