View the Gallery / 12 Photos »

In the May issue of Men’s Journal, Robert Downey Jr. talks about his passion for Wing Chun, a martial arts discipline, and how the intense practice helped him get his career on track.

“This is all about focus. Wing Chun teaches you what to concentrate on,
whether you’re here or out in the world dealing with problems,” the once drug-troubled actor said (pictured in Rome yesterday). “It’s
second nature for me now. I don’t even get to the point where there’s a
problem.”

His Wing Chun instructor also talked about how the actor, who begins worldwide promotion for Iron Man 2 this summer, underwent a transformation into a megastar.

“When he first came to me, insurance companies wouldn’t bond him for
movies; he couldn’t get roles,” Eric Oram said. “I told him if he didn’t show up to
a lesson, I was going to chop off his toes and feed them back to him.
One day he didn’t turn up, and I told him goodbye. Then he had a couple
of producers call me and vouch for him, saying, ‘He was with us in a
meeting; he didn’t have a phone. It’s our fault. Don’t cut his head
off.’ He has committed himself to it ever since and turned his life
around.”

Perhaps Lindsay Lohan should dedicate herself to martial arts, too!