Hugh Jackman's Wolverine Workout
I feel comfortable enough to say this: Hugh Jackman looks good... real good. He hovers only slightly below "man-crush" status in my books. The 6'3" star of the latest X-Men installment has garnered a lot of attention for his formidable physique. Turns out he worked pretty hard to achieve it - here's how he did it.
The Exercise
- Jackman did weight training for 15 months before filming started
- The first phase was focused on building muscle mass by altering the tempo or speed of the lift. Jackman's trainer - Steve Ramsbottom had him lift the weight to a three-second count up and then a one-second count down.
- The second phase focused on maximum strength where Jackman was lifting really heavy weights, without any attention to tempo.
- Each phase lasted from six to 12 weeks depending on results and then was repeated. During each phase, Jackman would lift weights for one to two hours, five days a week.
- During the last week of the phase, Jackman would lift only one day and fill the other days with yoga, pilates, running and stretching.
The vision I had in my head for the character - I didn't feel like it had ever really been fulfilled in the first three movies. It wasn't enough to be pumped up or look like a bodybuilder or big. I wanted him to look more menacing, leaner, veinier, make people a little uncomfortable to look at him rather than go, 'Oh, wow, what a great bod.'
The Diet
Seven protein-rich meals a day and peppermint tea. First meal? Egg whites at 4am.
I get up at 4am and eat egg whites, then every three hours after that. I have a combination of protein or steamed vegetables and brown rice. Then after midday, no rice or carbohydrates. It's just vegetables and meat or fish."
Don't Try This at Home
While this sort of situation can provide some serious motivation, it is important to remember that this is a full-time job for Hollywood stars. They have the time, the resources and millions of dollars at stake. Further, Jackman himself concedes that this isn't a permanent situation - confirming that this isn't a sustainable way to train/eat.
But if you want to wake up at 4am to pound egg whites - knock yourself out!
Addendum: Saw X-Men: Origins on the weekend. A little disapointing but Hugh does look very ripped. Should also mention his co-stars Liev Schreiber and Ryan Reynolds certainly looked like they made a few trips to the gym as well.
Sources:
The Coventry Telegraph
The Canadian Press
13 Comments
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Jackman is a great guy. He goes hard, attains his goal and then is humble enough to concede that this situation is not permanent. Then tells people the truth - his diet/fitness plan is not sustainable. Jackman is a gent.
ReplyYou hit the nail on the head - this is not sustainable nor is it for the average Joe. One to two hours five days a week? Only for a couple n' million dollars!!
ReplyIt's helpful to remember what the goal of his workout was; to look beefy in all the right ways for the cameras. This isn't all that different from the regimens competitive bodybuilders go through to perfect their look, and they (generally) hold down regular jobs to pay for their tuna and cottage cheese. If you make a lifestyle out of the gym, 1-2 hours 5/week isn't unusual or excessive.
ReplyHa, he could have seen even better results if he focused just as much on the eccentric motion (lowering of the weight). In fact, the eccentric is WAY more important than the concentric when it comes to hypertrophy.
Also, if he trained 3-4 times a week, his gains would have been greater. 5 days a week for mass training? ERRR! Wrong... you're only eating up in your recovery time, and that's when you TRULY grow. For those wanting to mass train, take note!
In the end, he still looked pretty good. Saw the movie, kicked a$$... wish it was longer.
ReplyI too was a little curious why the tempo seemed a little backward - although I'm not terribly convinced that this would make a drastic difference, provided the volume/weight on the bar was adequate.
I should contact the trainer - Steve Ramsbottom and ask. He's a Vancouver gut too.
ReplyMike
You can contact Steve Ramsbottom at www.performanceforsport.com. Check this out though, he just released Phase 1 of the workout plans he used with Hugh for X2, X3 and Van Helsing. www.performanceforsport.com/adpactionstar.html
ReplyI have to say man. The eccentric part of the lift is certainly not more important than the concentric. Not even for hypertrophy. I have a degree in exercise science as well as a cscs im not just saying this to say it. If you are concentrating on the eccentric motion I would stop and work on improving the explosiveness of the concentric motion in order to recruit type 2 muscle fibers which are larger.
ReplyOh, did you want a comment about the workout.. I was too busy drooling!!! HA!
I think the important part for people to realize is that for him, he was doing this for a role & it is not sustainable long term for him. It definitely is more like a competition program.
Although it is not something a "regular person" may want to follow, learning from that phase cycle is a take away. Depending on your goals, breaking down your workouts into phases like this can help you achieve certain goals. Even if you are at a point that you are happy with your weight & body, change is important to a routine.
ReplyHad to laugh when you said you were "too busy drooling." Right there with ya, sister!! Hugh is one gorgeous dude - especially when he's totally buffed and ripped like that. Woohoo!! A friend of mine used to work for him - said he was a super nice guy. Not always the case with these celebs, so it was great to hear.
ReplyI'm glad he's so honest about just how much work went into that body. Hollywood people get paid big bucks to morph their bodies to the roles they play, so for him I guess it's not a big deal. He usually has a pretty decent body anyway, but he looks REALLY good in that movie!
ReplyHugh did an interview for a local Sydney mag 'Sunday Life' when he was preparing for the film Australia. I've held onto a copy as I really liked what he had to say:
"70% is your diet and only 30% is training. What you eat is everything. I just always thought it was about lifting harder, heavier, longer, but I think you have to eat more and eat leaner. Bland really."
I love that he admits having his great body is hard work and a little boring too.
ReplyHeard him interviewed on The Stern Show last week. He says he ate 5000 calories a day and sometimes trained 2x a day to get into shape for Wolverine.
Curt
ReplyThis is interesting and at the same time quite tough to follow...It's true celebrities have the resources,time and money to work on all these..If somebody make bodybuilding as career..then it may be possible..Otherwise it's quite tough routine to follow according to me...
Reply