The Hollywood Superhero Factory
The blog has drifted towards women lately, so let's leave the island of Lesbos for a bit, steer the wheel back, and head towards the territories inhabited by men. This post will kick off a big topic that mostly affects men, which many explain in many different ways, and which, incidentally, can be messed up big time. Primarily with diet, but also with training. This post, by the way, is a precursor to my next program, which will be about muscle building, if I ever get to start it...
The post is an interview where 4 celebrity trainers talk about bulking up and how what we see on screen isn't always what it seems. Of course, it's not all illusion and well-adjusted lighting, so they also explain how they prepare actors for Hollywood super productions, or how spectacular results can be achieved in as little as 10 weeks. They have trained, among others, Vin Diesel, Stallone, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, the little faggot from Twilight, or that guy from the James Bond movie... damn, I can't remember his name... Daniel Craig. A few pieces of information about the four trainers, just so everyone understands that it's not elementary school PE teachers dispensing wisdom here, but recognized professional experts.
Alwyn Cosgrove: Graduated with honors from the Faculty of Sports Science at Liverpool's Chester University. From 1986, he studied martial arts for 3 years, then developed his own training method from it, which became a huge success and was recognized worldwide as a pioneering training method. This is evidenced by his high-end clientele, which consists of celebrities and athletes, world champions, and experts from other sports. He consults with numerous sports professionals and quickly becomes the most sought-after person in the fitness world. He is the co-founder of Men’s Health magazine and Fitness Santa Clarita, which has won the award for best health magazine twice in the United States. He is the head trainer for many films, and has also led the preparations of the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings NFL teams. Nowadays, he's constantly on a roadshow around the world, giving presentations on the fitness lifestyle.
Christian Thibaudeau: Canadian Olympian as a weightlifter, then founder of the Fast Motion stunt team. A key figure in the online bodybuilding community, he is credited with the first online bodybuilding website, the legendary Iron Magazine. He now has his own company called T-nation, which exclusively prepares athletes for competitions, and incidentally, he has been Vin Diesel's personal trainer for years. In 2006, he was the bodybuilding champion of Quebec province, but since Canada cannot be considered a country, we can safely skip this information.
Dr John Berardi: Dr. Mengele of the sports world. He obtained his doctorate in movement sciences, specializing in the biochemistry of exercise and nutrition, whatever that may mean. He runs a successful business called Science Link, which scientifically approaches the performance enhancement of athletes. He is the producer of the show "Sport Sciences" on Discovery Channel and owns several gyms in Los Angeles. He constantly writes articles in leading bodybuilding magazines, writes books, so the usual stuff.
Chad Waterbury: Well, he's the biggest deal because anyone he hasn't trained in Hollywood doesn't exist. He's the most sought-after and highest-paid trainer in America, and maybe not just there. The funny thing about it is that he started out as a regular personal trainer in a dusty small town in Arizona. What sets him apart from the others is that he not only trains celebrities and dot-com millionaires, but also entire police and military units.
OK, you're asked to prepare a famous actor for his next role. He needs 10 kg of muscle in 12 weeks to play a superhero. Alwyn, how would you train him?
Alwyn Cosgrove: Honestly, you'd be surprised how simple it is! The key in such cases is that these actors are super motivated, as millions of dollars are at stake; and in all likelihood, they only need to train and learn their lines during this period, so they can recover faster than the average person who also goes to school or works.
The rep range would be the traditional bulking zone, assuming the actor is a beginner. Rests would be quite short (60-75 seconds between sets). I would base the exercise selection on where the subject is weakest, as this is where there is the most untapped potential, the greatest return on energy investment.
As for the split, it would rotate between two days of training and one day of rest, with an upper body and a lower body day. For the lower body, squats and deadlifts would alternate. Essentially, I build on large, compound exercises. By the way, let me point out that in the case of film roles, fat loss can be visually more impressive than muscle gain. So, even though the original requirement was +10 kg of muscle, I would be tempted to put the subject on an extreme fat-burning program only!
That's a valid point! Ryan Reynolds gained 10 kilos for his role in Blade III, which people raved about, but they mostly emphasized his leanness. Chad, how would you handle the situation?
Chad Waterbury: Well, my primary reaction is, does the person really need +10 kg, or is it enough if it just looks that way? The former would be quite a challenge, the latter child's play. First, we need to determine where the muscle should go. In other words, does the guy primarily need upper body mass, or generally everywhere? Most Hollywood movies are obsessed with the upper body, but no one is going to pack on 10 kilos of mass in 12 weeks without serious lower body work.
So, I have to assume that he needs mass for his entire body. In any case, I would place a strong emphasis on the shoulder girdle with Olympic weightlifting exercises. Of course, these would be supplemented by some more traditional compound exercises. The selection would include deadlifts, cleans, squats, snatches, presses, and pull-ups. In addition, I would throw in some accessory exercises like hammer curls, triceps extensions, lateral raises, and calf raises.
Second question, what kind of training program has the person followed so far? To establish effective parameters, I need to know what they have done in the preceding months. For most actors, the answer is simple: they haven't trained at all. Because of this, instead of killing them at the start with 8 full-body workouts a week, we would gradually increase the training volume and frequency. Of course, we would work the whole body every time, because with a split program, it would take twice as long to "reap the harvest." Here's what the program would look like:
Weeks 1-2: 4 workouts per week
Weeks 3-4: 5 workouts per week
Weeks 5-9: 6-7 workouts per week
Weeks 10-12: 8 workouts per week
In the first two weeks, I would go to the upper limit of the repetition range. In weeks 3-4, I would aim for the middle, as the frequency of workouts increases. In weeks 5-9, there would even be two workouts a day, starting at the lower end of the range and gradually increasing the repetition volume over the weeks until I reached the upper limit. In the last two weeks, there would be two workouts on 4 days. Again, I would gradually increase the volume within the workout. By the end of the program, the guy would be a pure muscle machine!
Christian Thibaudeau: Boss, I 100% agree with you that the shoulder-trap area needs to be built up. However, I don't agree with incorporating Olympic weightlifting exercises in this case. Their learning curve is too long, and initially, the gains are primarily neurological, not actual muscle gains. Even real Olympic weightlifters need years of daily training with these exercises for their physique to improve from them.
Waterbury: I understand what you're saying, Thib, but my experience is that people learn these easily enough to be useful. Plus, we'd be working with lighter weights and more reps. And no matter how inexperienced the individual, after their first encounter with snatches and cleans, their upper back, traps, and shoulders will be very sore. And I've seen countless clients achieve spectacular results with these exercises in six weeks. But honestly, it's not worth debating Olympic exercises, because if for some reason the individual can't perform them adequately, then of course I'll use more traditional compound exercises like standing overhead presses, push presses, and upright rows. But since we're talking about an imaginary person, no one can know which movements would be most beneficial. A good trainer must always adapt to the client's individual situation.
Dr. John Berardi: All my suggestions are based on the client's physiological and body composition characteristics (somatotype, carbohydrate tolerance, etc.), so I have to imagine a type now, let's say a Toby McGuire or Brad Pitt physique: thin, not too much muscle at the start, and a rather fast metabolism — in other words, someone who desperately needs muscle to make them believe they can lift a metal trash can, let alone stop a speeding train!
The 12-week program would have three main phases, in which a palette of compound movements would be complemented with some single-joint and isolation exercises. Of course, there would be heavy loading parts (1-6 repetitions) and lighter ones (10-12 repetition range). The total weight training volume would be 3-5 hours weekly as a baseline, as we are now adapting things to a fast metabolism. So, 3-4 weight training sessions per week. However, I would also incorporate some interval training (2-3 sessions) and some active recovery activities (yoga, stretching, low-intensity cardio 2-3x). I want to increase the subject's overall conditioning and also their G-Flux with this. G-Flux refers to the total nutrient turnover, and I believe that with more food, the body's recomposition and building are of better quality. As you can imagine, with the outlined workload, a high energy intake is needed, thus the G-Flux will also be high. Overall, the training would be 7-10 hours per week. Christian, what do you suggest?
Thibaudeau: OK, gaining 10 kg of muscle tissue without doping in 12 weeks is very difficult to achieve. In fact, for most people, it may prove impossible. If everything is perfectly dialed in, most men can hope for 200-450 grams of muscle per week (the "folk wisdom" predicts about 1 kg per month in the first year of training, then only 4-5 kg after that - ed.). So, 2.5-5.5 kg of muscle in 12 weeks is conceivable if everything is perfectly thought out and executed. However, the illusion of 10 kg of extra muscle can also be created by emphasizing the appropriate areas of the body.
As we know, the body has a limited capacity to withstand stress. In the short term, therefore, focusing on certain muscle groups is more effective, allowing for more muscle gain than if the entire body had been targeted evenly. As much as I hesitate to say it, unless the superhero has to wander around in a swimming suit in the film, reduced lower body work will allow for greater upper body development. I would not train a regular client this way, and in the long run, this is not a good tactic, but it is appropriate for the current situation!
Now, we need to focus on highlighting the muscles that suggest strength and size. The most important areas, in my opinion, are the shoulders, the clavicular (upper) part of the pectoral muscle, and the traps. The arms come in second place, while the upper back and the sternal fibers of the chest get the bronze medal. Shoulder width and thickness are the first things we notice about a physique. When you first look at someone, these are what jump out at you; if they're muscular, these convey the illusion of "power." A good example of this is Sebastien Cossette, a young bodybuilder whom I trained. At the weigh-in, everyone thought he weighed 100 kilos, but he was only 80 kg! His strengths were precisely the shoulders, traps, and back. In bodybuilding and in films, illusion is more important than tangible reality!
Berardi: Great ideas so far! I really like Chad's and Christian's emphasis on the upper body, especially Christian's approach to shoulder width. This is excellent and certainly needs to be a priority! However, I warn readers that this does not mean avoiding leg work. Heavy leg work and high spinal loading undoubtedly increase the anabolic effect of training, making it important to maintain this for overall growth! I also appreciate Christian's comment regarding limited recovery capacity; however, there are two important points here: first, untrained clients can tolerate higher intensity (a higher percentage of their maximum weights) because they are not yet able to voluntarily recruit as many muscle fibers into the work. Therefore, central overtraining is not as much of a concern.
In addition, active recovery activities, frequent naps, and an unburdened schedule all mean that more training can be done without risk. Of course, this is also why I recommend setting a higher G-Flux. In such cases, the actor can eat a ton, which is necessary for growth, but doesn't have to worry about getting too fat. Big muscles require a lot of food! This also refers to the case where the person does not have a fast metabolism. This is why I believe that both thin and heavy individuals can do more training (weightlifting, intervals, recovery activities) than we might think, because if the energy intake and outflow are higher, the body composition change will be better.
I repeat, if we assume that our actor is relatively inexperienced in the gym, can rest and engage in active recovery activities, and eats a lot of good food, then recovery will not be an issue from this training.
OK, this is all great information! The question of doping comes up, but everyone has given advice for a natural case. Do you think actors dope, or is it all just due to beginners' rapid progress and good lighting?
Cosgrove: While I consider it probable that in some cases doping does occur, I think the majority simply represents the "perfect scenario." And a large part of the visual effect is based purely on massive fat loss. As we've already mentioned, especially in film, leanness can greatly enhance one's appearance. Wealthy actors have time, all their meals are prepared for them, and a hundred-million-dollar movie role is a huge motivation.
Berardi: I can't say whether actors dope. Maybe some do... I don't know. But thinking about it more, there are few who are so muscular that it would raise my suspicion. If a Will Smith, Brad Pitt, Toby McGuire can put on 10 kilos in half a year (because generally they have more time than 12 weeks), then the internet goes crazy with rumors. But is the average gym-goer really so inept that this development is inconceivable for them in this amount of time with great training, good food, and modern supplements? No wonder I still have a job!
Waterbury: If we were in the 80s, I'd say superhero types used anabolic steroids. You all know who I'm talking about! (Stallone was caught at customs not so long ago with his illegal substances) Nowadays, however, leading actors are not that muscular. Perhaps The Rock is the only big one. With modern training science and supplements, I don't think there are many steroid users, but again, today's protagonists are not like Conan was!
Thibaudeau: Well, lighting, makeup, and the opportunity to get a pump before a scene all provide an advantage. But these techniques don't create muscles that aren't already there. Some people obviously use steroids. If someone is offered a multi-million-dollar role for an extra 10 kg of muscle, they might choose the "easier" path (I'm not saying it's easy, because without hard work and good food, steroids won't turn you into a Greek god!).
I also confirm that the typical actor is not actually that big or muscular. Anyone who is even slightly in shape will stand out in a film. It's also common for producers to choose a taller person for a superhero role, which almost guarantees them above-average physical characteristics. Add some muscle in the right places and you already have a hero. By the way, we have already highlighted the importance of leanness; I can imagine substances like Clenbuterol being used in their arsenal for this purpose. In any case, the lesson is that although doping may occur among actors, it is not absolutely necessary.
