Anyone that has watched all the X-Men films would have spotted that in the latest installment, Wolverine, Hugh Jackman beefed up his muscles. In an interview he said that he wanted to take the Wolverine character to a new level and to show Wolverine to be the raw, aggressive beast that he is. Jackman decided that to do this he needed to get bigger and stronger.
There is no doubt that just like so many other character actors, Jackman worked very hard to reach his physical goal.
Jackman’s Diet for Wolverine
Jackman spoke about his preparation for the film in an interview that appeared on the DVD extras. In he he spoke about his diet and eating regime. He basically followed a bodybuilding diet for bulking up, which combined with his weight training and cardio training helped him build bigger muscles while still staying lean.
Jackman consumed a lot of protein drinks, starting the day at 6am with a whey protein shake before doing his weight training, and then consume another afterwards. One to boost glycogen then another to replenish and provide proteins. He at micro-meals throughout the day, small protein rich meals to ensure that his muscles had a constant supply of proteins and amino-acids throughout the day. Jackman consumed a lot of eggs and chicken throughout the day as part of his diet – these are popular choices as they are relatively low in fat and provide a healthy source of protein. Eggs also boost testosterone which helps to increase muscle growth.
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Protein is not everything though. Too often people that start bodybuilding hear that they require a lot of protein, and then exclude other essential food types. Jackman snacked on foods such as oats, seeds and fresh fruits and berries during the day to provide a rich source of carbohydrate. For bodybuilding diet is all about quality. Quality of carbs, quality of proteins and healthy fats – yes, fat is essential for healthy muscle growth.
Mid morning Jackman would have another protein meal of stir fried meats (usually turkey) with plenty of green vegetables such as broccoli, spinach and cabbage. Then lunch a few hours later would consist of a larger portion of meat, served with wholemeal rice and greens.
Mid-afternoon would see him eating more nuts and seeds with some dried fruits to supply energy to the muscles.
For dinner Jackman would eat another meal consisting of lean meats such as chicken, and it will be served with a generous helping of vegetables.
Before bed Jackman would have another protein smoothie to give his muscles all the protein they require to repair while he sleeps. Sleep is vital for recovery.
Jackman’s Workout for Wolverine
Hugh Jackman carried out an advanced bodybuilding / strength training regime for his role as Wolverine. Jackman used supersets for this, which means that rather than perform a set of one exercise, rest, and repeat, he would perform a set of one exercise, then move on to do another set of a different exercise immediately afterwards. Prior to any workout he would obviously warm up with some gentle cardio and then use an empty by and go through the moves to get the blood flowing.
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Wolverine Chest Exercises
- Bench Press supersetted with
- Dumbbell Flyes
Wolverine Tricep Exercises
- Dips
- Cable press-downs
Wolverine Chest Pump
- Cable Crossovers – an additional chest exercise to beef up the pecs – hit them from all angles
Wolverine Leg Exercises
Legs are as important as any other body part. Remember the criticism Brad Pitt had in Troy? Skinny legs just don’t do it!
- Barbell Squat – classic and best leg exercise
- Split Squats – similar to one legged squats, keep one leg behind you and raised on a bench
Wolverine Back Exercises
- Barbell Deadlifts – another classic strength builder and fantastic for building muscle
- Dumbbell lunges – some say these are not required if you squat properly, some just love lunges.
These exercises would not all be done in the same session, Jackman would split them up into body parts, eg. legs and chest day followed by a back and arms day. Cardio is essential as well to keep the fat off, and ideally cardio should be done intensively, and not before weight training.
Remember to always aim to increase the weight that you lift each workout, progressive overload build muscle and strength. Also remember to get rest as overtraining can cause muscle decay and also weaken the immune system, and if you get a bad cold, you will not be able to train at all.
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Hey Jon,
this is Patrick from fudw.. I’d like to ask you a question..maybe you have an idea:
I started lifting weights at 16 years old and had pretty much accomplished my goal by age 20. I worked out 4 times/week doing basically what bodybuilders do to “bulk up” – then thought..okay I have enough muscle by now, I’ll only maintain it. Actually for the last 3 years or so I havent eaten any additional protein (while bulking up I made sure I drank a ton of low-fat milk and the light to get enough protein (2g/kg bodyweight).
So now Im 6 years older, still in the same shape…but I’m a bit concerned about some things. To keep it brief, I want to change my work out…not using really low reps anymore as I have during the previous years+switching to exercises that are considered safe,etc. …
The main thing Im wondering about however is protein consumption. I realize I did everything in a somewhat extreme way back then.
I do not really have to ever push myself to eat lots of protein every day anymore the way I did it back then (in case I ever have to take time off from lifting b/c of illness, injury or w/e)…I also plan on losing a bit of muscle overall and going for nothing but a toned body. The way many athletes look who lift weights only on the side (not as their main sport)…think Michael Ballack for example, or what many swimmers look like (not as ripped, though).
So what I wanted to ask you is this – do you know of any people (e.g. people who you train martial arts with maybe) who have some visible muscle on their frame (really just mean some gains..as mentioned above, nothing extreme..as in that it shows that they lift regularly), who just eat healthy and lift properly, but w/o making an effort to get enough protein every day?
thanks!
I think that you can do pretty well without huge amounts of protein, by well I mean maintain your muscle and keep reasonable trim. If you are doing your regular weight training with a some intensive cardio thrown in too then this should give you a Michael Ballack look (although his arms area bit small). I think a healthy diet is the key, plenty of fish, pulses, salads, chicken, eggs etc. with less of the red meat / saturate fats and refined carbs. This is probably more important than just getting more protein, because as you know, the muscle is usually still there, just covered in a layer of fat. But, protein is easy to get in moderate amounts – a few eggs at breakfast, chicken for lunch etc. plus a protein drink after a big workout. A lot of the fit martial artists at my old club are working out pretty hard, and doing loads of bodyweight exercises as well as boxing workouts. Not sure about many of their diets, but it is a different workout to just lifting weights, so not sure how easy it is to compare.