It begins with the Mind

What does it take for a man previously joked as Mr.Chicken Legs to one day become the famous Wolverine In Hugh Jackman’s words, “An animal spirit and conviction of mind over matter.” He believes to be able to portray the Man-animal on-screen, you really have to unleash the beast in you during gym hours. To be able to do that, not only does one need to eat and train like an animal, but think and behave like one too. So, how did he do it? How did he turn out this eye-popping miracle of physicality? That’s the question everybody’s seeking answer to.

What happens when you are benching 315 pounds continuously? There comes a point when you cannot do it anymore. Well Jackman, who doesn’t believe in setting goals, calls them defining moments. The moments when you decide to give up, the moment when you get scared, these moments hold the maximum potential of turning you into something you never even imagined you can ever be.

We have far more ability than we give ourselves credit for. Fear has a lot of power, harness it! ~ Hugh Jackman

Easy lessons to take away:

Wolverine Workout Routine

Don’t get your muscles get used to anything. To increase their mass, increase their memory. Give them something new to learn every three weeks, so mix things up. Change incline, tempo, speed, grip or anything to make it different but never over train.

Day 1 : Arms and Chest

EXERCISE REPS Dumbbell Bench Press, Dumbbell Flyes, Feet-up Bench Dips, Cable Press Down Sets: 4 each exercise Reps: 10-12 (last set to failure) Rest: 2 mins between sets Cardio (Treadmill) 20 minutes Begin with 12kmph & 1% elevation, increase elevation with 1% every 30 seconds. Stop for a minute when you can’t do it any more. Repeat.

Day 2 : Legs

EXERCISE REPS Barbell Squat, Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat, Romanian Deadlift, One-Leg Gym Ball Curl Sets: 4 each side Reps: 10-12 (final set to exhaustion) Rest: 2 minutes between supersets Travelling Dumbbell Lunge Sets: 2 Reps: to exhaustion Rest: 1 minute between sets Cardio (Rowing Machine) Distance 4000 m

Day 3 : Rest

Day 4 : Back & Biceps

EXERCISE REPS Cable Row, Bent Over Dumbbell Reverse Flye, Hammer-Grip Weighted Chin-up, EZ Bar Curl Sets: 4 each exercise Reps: 10-12 (last set to failure) Rest: 2 mins between sets Inverted Row Sets: 2 Reps: to exhaustion Rest: 1 minute between sets Cardio (Exercise Bike Intervals) 20 minutes 5 minutes steady, pedal your fastest for 30 seconds, recover slow for 2 minutes, Repeat this for remaining minutes

Day 5 : Shoulder & Abs

EXERCISE REPS Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press, Dumbbell Lateral Raise, Weighted Crunch, Gym Ball Jackknife Sets: 4 each exercise Reps: 10-12 (last set to failure) Rest: 2 mins between sets Twisted Bicycles Sets: 2 Reps: to exhaustion Rest: 1 minute between sets Cardio (Treadmill Sprints) 10 X 30 seconds 2% elevation with fast pace, jump in between for 30 seconds, jump out and rest for 30 seconds, Repeat this for 10 times

Diet and Supplements

To offset his 6’2” frame, Jackman ate around 6000 calories each day in 6-7 meals and worked out for 60-90 minutes four times a week. Rest of the days, he’d go out swimming in ocean or practice key tai-chi forms and yoga.

TIME DIET 5 AM (an hour before training) Oats and berries soaked in apple juice with sunflower and pumpkin seeds (slow digesting carbs for energy and iron for improved blood circulation) 6-7 AM (before and after weights) Protein supplements 7:30 AM (after cardio) Recovery shake and bar 7:45 AM (after training) Whey protein smoothie with half banana and 15 g cashews in semi-skimmed milk 10 AM (morning protein boost) Stir-fry Turkey with spinach, broccoli, mushroom and cauliflower 1 PM (Lunch) 200 g rosemary chicken with sugar snap peas and asparagus 4 PM (mid afternoon energy) Baked walnuts (150 g), Sunflower seeds (75 g), apricot (75 g), Pumpkin seeds (50 g) and goji berries (50 g) 6 PM (protein dinner) Tuna steak with broccoli and cauliflower 10 PM (before bed) Protein smoothie made with natural yogurt, honey and almonds

When you can’t do it, get insanely pissed off. Yell and scream like Wolverine would. Start with a vicious mental approach, flag all tipping points with every drop of tenacity and finish like a winner.