Photo Credit: Chesi-Fotos on Flickr.com
Hugh Jackman has gone from being a regular skinny guy in his early acting career to a guy with a body worthy of the role Wolverine. Standing at about 6’3”, Jackman’s transformation between even the first and second X-men movies was impressive, and for the third film, X-men: The Last Stand … he benched 315 pounds and leg-pressed 1,000 to prep.
When asked about what his secret is behind his physical achievements, Jackman simply replied,” BRAINPOWER.” He is constantly looking for the line between what his mind wants and what his body can actually achieve. There is no secret that has Jackman looking like he does. His workouts are not groundbreaking. There is a lot of heavy iron involved: bench-press variations, barbell lunges, light squats, and staples are just a few exercises to name a few. Hugh changes his workouts up to get the most results from different exercises. He does three weeks of really heavy lifting with lots of rest in between sets. After that, he may change to lighter weights, slower reps (four count up, four count down). Lastly, he will mix in fast and explosive lifting. Jackman thinks differently from other people, pointing out his opinion on goals in general.
Jackman on Goal Setting: “I don’t set goals in life. In this country, people are all about goal setting. And I concede, to a point, how it can help you get going. But we limit ourselves with goals. We have far more ability than we give ourselves credit for. You see that in people under pressure. How does someone run a 100-meter race at the Olympics? When it’s once every 4 years, with everything they’ve done leading to that? It can’t just be adrenaline. It may just be the mind getting out of the way.”
Jackman’s take on mindset while working out for his role as Wolverine: “For Wolverine, I ramp it (workouts) up. I do an hour and a half a day in the gym and eat a thousand calories more a day than I would normally. And I train really hard. I yell and scream, which helps me get into the character and to have a bi*** of a workout.”
Hugh on benching 315: “When I have 315 pounds above me, there’s that little breaking point and you either get really pissed off at that weight, or you ask for help from your spotter. It’s that exact point when Wolverine gets not just pissed off, but insanely pissed off. I try to reach that point every day in my workout. And then push through it.”
Hugh’s approach to failing: “You have to be willing to fail in a pressure situation. That fear holds all of us back and that’s the toughest thing about aging. With aging, you see people fail more. You see yourself fail more. How do you keep that fearlessness of a kid? You keep going. Luckily, I’m not afraid to make a fool of myself.”
Information comprised from Menshealth.com
