Fight With The Gods: The Immortals' Workout

On 11/11/11 “The Immortals” will be released on theaters worldwide. I have personally high expectations since the producers are the same of the “300” (movie that I absolutely loved) also I’ve been fond of ancient Greek mythology since I was a little kid and, in particular, of the myth of Perseus hence I can’t wait to see it!

The plot is fairly simple: mad with power, King Hyperion has declared war against humanity. Amassing a bloodthirsty army of soldiers disfigured, Hyperion has scorched Greece in search of the legendary Epirus Bow, a weapon of unimaginable power forged in the heavens by Ares. Only he who possesses this bow can unleash the Titans, who have been imprisoned deep within the walls of Mount Tartaros since the dawn of time and thirst for revenge. In the king's hands, the bow would rain destruction upon mankind and annihilate the Gods. But ancient law dictates the Gods must not intervene in man's conflict. They remain powerless to stop Hyperion, until Theseus comes forth as their only hope. Secretly chosen by Zeus, Theseus must save his people from Hyperion and his hordes. Rallying a band of fellow outsiders-including visionary priestess Phaedra and cunning slave Stavros one hero will lead the uprising, or watch his homeland fall into ruin and his Gods vanish into legend.

The movie features, among others, Henry Cavill as Theseus, Stephen Dorff as Stavros, Kellan Lutz as Poseidon and Mickey Rourke as King Hyperion.

As with 300 in order to impersonate ripped Greek warriors the cast when through a pretty intense workout routine, let’s discover more about it!

Henry Cavill’s workout

To become Theseus, Henry got down to 6% body fat, developed killer rock hard abs and became ripped.
In a recent interview for AccessHollywood he reveaeled that when he signed for that role, at the first meeting, the director told him that he wanted not a 6-pack but and 8-pack and Henry went for it.
Cavill spent hours lifting weights alongside the film’s other ripped warriors. “There was a sense of team and camaraderie,” he told Men’s Health, adding, “We all sweated together, we all bled together, we all ate the same highly inefficient food and just kept on going and supported each other.”

The crew turned to Mark Twight, the owner of Gym Jones in Salt Lake City. Mark Twight is the trainer “responsible” for transforming the whole cast of “300” into an army of soldiers with washboard abs.
The training used by Mark Twight is called the “tailpipe” and it’s comprised of a 100-rep workout aimed to burn calories, melt fat and build toned muscles.
As explained by Mark Twight the tailpipe has tow sides: “The exercise portion is designed to get you gassed but the recovery is just as important.” In fact, the moment you finish an exercise you take 8 deep breath in and out your nose (kind of a yogi breath) and after that you immediately start the next exercise.
The tailpipe can also improve your sports performance because it helps you manage the stress that comes along with the extreme fatigue.
The tailpipe consists of four different exercises and you should perform each one for 25 reps with the eight breath recovery in-between.

The exercises are:
1) Goblet squats: grab a dumbbell or kettlebell and hold it against your chest. With a kbell, hold the horns, but with a dumbbell just hold it vertical by the one end…like you are holding a Goblet against your chest. (You see…Goblet Squats). Now with the weight cradled against your chest, squat down with the goal of having your elbows (pointed down because you are cradling the bell) slide past the inside of your knees. It is okay to have the elbows push the knees out as you descend.
2) Kettle-bell swings: grab a kettle-bell bend at your hips and hold a kettlebell or dumbbell with both hands at arm's length down in front of you. Rock back slightly and "hike" the kettlebell between your legs. Then squeeze your glutes, thrust your hips forward forcefully, and swing the weight to shoulder height. Allow momentum to swing the weight. Reverse the move between your legs, and keep swinging.
3) Squat thrust: they are very similar to burpee. From a standing position, drop to a squat position with your hands on the ground near your feet. Throw the feet back, putting yourself into a push up position.
Again pull the feet forward to a squat position with hands on the floor. Stand again.
4) Jumping Jacks: do you need an explanation for these???

Considerations

The common question that I get asked all the time is: will this celebrity workout work for me?
And the answer is always the same: there’s no difference between an Hollywood actor and the average Joe except for the fact that most of celebrity see their fitness and health as part of their job.
Henry confessed to Men’s Health “It’s very stressful, waking up Monday morning and saying ‘Can I still see that vein in my abs?”

When it comes down to movies like “The Immortals” where you have to look ripped there’s no magic pill except for hitting the gym everyday, sweat it out and eat healthy.
If celebrities do it, you can as well. And as always it all comes down to dedication, discipline and consistency!

The Iron You