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Fitness & Health

30th Aug 2013

Here’s The Rock’s workout plan that got him in incredible shape for Pain & Gain

We all know Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is in good shape, so if you want to hit the gym like him, check out his workout plan

JOE

We all know Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is in good shape, so if you want to hit the gym like him, check out his workout plan

In case you haven’t already seen all the publicity for Pain & Gain (in cinemas now) then you might not know that Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is, as usual, looking like an absolute beast (or baysht, as we might say in Ireland).

In order to train for the role, he was in the gym for intense workout session of 45-60 minutes instead of slogging away for long periods, which he had been doing before he hooked up with personal trainer Dave Rienzi.

According to Men’s Health, Rienzi has been working with Johnson for about two years, and he has bulked up significantly in that time using these more intense but shorter sessions.

He also got in what might well be the best shape of his life for Pain & Gain, both with his sessions in the gym as well as his eating plan, which focused on eating regularly, and getting clean calories into his system to fuel him.

Remember, going to the gym is just part of the routine, and one of the biggest factors in this is Johnson’s eating plan. If you want the full low-down on eating like The Rock, then pick up September’s copy of Men’s Health and see what the story is or pick up a digital copy, as well as getting a whole heap of useful information on health and fitness in general.

Monday: Back and abs

For all workouts unless otherwise stated do one set of 12 reps, one set of 10 reps and a last set of 8 reps for each exercise. Up the weight each set. Rest for 90 seconds betweens sets.

Warm up

Internal and external rotations on cable machine. 2 sets of 20 reps on each arm.

Back

Pull-ups
One arm dumbbell row
Reverse grip pulldown
Cable row
Stiff arm pullover with rope
Barbell shrugs

Abs

For both abs moves do 3 sets of 20 reps. Rest for 60 seconds between sets.

Rope crunches
Hyperextensions (or 45° back raises – for these the key is to ensure that you keep your shoulders back and neck straight on the decline, do not curl over when lowering yourself down)

Tuesday: Chest and calves

Warm up

Internal and external rotations on cable machine. 2 sets of 20 reps on each arm.

Chest

Incline dumbbell press
Flat dumbbell press
Incline fly
Cable crossover (3 x 20 reps, high to low)
Cable crossover (3 x 20 reps, low to high)

Calves

Do 3 sets of 50 reps for each all three exercises.

Standing calf raise
Leg press calf raise
Single leg standing calf raise with dumbbells

Wednesday: Legs and abs

Warm up

Hip flexor stretches, leg swings and kicks, foam rolling and glute bridges.

Legs

Take 90 seconds rest betweens sets.

Leg extension (3 x 20 reps)
Leg press (3 x 50 reps)
Single leg press (3 x 20 reps)
Dumbbell lunges (3 x 20 reps)
Lying leg curls (3 x 15 reps)
Romanian deadlifts (3 x 12 reps)

Abs

Side plank (3 reps, hold for 60 seconds)

Thursday: Shoulders

Warm up

Internal and external rotations on cable machine. 2 sets of 20 reps on each arm.

Seated lateral raise (5 sets)
Dumbbell shoulder press
Side lateral raise superset
Cable side lateral raise (no rest between sets)

Friday: Arms

Warm up

Internal and external rotations on cable machine. 2 sets of 20 reps on each arm.


Barbell curls
Preacher curls
Close grip cable curls
V-bar pushdowns
Single arm overhead triceps extension
Rope pushdown superset with leaning rope extension

Weekend

Rest!

Pain & Gain hits cinemas today, so go and catch it to get some serious gymspiration from both Johnson and Wahlberg, who both got into incredible shape for their rolesww