Immense strength, and the ability to summon lightning are two things that make Thor the most powerful of all the Norse Gods. This must have had something to do with why Stan Lee chose him to be a superhero in Marvel Comics. In fact, I’ve read many articles before stating that Stan the man was having trouble coming up with his next superhero. Back somewhere in the late 1950’s to early 1960’s, The Incredible Hulk had been the latest superhero that Marvel Comics had invented. From my understanding, Stan wasn’t sure how to make someone stronger than the strongest man. He then had an idea. He said something along the lines of, ‘you don’t make him a man. You make him a God.’ Since the stories of the Greek gods had been told over and over, Stan Lee went with Norse mythology. After some creative twists to the original mythology, Marvel Comics came out with a new and Mighty version of Thor.
Fast forward to 2013 and BAM! we have two feature length movies that feature the Mighty Thor and another one on the way. Thor, and Avengers were both great hits, and I’m sure that Thor The Dark World will be as well. Of course all of this is in large part due to the performance of Chris Hemsworth as Thor. In order to make Marvel’s Thor character work, they needed someone who could not only bring the personality and character arc of Thor to life, they also needed someone who could physically look the part.
Many may say, ‘Well that part is simple. Anyone can eat right, and workout and get buff.’ But why then are there so many out of shape people? Then the naysayers may retort back with, ‘But actors get paid to eat right, and workout, and they have chefs prepare the food for them.’ To me, that is a valid point. Actors to get paid to get in shape. It’s part of their job. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not hard work. That doesn’t mean that it’s easy to say no to dessert. They simply recognize that it’s a job, and they do it. And what I’ve noticed a lot is that, actors who go through extreme transformations for movies usually end up sticking with some sort of exercise program when they’re done. It seems to me that they start working out on a regular basis even though they don’t keep that exact same body shape that they built for their last project. My point is, it takes hard work and dedication to get in shape.
When Chris Hemsworth got the role of Thor, he knew he had to bulk up. He saw pictures of the comic book hero and read that the guy weighed around 500 lbs. of muscle. Of course, for Chris to weigh 500 lbs. to play Thor would be ridiculous and unnecessary. However, he did need to be a lot bigger than his current weight. Before Thor he looked more like a male model than a giant god of thunder. He was put on a strict bulking workout and diet. While I don’t have the exact workout that Chris did for his transformation, I do have my own bulking workout that I’ve personally cooked up. In order to demonstrate that this workout will actually work, I’m going to follow it myself. I’m also going to follow a bulking up diet, and a simple cardio program which I’ll go over in separate articles. if you try this Thor workout yourself remember that you’re not going to build muscle unless you’re following the right kind of diet. Now some people can build muscle on bad diets, but the better the diet is the better the results are. My personal transformation challenge is to gain 10 pounds of muscle in these 9 weeks. And as you may have already figured out, in nine weeks The new Thor movie will be released in the United States. I started the challenge yesterday on Sept. 9, 2013. I weighed 156 lbs. and plan on being at least 166 lbs. before the premiere of Thor The Dark World. If you’re looking for a great muscle building workout to follow then join me in my Thor transformation. I’ll show you that it works.
My Thor workout is a hybrid workout that utilizes both bodyweight and weight training exercises. Soon, I will add a bodyweight only, and a barbell/dumbbell only version. The week before you start this program, test your Max Repetitions for the Bodyweight exercises and your 1 Rep Max for the barbell and dumbbell exercises.
All 3 versions of my Thor Workout consist of three phases which are:
Phase 1 - Fast Tempo - 4 weeks
Phase 2 - Slow Tempo - 4 weeks
Phase 3 - Recovery - 1 week
In Phase 1 each weight training exercise is done with a 1/0/1/0 tempo.
In Phases 2 and 3 each weight training exercise is done with a 3/0/1/0 tempo.
Monday/Wednesday/Friday - Weight Training
Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday - Thor Cardio
M - Chest/Back
W - Legs/Lower back
F - Shoulders/Arms
Thor Workout - Chest/Back - Phase 1
Weeks 1-4
For the last set of each of these exercises, the reps are listed as M.R. This stands for Max Repetitions which means that you perform as many reps as you can while still maintaining good form. Once your form weakens, it’s time to stop. The resistance for the barbell and dumbbell exercises are listed as a percentage of 1 R.M. This means one repetition maximum, or the amount of weight that you can lift for 1 rep.
Note: Originally, I began the program by performing every set to the maximum repetition level. I now believe that this was foolish. You may see results from that type of training, especially if you’re a beginner, but I don’t recommend it. The number of reps for the first 3 sets will be the same. That is 50% of the test week's repetitions, or in the case of the barbell and dumbbell exercises, 5 reps. Also, if you can do over 20 decline push-ups then I recommend that you find a way to add 20 lbs. A backpack filled with weights will do the trick.
1st, 2nd, 3rd set - 50% Maximum Repetitions
4th set - Max Reps
Monday - Chest/Back
Superset - 4 sets - 1/0/1/0
One Arm Push-ups - BW
Wide Grip Pull-ups - BW
Superset - 4 sets - 1/0/1/0
Decline Push-ups - BW + 20
DB Bent over Rows - 60% 1RM
Superset - 4 sets - 1/0/1/0
DB Pullovers - 20 - 40 lbs.
Knee Raises - BW
Thor Workout - Legs/Lower Back - Phase 1
Wednesday - Legs/Lower Back
Superset - 4 sets - 1/0/1/0
One Leg Squats - BW
Straight Leg Deadlifts - 135 lbs.
Superset - 4 sets - 1/0/1/0
Lunges - 60% 1 RM
DB Swings - 60% 1 RM
Superset - 3 sets - 1/0/1/0
One Leg Calf Raises - BW
Side Bends - 60% 1 RM
Thor Workout - Shoulders/Arms - Phase 1
Friday - Shoulders/Arms
4 sets - 1/0/1/0
Clean and Press - 60% 1RM
Superset -4 sets of MR - 1/0/1/0
Bicep Curls - 60% 1RM
Tricep Extensions - 60% 1RM
Superset 3 sets - 1/0/1/0
Roman Chair Situps - BW
Standing Twists - 20 lb. Plate
