There are a few moments in cinematic history that leave audiences gasping in shock and awe and get classified as some of the great movie moments of all time; Bogie and Bergman saying goodbye on that foggy airstrip in "Casablanca", the shower scene in "Psycho", Marilyn Munroe over that subway grate in "The Seven Year Itch", the head swivel in "The Exorcist", and when Meg Ryan faked it in "When Harry Met Sally". Another one of those moments is when Brad Pitt ripped off his shirt in Fight Club… Ok, maybe classifying that as cinematic history may be a bit of a stretch, but it sure got gasps from men and women a like. In that moment, all around the world, men wanted to be him and women wanted to be with him. His torso in Fight Club became an iconic image of the actor and revealed a new body type consisting of lean muscle which was very different from the popular bulky muscled look at the time, and created a new popular body image that guys wanted to strive for. Brad has had many starring roles in movies over the years, and ones where his torso and body get featured relentlessly, so he had had to adopt varying exercise, diet and workout routines. Today we are going to take a look at some of his tips and techniques to getting in shape for Fight Club, and ones that may benefit you in your fat loss and muscle building goals.
Brad’s Workout
In getting ready for his role in Fight Club, Brad embarked on a rigorous workout routine that comprised of working out one body part per day, per week, leaving his body ample time to recover and grow. His rep range was targeted at around 15 reps per exercise, and he completed 3 sets of each, ensuring that he went to failure on each and every set. His routine was as follows…
Monday: Chest
– Pushups
– Chest Press
– Incline Press
– Pec Deck
Tuesday: Back
– Pullups
– Seated Rows
– Pulldowns
– T Bar Rows
Wednesday: Shoulders
– Arnold Dumbell Press
– Lateral Raises
– Front Raises
Thursday: Biceps and Triceps
– Curl Machine
– Cable Curls
– Hammer Curls
– Tricep Pushdowns
Friday: Cardio
Treadmill walking or running for 45 minutes
Saturday and Sunday: Rest
Brad’s Diet
Brad also maintained a fairly strict diet of whole foods sources of lean proteins, whole grain carbohydrates and vegetables. Other than whey protein shakes, Brad’s diet did not include any supplements. A typical day’s diet consisted of:
Breakfast: 6 eggs and oatmeal with raisins. Brad would sometimes replace the eggs with a whey protein shake if he was short on time
Snack: Canned tuna on whole wheat pita bread.
Lunch: 2 chicken breasts, brown rice or pasta, and vegetables
Snack (Pre Workout): Protein bar or whey protein shake with a banana
Post Workout: Whey protein shake and a banana
Dinner: Grilled fish or chicken, brown rice or pasta, vegetables and salad
Before Bed: Casein protein shake or low fat cottage cheese
You may have noticed that in Troy, that Brad’s physique looked slightly more muscular. That’s because for that role he put on an extra 10 – 15 pounds of muscle. Constantly maintaining the extremely low body fat he achieved for Fight Club is not realistic and would make it hard for him to acquire any real gains in muscle mass, so he adjusted his diet and workout routine accordingly. He increased the time spent lifting in the gym, cut back on cardio, and gave up beer and chips, although he admits to indulging in the occasional cheat meal of a McDonalds McFlurry.
All in all, in comparison to other celebrity workouts and diets I have featured here on Healthy Boy, Brads is extremely achievable for the everyday guy who is wanting to put on some lean muscle mass and shed some fat. He didn’t spend countless hours in the gym each day, and gave his muscle ample time to recover after each workout.
