We’ve seen a handful of video game inspired workouts at SHJ, but this will be the first that does not actually revolve around the specific individual character, but in this case: two!

For our “The Last Of Us Workout” we’ll be working with both Joel and Ellie to craft the best overall regime.

In the past we’ve seen a handful of Mortal Kombat routines (like The Scorpion Workout and Liu Kang Workout), Doomguy, Kratos, The Witcher, and so many more.

You can actually even check them all out in our Video Game Inspired Workout section being that we’ve now had so many!

That being said, I’m actually really excited for this one, and not just because the current Last Of Us 2 is so hyped right now.

With some help from our Academy and Legacy members I’m feeling pretty confident about this one!

Joel and Ellie Stats:

Height:

Joel: 5’10-5’11

Ellie: 5’3

Age:

Joel: Late 40’s – Mid 50’s

Ellie: 13-19

Powers: No

Video Game: The Last Of Us and The Last Of Us 2

That leaves Joel slightly below average height for men, and Ellie below average height among the females we’ve seen at SHJ.

And at first I was going to mention the fact that we initial see Ellie at the age of 13, but her Wiki states that even at 19 her age remains the same.

Vegeta were tied Wolverine for the shortest spot among comic characters we’ve seen at 5’3, prior to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles coming in at 5’2, (and Gimli even shorter) – but Damian Wayne (Robin) is only 5’4.  Goku isn’t that tall either, though, standing only 5’7, with Miles Morales only an inch above him.

One Punch Man falls in at 5’9 right there with Ryu, Nightwing at 5’10, and then Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Green Arrow coming in around 5’11 and Beast joining them.

We’ve had Superman and Eddie Brock’s Venom at 6’3, and Captain America, Scorpion and Batman at 6’2, and Carnage at 6’1. Thor and Cyborg are towering over them at 6’6, Thanos and King right there with them at 6’7, Bane at 6’8, and Deathstroke right below at 6’5, and Black Manta at 6’4.

Ronan and Sagat are 7’5, and Doomsday came in at 8’10, and I doubt any characters are touching that anytime soon.

But, don’t worry if you’re not the same height or weight range.

We write these routines to be utilized by anyone and everyone.

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The Last Of Us Diet and Nutrition

**Keep in mind: this section will be nearly identical for each hero, unless I mentioned differently (for example someone like Hulk may get something specifically different)**

Every hero needs to still have a good diet.

Unfortunately we can train like them, but I don’t think any of us are suddenly getting their powers, or the ability to magically stop caring about nutrition.

You can’t out train your diet, so I want to still give some pillars for nutrition.

You can start by checking out The Nutrition Pillars on the site, but I’ll break down some more information for you guys as well.

Guys like Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart incorporate 80/20 dieting with big weekly cheat meals, Hugh Jackman, Tom Hopper, Benedict Cumberbatch and Terry Crews utilize intermittent fasting (something I use daily as well), Ariana Grande, Mustafa Shakir and Madelaine Petsch are vegans, Brandon Routh and Frank Grillo opt for paleo, and tons of others utilize their own variations as well.

It’s all about sustainability.

AND, there are a thousand different ways to reach your goals, so finding the most sustainable way is what’s important.

Which is why our Academy utilizes multiple different Nutrition Classes (Greek Gods, Vikings, Spartans, Hunter Gatherers, Monks, Samurais, Minimalists, SuperHumans) to allow people to choose what is right for YOU!

Curious where over a hundred celebs fall in their dietary choices ranging from High Protein and Keto to Vegetarian, Vegan and Intermittent Fasting? Want exclusive celeb meal plans? Check this out.

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The Last Of Us Workout Routine Research

We’ve made it to “the fun part”.

And, if you don’t know by now, I say that every single time we get to the workout routine research section for character workouts.

Being that this is the first time we’ve ever talked about a full video game (although thankfully we’re highlighting just two individuals from it) I’ll have to do things a bit differently for this section.

For that reason I’ll start with a bit of information on The Last Of Us as a whole.

Here’s a snippet from The Last Of Us Wiki Fandom page:

The Last of Us is a third-person action-adventure survival horror video game created exclusively for PlayStation 3, and was later remastered for the PlayStation 4. The game was developed by a portion of the employees at Naughty Dog, while the other half of the company went to develop Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception; established for the purpose of creating new intellectual property as well as continuing the Uncharted series simultaneously.

Set in the post-apocalyptic United States, the game tells the story of survivors Joel and Ellie as they work together to survive their westward journey across what remains of the country to find a possible cure for the modern fungal plague that has nearly decimated the entire human race.

That should also give you an idea, if you haven’t already played the game(s), as to why we’re focusing in on Joel and Ellie.

Which also brings us into individual sections for each character.

Starting us off with a little background information about Ellie, right from her own Wiki Fandom page:

Ellie was born sometime between 2018 and 2019, by which time fungal pandemic had spread throughout America. As a result, she grew up in an oppressive military Quarantine Zone in Boston, Massachusetts, with little knowledge of the world before infection. Before she died, Ellie’s mother, Anna, asked Marlene to watch Ellie. However, Ellie did not meet Marlene until she was 13 years old.

Which doesn’t actually give us a ton of information, but to be fair, her Wiki Fandom is EXTREMELY long and thorough.

So some things I do want to make not of is the fact that Ellie is also shown doing archery, on top of the other weapons she has used that they list as such:

Switchblade, Hunting Rifle, Ellie’s Pistol, Revolver, Shotgun, Silenced Submachine gun, Watergun, Machete, Molotov Cocktail, Nail Bomb, Smoke Bomb, Trap Mine

Now, I won’t be giving you a breakdown on how to use these weapons, BUT, I will be adding in a section that is devoted to archery and movements that are great for it.

As for Joel, his Wiki Fandom page breaks down his intro bio like this:

Joel Miller was a major character and the playable protagonist of The Last of Us, and a supporting character in The Last of Us: Left Behind and The Last of Us Part II, in which he is briefly playable. Joel was a survivor in post-apocalyptic America that has been ravaged by the cordyceps brain infection, which has decimated 60% of mankind globally. After losing his only daughter Sarah in the early stages of the outbreak, Joel becomes a ruthless and cynical smuggler eventually tasked with smuggling and protecting Ellie, a young girl who is the key to mankind’s survival. Joel eventually comes to form a strong bond with her. He is voiced and motion-captured by Troy Baker.

If it wasn’t obvious, we’re talking about a survival game, which means a lot of what we’re working with is going to come with endurance and stamina training.

Some ways we’re going to replicate their adventures into our training (and as I said I had help from our Academy and Legacy members, so thank you Harrison, Devin and others) are as follows:

• Calisthenics
• Weighted Walks and Hikes
• High Intensity Interval Training and Sprints
• Obstacle Training and Parkour

And, of course, more than that to include the archery (as stated), and other strengthening movements that will help with their other weapon usage.

As we’re doing our best to stay in the world of The Last Of Us, though, don’t expect to see an overwhelming amount of weight training.

Our calisthenics, weighted maneuvering and parkour will absolutely make up for this.

Just ask anyone utilizing our Legacy Program with no access to weights!

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The Last Of Us Workout Routine

Training Volume:

5-7 days per week

Explanation:

Joel and Ellie don’t get a break.  They’re in constant threat.  For that reason I wrote “5-7 days per week” keeping in mind that our step counts (which will be part of our programming) will also be included in that count, and likely make up that extra 2 days of training.  That being said, we will also be training 2-3 days of calisthenics and parkour, and another 2-3 days of endurance, interval training and endurance work.  The choice of which you want to do 2 days and which you want to do 3 days is completely up to you.

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The Last Of Us Workout: Sample Workout Schedule

Monday: Calisthenics and Parkour Training with 5-10K Steps

Tuesday: Endurance Work: Running

Wednesday: Calisthenics and HIIT Training

Thursday: Endurance Work: Weighted Walk/Hike

Friday: Calisthenics and Sprints

Saturday: Rest Day and 10K Steps

Sunday: Rest Day and 10K Steps

The Last Of Us Workout: Calisthenics and Parkour Training with 5-10K Steps

Warm Up:

Walk/Jog 400m

Calisthenics Workout:

Push Ups

4×25

Air Squats

4×20

Chair Dips

4×15

Sit Ups

4×10

Pull Ups/Pike Push Ups

4×5

Parkour Resources:

• The Nightrunner Parkour Workout Routine
• The Assassin’s Creed Parkour Workout Routine
• The Robbie Amell Parkour Workout Routine

Daily Steps Explanation:

Every day should involve getting in 5-10K steps, unless you are specific training with a cardio and endurance based training day that will be burning a ton of calories!

The Last Of Us Workout: Endurance Work (Running)

On your running endurance work days you’re going to want to start working your way up to long distance runs.

For that reason I would personally shoot for something like this:

Beginner: 1-3 miles

Intermediate: 3-5 miles

Advanced: 5+ miles

And if you want some resources to work your way up, we have that as well!

Running Resources:

• Constance Wu Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Ewan McGregor Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Kid Flash Workout Routine and Diet Plan
• Grant Gustin Workout Routine and Diet Plan

The Last Of Us Workout: Calisthenics and HIIT

Warm Up:

Walk/Jog 400m

Calisthenics Workout:

Forearm Planks

3×60 seconds

Mountain Climbers

3×25

Jumping Lunges

3×20

Plank to Push Ups

3×15

Lying Leg Raises with Hip Thrust

3×10

Chin Ups

3×5

Jump Rope HIIT:

Complete 3 Rounds

• 30 Jump Ropes
• 25 Air Squats
• 30 Jump Ropes
• 25 Plank Shoulder Taps
• 30 Jump Ropes
• 25 Push Ups
• 30 Jump Ropes
• 25 Sit Ups

The Last Of Us Workout: Endurance Work (Weighted Walk/Hike)

Time for some weight!

You’ll see that Joel and Ellie are constantly trekking around their backpacks, so it’s time to replicate that feeling with our own weighted walk.

Throw on 20-50 lbs of weight (body armor, bodyweight vest, weighted backpack, etc), and go for a walk/hike!

Here’s how I would structure mine:

Beginner: 3-5 miles

Intermediate: 5-7 miles

Advanced: 7-10+ miles

And, if not obvious, take it slow, do as much as YOU personally can, but don’t go overboard.

The Last Of Us Workout: Calisthenics and Sprints

Warm Up:

Walk/Jog 400m

Calisthenics Workout:

Wide to Close Push Ups

3×30

Glute Bridges

3×25

Box Jumps

3×20

Calisthenic Skull Crushers

3×15

Pike Push Ups

3×10

Burpees

3×5

Sprints:

Complete 20-30 Minutes of Interval Sprints

Formatting:

• 90 Seconds OFF: Walk 2-3 MPH
• 30 Seconds ON: Sprint 7-10+ MPH

Bonus: Archery Movements and Strength Building

On top of becoming stronger with calisthenics and parkour necessary training, there are also some movements we can utilize to strengthen specific muscles utilized for archery.

Of course, if you can also get out there and become a pro with a bow and arrow, that’s even better.

But, if you’re one day planning on it, it’s a good idea to incorporate these workouts, as shared with us by Archery360:

• Single Arm Dumbbell Rows
• Romanian Deadlift
• Dumbbell Side Raise
• Rowing Machine
• Forearm Planks

As you can tell I’ve included planks, or variations of them, within our calisthenic circuits on purpose to give you a bit of a head start on the matter.

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