Last updated on October 14th, 2021 at 06:21 pm
We’re working our way through some new Fullmetal Alchemist inspired workout routines, and we’re now up to our Strong Arm Alchemist!
The members of The SHJ Army made it very clear that our Anime Workouts Database is missing some more FHA.
Up until this point we’ve had our Edward Elric Workout and along with Armstrong’s Workout this week we also already had our Roy Mustang Workout as well.
I chose Roy Mustang and Armstrong for obvious reasons to follow up Elric, but I’m excited to be moving from a military style workout to a strongman type with this one!
Armstrong Stats:
Real Name: Alex Louis Armstrong
Height: 6’9
Weight: N/A
Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist
Powers: Alchemy
Armstrong is one of the behemoth anime characters I’ve talked about in some other character’s articles, like Roy Mustang’s.
Among anime characters he towers over them, standing in there with characters like Bane and Thanos!
Wolverine was 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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Armstrong 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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Armstrong 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.
To get us started I want to pull a brief bio from Armstrong’s Wiki Fandom, which they say:
Major Alex Louis Armstrong, also known as the Strong Arm Alchemist, is a State Alchemist and officer in the Amestrian State Military. The scion of the illustrious Armstrong family, Alex is a remarkably caring commander and friend as well as an invaluably skilled ally to Colonel Roy Mustang and Edward Elric.
And although we built Roy Mustang’s routine based on military style and tactics, we won’t be doing the same for Armstrong.
Outside of his obviously muscular and gigantic physique, Armstrong has a lot of other abilities.
Here’s how they start us off:
Remarkably talented in many fields, Alex excels in such eclectic practices as portraiture, tracking, cross-country running and wood-chopping, taking the time after each of these extraordinary feats to remark that his skills have been “passed down the Armstrong line for generations.”
The weird piece of information here is that Armstrong excels at cross-country running, which is generally going to be a much different style of training than we’d see from a Strongman, or in the FHA World: Strong Arm.
That being said, it’s something we need to recognize before moving onto his other skills.
His Wiki Fandom continues by telling us about his combat skills:
Armstrong is also a highly formidable hand-to-hand combatant, able to fight on equal grounds with such highly skilled and dangerous fighters as Scar and The Chimera Roa. Befitting his large and well-defined physique, Armstrong possesses tremendous strength and endurance bordering on superhuman, able to endure with only minor damage blunt force trauma that would render most people unconscious or crippled. His punches are able to easily plow through solid surfaces and his strength is able to nonchalantly move large and heavy objects out of the way. Despite his size, he has been noted to be deceptively fast and agile, able to dodge and maneuver against close-range attacks with surprising balance and efficiency. Armstrong’s combat style resembles boxing using strong and swift punches to overwhelm an opponent and agile dodges and swift footwork to evade attacks.
The big part of this I want to focus in on is: “Armstrong possesses tremendous strength and endurance bordering on superhuman”.
His Wiki page then finishes off his ability section by telling us about his alchemy:
Major Alex Armstrong utilizes a style of combat alchemy that has apparently been passed down the Armstrong line for generations and mixes alchemical skill with physical prowess. With the aid of two metal gauntlets strapped to his fists (both marked with transmutation circles), Armstrong transmutes objects mainly by punching them. It is possible that this method transfers the kinetic energy of his blows into the alchemical energy, enhancing the speed and force of his transmutations, since he mainly uses alchemy to rapidly produce large stone spikes, walls or other objects from the earth at a rate among the fastest in the series. The spikes in particular are extraordinarily sharp and strong, as they managed on several occasions to tear right through the Homunculus Sloth without being affected, whereas bullets, rockets and even tank shells had no effect on him. Additionally, the Armstrong style allows Alex to double as a source of heavy artillery, transforming raw stone or brickwork into projectiles which are then launched with the force of his punch. With his Alchemy being combined with hand-to-hand combat, it is notable that Alex is the first of the few State Alchemists to survive a direct fight with Scar.
So what we have to work with:
- Armstrong’s Gigantic, Muscular Physique
- Armstrong’s Super-Strength and Endurance
- Armstrong’s Cross-Country Running Ability
Thankfully the endurance will pair well with he running, although it doesn’t necessarily all go with the super-strength training.
For this we’re going to use a Strongman style workout routine and then build around it with some basic running and endurance work that can also be paired with some mixed martial arts training I provide resources for.
Get ready to lift!
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Armstrong Workout Routine
Training Volume:
4-6 days per week
Explanation:
Your gym-based Strongman training is going to be 4 days per week. I’ll also provide you with resources for running and mixed martial arts to include another 2 days of training if you’d like to train even more like Armstrong and his cross-country running.
Want To Upgrade This Workout?
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Armstrong Workout Routine: Sample Workout Schedule
Monday: Lower Body Strongman A
Tuesday: Upper Body Strongman A
Wednesday: Rest or Endurance Work
Thursday: Lower Body Strongman B
Friday: Upper Body Strongman B
Saturday: Rest or Endurance Work
Sunday: Mandatory Rest Day
Armstrong Workout Routine: Lower Body Strongman A
Barbell Deadlift
5×12, 10, 8, 5, 3
Zercher Squat
3×6
Seated Good Mornings
3×10
Split Squats with Dumbbells
3×10 each leg
DB Farmer’s Walk
3x50M
Armstrong Workout Routine: Upper Body Strongman A
Hang Clean
5×5
Push Press
4×10, 8, 5, 3
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
3×8
Pull Ups
5×5
Hammer Curls
3×12 each arm
Armstrong Workout Routine: Lower Body Strongman B
Barbell Front Squat
5×12, 10, 8, 5, 5
Hex-Bar Deadlift
3×6
Barbell Bulgarian Split Squats
3×8 each leg
Barbell Stiff-Legged Deadlift
3×8
Barbell Front Squat
3×20
Armstrong Workout Routine: Upper Body Strongman B
Barbell Incline Bench Press
5×12, 10, 8, 5, 3
Bent Over Barbell Rows
3×8
Military Press
3×8
One-Arm Dumbbell Rows
3×10 each arm
Smith Machine Shoulder Press
3×10
Armstrong Workout Routine: Endurance and MMA Resources
Endurance Training 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
- How To Train After Your First 5K (Workout Included)
MMA Training Resources:
- Deathstroke Workout Routine
- Daredevil Workout Routine
- Moon Knight Workout Routine
- Sagat Workout Routine
- Anna Diop Workout Routine and Diet Plan
- Ryan Potter Workout Routine and Diet Plan
- Frank Grillo Boxing Workout
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