Last updated on July 24th, 2017 at 08:34 pm

Superhero Jacked is a place for nerds and awesome people to come and find awesome content to start their SuperHuman Transformation, which includes tons of Superhero Workouts..

That being acknowledged, I’d like to discuss what really goes into “The Superhero Workout”.

After discussing with Chef Dave and Coach Derek a bit about routines, they floated the idea of “Fictional Character Workouts”. And, while The Superhero Workout is more-so designed towards a certain breed rather than a specific fictional character as we discussed – I wanted to cover this as the first part of the journey.

Actually, it’s quite surprising to me that something like this in particular was never covered in the past.

I’m excited to break it down and talk about exactly what goes into a Superhero Workout, how we create our workouts in The Workout Database, and even how we structured the creation of our Superhero Paths in The Superhero Academy.

This is definitely going to be fun…

But, what is a Superhero?

If you don’t know what a Superhero is yet, we’re about to go through it a bit.

It’s definitely something you’re going to need to know if you’ll be hanging out with us more at SHJ (and joining the SHJ Army).

Google tells us that a Superhero is:

su·per·he·ro

ˈso͞opərˌhirō/

noun

1. a benevolent fictional character with superhuman powers, such as Superman.

And Stan Lee, in an interview with Oxford University Press, tells us in the opening paragraph (or at least part of his explanation):

A superhero is a person who does heroic deeds and has the ability to do them in a way that a normal person couldn’t. So in order to be a superhero, you need a power that is more exceptional than any power a normal human being could possess, and you need to use that power to accomplish good deeds. Otherwise, a policeman or a fireman could be considered a superhero. For instance, a good guy fighting a bad guy could be just a regular police story or detective story or human-interest story. But if it’s a good guy with a superpower who is fighting a bad guy, it becomes a superhero story. If the good guy is doing something that a normal human being couldn’t do, couldn’t accomplish, then I assume he becomes a superhero.

By the way, if you don’t know who Stan Lee is, I’m going to have to force you to go figure that one out on your own!

Step One: Choose Your Goal

This is such a huge part of The Superhero Workout that people forget, and it blows me away.

There are different goals, and tons of different body-types, so I’m not sure why people think one specific plan will be the right match for everyone.

I’m here to tell you that there are a million different ways to get to a million different goals (exaggerating with the million…), so making your goal discovery a priority is essential to figuring out your path.

Just like Captain America, Batman, Daredevil, Flash, Hulk, and Green Arrow would all train differently to achieve their bodies, goals, and path – we have to think the same way.

Choosing your goal is so crucial that it’s also the first thing that every single person is responsible for doing when they enter The Superhero Academy.

We have 9 Workout Paths (not even including bonus paths) that are designed for specific goals, needs, and wants when it comes to choosing what type of workout is right for you.

We also have 5 Nutrition Classes (not even including bonus paths) that are also designed for specific goals, needs, and wants when it comes to choosing what type of diet is right for you.

That being said, I am quite serious about ONE PLAN not being enough to achieve EVERY goal that people can possibly set.

But, don’t get scared if you’re not yet a member of The Academy.  Being a member of The SHJ Army (which you already are if you’ve made it this far in the post), is enough!

I’ve talked about setting goals a couple other times, and if you’d like to find out more you can even check out these articles:

1. Different Methods for Different Goals
2. Defining your Fitness Goals: What are your options and Why do you need them?

Both of these articles break down the different variables there are and discuss what you have to think about when breaking into your Superhero transformation.

As you can tell, a Superhero Workout is much more than just finding your Ra’s al Ghul.

Okay, maybe that’s a lie…

Step Two: Figuring Out What Is Right For YOUR Goal

I see a lot of other Superhero Workouts tell you “Okay first we’ll do upper body, and then we’ll do lower, and then we’ll do this, and BOOM, then you’ll be JACKED!”

But, it unfortunately doesn’t work like that…

Once you choose your goal, the next step in your Superhero Workout is to figure out specifically what is right for you.  The other articles I’ve already listed will definitely help you with that, and I’ve also discussed how we do that in The Academy as well.

That being said, it’s extremely important to make sure you’re including everything you need.

For example, Hugh Jackman and Terry Crews both utilize intermittent fasting to stay ripped, but they also have very different ways of training as well.

And, for that reason, along with genetics taking a big effect, they have very different body-types as well.

One of the other biggest aspects of choosing the right workout and path for your goal is the fact that sustainability is absolutely vital to your Superhero transformation.

We talk about this time and time again, and sustainability is definitely something we strive for (possibly more than anything else).

In my own transformation I showed just how important sustaining your routine and finding something that can be utilized for a long duration (rather than a quick weight loss scheme for example) really is.

So, this step is actually something that can be seen as going hand-in-hand (and could have actually been tied right in) with step one, but I felt it was extremely important to make it even more apparent.

Also, remember this: it’s okay to choose a routine styled in a way that you like.  This is going to make that routine that much more sustainable for you.  If you like working out at home, or if you like circuit training, it’s okay to choose those types of routines to fit your needs.  It’s more important that you’ll be able to sustain a workout than it is for you to strain yourself in order to attempt to make it work.

That being said, also realize that if your goal is to tack on a ton of mass, or lose a ton of weight, you also might have to make sacrifices in order to make that specific set of guidelines work.

Step Three: Getting Started

Isn’t it crazy how this portion can also be overlooked?

Getting started is obviously extremely important, and I’m pretty sure I don’t have to explain why.

But, one thing I can easily compare it to is getting started with your nutrition.

We recently tackled a huge topic in nutrition, and we also know that nutrition in general is more than half the battle when it comes to our Superhero Workout (and transformation).

Isn’t that somethin’….

The topic I’m talking about is one that was asked about more than a few times.  Members of the SHJ Army and The Superhero Academy wanted to know how they can stop craving foods (more specifically sweets, and carbs).

One of the ways to do this was getting started and creating a habit. Obviously there was much more that went into it if you guys want to utilize more, but forming a habit is something that is extremely effective.

If you devote 14-31 days to creating your habit, eventually everything will become easier.

I promise.

The Superhero Workout is something that can be manipulated for each individual SuperHuman (and should be), and for that reason, getting started with your individual guidelines is often mistaken for Step One.

But, we already know what comes first…

And, now that we know what comes second and third I’ll make my way into a lot more about The Superhero Workout.

Before I move on though, there are two more articles that are great for people getting started:

1. Four Steps to take to Start your Fitness Journey and Become a SuperHuman
2. How to get better at Pull-Ups, Pushups, Dips, Air Squats and Calisthenics

Both these articles are good starting points for any SuperHuman looking to start their Superhero Workout.

But, what the heck is THE Superhero Workout?

Well, the big THE in that question is kind of confusing, but needed.

Their is no one specific Superhero Workout, as I’ve discussed.  There are however multiple Superhero Workouts that are designed to fit specific goals and needs for every different SuperHuman we have within the SHJ Army.

Take Stephen Amell, aka Green Arrow who you see above for example.  His Superhero workout is a lot of calisthenic work, which allowed him to create the body he wanted, and also perform the way he portrays in his CW show Arrow.

Oh, don’t believe me? Check out a video of him taking advantage of his Superhero Workout and utilizing his skills on American Ninja Warrior:

Like the way I included that calisthenics post before I got into this?

But, seriously, different celebs and SuperHumans use different Superhero Workouts…

Just like we’ve also seen guys like Henry Cavill (Man of Steel pictured way above), and Tom Hardy utilize two workouts per day when they were getting ready to portray their Superhero (or Supervillain).

Similarly, guys like Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, and Chris Hemsworth (I really just wanted to name a bunch of Chris’ that we’ve covered), followed typical bodybuilding styled routines, or circuit training (Pratt) in order to get Superhero JACKED!

For that reason, I think it’s important to go back to the route of all these Superhero Workouts that we see at Superhero Jacked.

The Origin of The Superhero Workout

I could easily go back and tell you my own origin story, but that can be found right on my about page, so I’ll save your time and my breathe.

More importantly, I want to tell you the Origin Story of OUR Superhero Workouts.

Superhero Jacked started as a place to transform nerds and awesome people into SuperHumans.  That much has always been there.  I’m the guy who came over from The Dark Side of The Fitness Industry to coach you all.  That much has always also been there.

What came along because of you guys was the specific need for Superhero Workouts.

When I first published articles about Chris Pratt’s Star Lord workout and Charlie Cox’s Daredevil workout the flood of SuperHumans that joined the SHJ Army and continued to soar onto the site was astronomical to what I had seen before.

So, I decided to keep going.

Researching SuperHuman routines is incredibly fun for me, and the variations that these celebs go through within their workouts is awesome for me to find and breakdown, which made it so strange to me that it could also be something you were all interested in as well.

But that was silly, because why wouldn’t a Superhero Workout be something that all you nerds and awesome people wanted?

Thinking back for a second, it was really you guys who made The Workout Database as full as it is, and it was you guys who made us decide to base The Superhero Academy around the specific Paths and Classes that they eventually adapted to.

Then tack on the requests like this:

• “How do I get abs like Ryan Reynolds in Deadpool?”
• “How do I get a arms like Will Smith as Deadshot?”
• “How do I get a physique like Gal Gadot in Wonder Woman?”
• “How do I get ripped like Hugh Jackman in Wolverine?”
• “How do I get toned like Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow?”

And that basically sealed the deal for me.

This Superhero Workout thing was, and is definitely something that is extremely effective for everyone.

And, since then we’ve had countless members transform utilizing The Superhero Academy, and the Superhero Workouts we create at SHJ.

Remember Everything Else That Effects Your Superhero Workout

Unfortunately, working out is not the only step that takes place in a Superhero transformation.

A Superhero Workout has to have other components to it.  And, thankfully for all of you, we cover all of them here at Superhero Jacked.

So, aside from handing you all of the aspects you need to know when choosing your Superhero Workout, including the steps to take into finding it, I also want to give you every single thing you need to incorporate with it.

Yes, that means that I’m saying you’re going to need to do more than just workout.

But, don’t get all worked up about it.  Some of you might like the idea of working out two times a day, or more than five times a week, but it’s not exactly necessary.  That’s why we have The Bonus Nightwing Minimalist Path within The Superhero Academy.  For people who want to workout minimally, we got your back too.

Heck, I even have a post about how often you [really] have to workout each week.

But, let’s not get ahead of ourselves, we’re supposed to be talking about all of the other things that go hand-in-hand with the Superhero Workout.

Nutrition

I’m starting with this one because it’s the most obvious one out of all of them.

I’ve mentioned the fact that we have multiple Nutrition Classes within The Superhero Academy a few times now, and I also even mentioned the fact that nutrition is definitely more than half the battle.

You cannot out run your diet. 

That much is certain.

For that reason we utilize intermittent fasting, but I also have tons of different Nutrition Pillars for the SHJ Army to utilize as well.  Everything from Paleo to Cyclical Ketosis and Calorie Counting.

Don’t worry, like I said, we have you covered.

Oh, want to know how to party, travel, and have fun while still crushing your goals?  We have you covered there too.

Just make sure to keep your nutrition at the front of your transformation responsibilities and you’ll be fine.  Don’t neglect the importance of nutrition, or sustainability within your diet.

I’m keeping this portion brief for you guys just because it’s a Superhero WORKOUT article…not to mention we have tons of other article devoted to the nutritional aspect of things.

Daily Water Intake

We have a full learning module devoted to this in The Academy, and I generally end by suggesting around 3 liters of water per day.  This is not only going to help fight against any water retention, but it also proves to improve your skin, and other things that help your overall health and physique.

I know a lot of people who have seen significant results from swapping their normal drinking habits for water.  This includes liquid calories.

Liquid calories are so many peoples kryptonite.  They can so easily result in an overwhelming sugary, insulin spiking calorie increase.  Choosing to make the conscious decision to cut them can also easily result in your daily caloric intake plummeting in the right direction!

Sleep and Stress Reduction

I’ll talk about these two things together, because as we know: sleep effects stress as well.  If you can’t recover properly, and if you’re not getting enough sleep, your entire transformation can be effected.  If you’re walking around not fully recovered, and your body is under constant stress it doesn’t matter how much work you’re putting into your physique.

We have a full article on sleep in relation to Daredevil that has helped many people – and stemmed off of my own sleep problems and mistakes (and how I fixed them)!

Sleep is also the main way to increase our testosterone and muscle forming hormones.  So not only does it help our muscles and body recover, but it has a significant impact in whether or not we’ll even be able to form them in the first place.

Not only the stress that comes from lack of sleep, but stress in general can have a negative effect on our transformations.  It’s important to destress in whatever way we can in order to improve fat loss.

That being said, meditation is something that can have an extremely positive impact on your overall health, while taking your fat loss and transformation to new levels (especially if stress is something that is holding you back).

Back to The Superhero Workout

If you guys didn’t realize, I took that entire snippet regarding water, sleep and stress right from an article that I wrote about the secret to a flat stomach and six pack abs.

And, hey, what Superhero workout isn’t devoted to getting you that!?

Let’s now talk about something very important…

Fundamental Aspects of a Superhero Workout

There are certain things that we see over and over again within our Superhero workouts.

These are the things that I want to touch on for people to know how to utilize when they’re getting started with their Superhero transformation.

• Compound Movements
  • A lot of our workouts revolve around our compound movements/lifts.  These lifts are our deadlift, bench press, military press, and squat.  All of these workouts train many parts of our body at the same time, while also focusing on a specific muscle group.  For that reason, they are essential to not only building core strength while we train other body parts, but also our Superhero Workout as a whole.
• HIIT Cardio
  • HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training.  It is something that I utilize a lot within our Superhero workouts.  I’ve seen it used by a lot of different celebrities, and also used it with great success with numerous members of the SHJ Army and The Academy.  The general procedure is as follows:
    • HIIT on Treadmill:
    • 1 min on: run/sprint 5-10 mph
    • 1 min off: walk 2.5-3.5 mph
    • Rinse and repeat for 10-30 minutes
    • HIIT on Bike
    • 1 min on: keep rpms above 100 while on level 5-10
    • 1 min off: keep rpms steady around 50-80 while on level 1-3
• Yoga and Meditation
  • We see yoga and meditation show up within these celebrity and Superhero workouts too many times to count.  The stress relieving you get while also being able to fully tone your body is unmatched by anything else I’ve tried.  We actually just analyzed how Jennifer Aniston utilizes yoga and meditation 3-4 times a week to keep her body fully in shape.  We even have our Bonus Jedi Path coming that will fully focus on just this aspect.
• Circuit Training
  • Another thing that we have seen countless times is circuit training.  This is something that people sometimes refer to as comparable to CrossFit, but it’s more-so something that should be referred to as similar to fitness.  Circuit training is amazing for fluctuating the heart rate and pushing the limits of your fitness.  For that reason we see it, and will continue to within our Superhero workouts.
• Pyramid Sets, Drop Sets and Blowout Sets
  • These types of sets within our workouts are also something we see utilized in many of our Superhero Workouts.  Whether it’s increasing the load after each set, or incorporating a blow-out or drop set to utilize muscle confusion – adding a mixture of different training to our lifting segments to challenge ourselves is definitely something that builds a Superhero physique.
• Activity Days AKA Cager
  • If you ask Chef Dave what we call an activity day at SHJ he’ll tell you a Cager.  We first experienced this within Mike Colter’s Luke Cage workout, and it just kind of stuck.  But, tons of our Superhero workouts include activity days that are pretty simple.  An activity day is something that gets you out and active.  This could be a pilates class, tennis, hiking, or any other form of activity that you enjoy getting out there and doing!

The Finishing Touches

By the way, going out and fighting crime definitely counts as a Cager, I’m just not technically capable of suggesting that as your trainer.

But, hey, if you’re going to do it you should probably first get some advisement from our fighting coach Derek…

While this article didn’t specifically give you a rep count, a fluctuation of specific movements you should be doing, or anything very specific to a day or weeks worth of sets…it did give you so much more than that.

As we found out early in the article: there is not just one specific workout that can fit every single one of your goals.

And, for that reason, I’m not capable of giving you ONE specific Superhero workout.  So, instead, I’ll give you MANY!

Whether it’s in The Superhero Academy, or The Workout Database, the Superhero workouts we examine and create every single day are contingent on a specific goal and set of guidelines to follow.

Find the one that most fits your needs and wants, and use it!

And, if you want all the celeb workout routines (aka our Superhero Workouts) in PDF format, don’t forget to subscribe to become a member of the SHJ Army.  You’ll receive well over 50 PDF downloads, and it comes with the Free SHJ Starter Pack as well.

You can do so at the very top of this article, or the very end of this article.  Either way results in you getting some awesome stuff, and becoming a part of an even awesomer group.  

(Yeah, I used that word…what of it!?)

If you don’t take anything else away from this article, utilize little bits and pieces and allow it to get your started.  Form a habit, find something that’s sustainable for you, and start!

If you need help, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments below, or email me after the first email you get when joining the SHJ Army (aka the newsletter).

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Chat soon,

Mike

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