The Action Hero Workout

Hollywood’s top trainer, Jorgen De Mey, is PT to the stars – Cindy Crawford, Fay Dunaway and Tom Sizemore are among his client list. He got Angelina Jolie in shape for Tomb Raider. Ben Affleck’s screen presence- at least his physique – can be attributed to De Mey’s training in preparation for the movie Armageddon. 

De Mey believes he can train you too. Published in 2005, The Action Hero Workout was a Secret Santa gift given among my family a few years ago, and it fell into my hands. 

In it, De Mey describes how he got actors into the peak of their physical condition in minimal time for movie roles. The underlying factor for fast results? A strict diet. 

I, of course, am writing this having hammered through a margarita pizza from Asda, so I have yet to actually try the process. But the book begins with the foundation of eating properly, as without that, nothing is going to work. The diet rules, extolled early on in the book, are insanely rigid: granulated sugar, jams, even meal replacement bars are all out. Not even egg yolks are allowed. It’s even suggested that, if you’re risking a restaurant, you ask chefs to make adjustments to your meals to cut down on calories. 

These are, of course, requirements for preparation for a screen role – something that is time-sensitive, so all the stops were pulled out on these occasions. It’s up to you if you follow them to a tee. But then, which Hollywood actor is hanging around in restaurants when they’re preparing for a role? 

The workout rota features clear, concise instructions on machines, reps, weight amounts and techniques. Weights and distances are in metric and imperial (a benefit of a book having a European author) and is packed with advice on workouts and diets for you, and what he laid out for specific actors and their roles. 

I’m tempted to try a workout project for a month, following the book’s instructions, eating what De Mey says to eat, practising the movements in the gym, and going for the runs. I’m actually taking part in an inflatable assault course run in July, and I’ve got a massive gut to get rid of. That's as good a reason as any.