Celebrity Workout: Tobey Maguire By Herve J. Duchemin

Fitness Specialist - Every other Wednesday

Follow this workout to get Tobey Maguire's body in Spider-Man Tobey Maguire worked really hard to go from a lanky nerd to a buff superhero in the Spider-Man series. In order to achieve similar results, you will need to follow a workout and nutritional program to morph your body from a Peter Parker poseur to a Spider-Man superhero. It will take some time and effort, but it'll be well worth it in the end. The core of your program should focus on your nutritional intake, which will be discussed below.

diet

In order to have a Spider-Man physique, you must eat a diet that will fuel you through your workouts and repair you while you're asleep or away from the gym. You’ll never see Spider-Man stopping by McDonald's for a side of fries and a milkshake, so you shouldn’t either. Choose lean meats, whole grains, healthy starches, fruits, and vegetables. Eliminate fried food, candy, chips, and anything with high fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated ingredients. Feel free to have some low-fat (1% to 2%) or skim milk and cottage cheese as well. You should drink approximately one gallon of water a day to stay hydrated and try to eat every three hours. Make sure you are getting enough healthy carbohydrates and protein to fuel your body and to kick-start muscle growth following each workout. If you go too long without eating, your metabolism will shut off and your body will eat muscle instead.

the spider-man routine

This workout is geared toward gaining lean mass. You should follow this plan four days a week, and do 3 sets (4 to 5 sets if you are intermediate or advanced) of 8 to 12 reps for each exercise listed below. When you hit reps 8 to 12, you should be struggling. If you get to rep 12 and find it as easy as the first rep, then add more weight to the following set. Also make sure you’re doing cardio at least three days a week, especially on days you are not lifting.

day 1: chest/triceps

Chest

Incline dumbbell press: Prioritizing the upper chest will give the most noticeable increase in size. Sit down

on an incline bench with dumbbells resting on your thigh. Kick the weights to your shoulders and lean back. Press the dumbbells up, keeping your elbows to the sides until your arms are extended (do not lock your elbows). Lower the weight and repeat. Barbell bench press: Lie supine on a bench. Using an overhand grip, hold the barbell over your chest at

the nipple area. Place your hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart. Lower the weight down to your chest in a smooth and controlled motion. Press the bar until your arms are extended (do not lock your elbows) and repeat. Pec dec flye: Sit in an upright position on a pec dec machine. Position the pads so that your upper arms are

parallel to the floor. Keep your abs tight and your shoulders back. Use your chest to bring the pads together and squeeze. If the machine has pads, keep your elbows on them. Slowly return to the start position and repeat.

Triceps

Dips: Sit on the edge of a bench and grasp the edge with your hands, knuckles facing forward. Place your

feet firmly on the floor in front of you -- as you get stronger you can place your feet further away from your body or on an adjacent bench. Move your buttocks forward until they are suspended in the air. Push yourself off the bench and lower your body until your arms form a 90 angle. Then, push yourself back up to the starting position, but make sure not to lock your elbows. Repeat. Lying triceps extensions: Take a supine position on a bench and hold a barbell above your chest at arm's

length. Keep your upper arms rigid and lower the bar slowly, bending at the elbows, until it almost touches your forehead. Raise the bar back to the starting position and repeat. Close-grip bench press: Take a normal bench-press position, except place your hands a little closer

together than shoulder-width on the barbell. As with a regular bench press, lower the bar to your chest, but keep your elbows stuck to your body, which will work your triceps instead of your chest. Push the bar back up until your arms are fully extended, squeezing your chest and triceps. Repeat.

day 2: back/biceps

Back

Bent-over barbell row: Slightly bend your knees and bend over the bar with your back straight. Grasp the

bar with a wide, overhand grip. Pull the bar to your upper waist. Return the bar to it’s original position or until your arms are extended and your shoulders are stretched forward. Repeat. One-arm dumbbell row: Place the dumbbell on the floor in front of the bench. Bend your left knee slightly,

place your right knee on the bench and bend over to lift the dumbbell with your left hand, palm down, about six inches off the floor. Place your right hand on the bench with your elbow nearly locked. Pull the dumbbell straight up to side of your chest, keeping your arm close to your side. Return to the start position using the same path. Remember to inhale when raising the dumbbell and exhale when bringing it down. Reverse the position and repeat the movement on the other side. Seated cable row: Sit on the machine’s platform with your knees bent and grasp the cable attachment. Pull

the cable attachment to your waist while straightening your lower back. Pull your shoulders back and push your chest forward during the contraction. Slide back until your arms are extended, your shoulders are stretched forward and your lower back is flexed forward. Repeat. Hyperextensions: Place yourself face down across a hyperextension bench, with your heels hooked under

the supports and your torso hanging off the edge of the bench. Place your hands across your chest or on the back of your head and bend forward and down as much as possible -- at least until your waist is bent at a 90-degree angle. Now, come back up until your torso is just above parallel to the floor. To prevent injury to your spine, don't lift up any higher than that.

Biceps

Barbell bicep curl: Grasp the bar with a shoulder-width underhand grip. With your elbows to the side, raise

the bar until your forearms are vertical to the floor. Lower the bar until your arms are fully extended and repeat. Bicep preacher curl: Using either hand, grasp the dumbbell with an underhand grip. Sit on the preacher

bench and place the back of your arm on the pad. The seat should be adjusted to allow your armpit to rest near the top of the pad. Raise the dumbbell until your forearm is perpendicular to floor with the back of the upper arm remaining on the pad. Lower the dumbbell until your arm is fully extended. Repeat and make sure you do both arms. Seated dumbbell concentration curl: Sit on a bench and place a dumbbell between your feet. Place the

back of your upper arm against your inner thigh. Lean into your leg and raise your elbow slightly. Raise the dumbbell to the front of your shoulder. Lower the dumbbell until your arm is fully extended. Repeat and make sure to work the other arm.

day 3: legs/calves

Legs

Hack squat: Go a bit past parallel on the hack squat machine. Pause for a second at the bottom, then go

straight back up, keeping your back flat against the pad. Push with your heels rather than your toes to keep the stress off your knees. Pause for a second at top and repeat. Leg extension: Adjust the seat so the small of your back rests flush against it and your knees are in line

with the pivot point of the pulley. Adjust the foot pad so it rests slightly above your foot at ankle level. Firmly grasp the handles on the seat. Fully extend your legs, pausing at the top before lowering to repeat. Hamstring curls: Lie on the machine comfortably while hooking your legs underneath the pad. Then pull

the weight with your hamstrings toward your buttocks, holding on to the hand grips. Slowly lower the weight back down and repeat.

Calves

Seated calf raise: Sit on the machine seat and place your toes on the lower portion of the platform with your

heels extending off the edge. Position your lower thighs under the lever pad. Grasp the handles or place your hands on the lever pad. Lift the lever slightly by pushing your heels up. Release the support lever. Now lower your heels by flexing your ankles until your calves are stretched. Raise your heels by extending your ankles as high as possible. Repeat. (3 sets of 8-12 reps) Standing calf raise: Place your shoulders under the padded lever. Position your toes and the balls of your

feet on the calf block with the arches of your feet and your heels extending off the edge. Grasp the handles or sides of padded lever. Stand erect by extending your hips and knees. Raise your heels by extending your ankles as high as possible. Lower your heels by bending your ankles until your calves are stretched. Repeat. (3 sets of 8-12 reps)

day 4: shoulders/abs

Shoulders

Seated dumbbell military press: Sit in a seat with the back rest slightly tilted back. Raise the dumbbells to

your shoulders. Push up, extending your arms with your elbows pointed outwards. Keep your head tilted up to a neutral position during the ascent and gradually bring the weights together, without locking your elbows. Lower the dumbbells to your shoulders and repeat. Try to prevent your arms from wobbling and other jerky movements. This exercise can also be done with a bar on a military bench or smith machine. (3 sets of 8-12 reps) Dumbbell lateral raise: Grasp the dumbbells in front of your thighs. Bend over at the hips slightly with your

knees bent. With your elbows slightly bent, raise your upper arms to your sides until your elbows are at shoulder height. Keep your arm as straight as possible -- don’t let your elbows buckle and drop below your wrists. (3 sets of 8-12 reps) Reverse pec-dec flye: Sit facing the machine. Grab the handles and start pulling the weight back. You can

use a straight or reverse grip, both work the rear shoulders at different angles. Contract your rear deltoids and shoulder blades to bring the weight back, while pinching your shoulder blades together. Return the handles to their initial position without letting the weights rest. Repeat. (3 sets of 8-12 reps)

Abs

Crunches: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor in front of you. Place your

hands behind your head, but make sure you're not pulling your head forward with your hands – keep your neck extended and don’t let your chin fall into your chest. Open from your shoulders and hold your elbows slightly out to the sides. Keep your chin pointed up. Curl your upper body up and forward so that your head, neck and shoulder blades lift off the floor. If your chin is making contact with your chest, the abdominal muscles aren't being used in the exercise. Slowly lower your head, neck and shoulder blades to starting position. Repeat. (3 sets of 25 reps) Hanging leg raises: Grab a pull-up bar that you can hang from. Rest your forearms on the supporting bars,

keeping your elbows at 90-degree angles. Be strong in your shoulders, and don’t slouch down or forward. Keep your back pressed firmly against the back of the machine, maintaining contact with the support at all times. To begin, slowly bring your knees up to your chest, letting your lower leg and feet hang loose, then control the movement as you lower your legs back down. When you’ve mastered that movement, you can do a more advanced version of this exercise, raising your legs fully extended, creating a 90-degree angle with your legs and torso, keeping your feet pointed and your knees locked. The slower and more controlled you can perform this movement, the greater the benefit. This exercise will also target your rectus abdominis, as well as your hip flexors. While curls and sit-ups work your upper abdominal muscles, leg raises will work your lower abdomen. (3 sets of 15-25 reps) Side bends holding dumbbell: Begin by standing up straight with your feet placed shoulder width apart.

Hold a dumbbell in your left hand with your palms in. Keeping your back straight and your feet firmly planted, bend from the waist to the left as far as you can then return to the starting position slowly. After finishing your desired reps on one side, change the weight to your other hand and repeat. Remember to bend only at your waist. Be careful not to twist your hips or bend your knee to accommodate the movement. Perform this exercise in front of a mirror and watch your body and your placement. If you maintain the position, the correct muscles will be targeted, which is what you want. (3 sets of 25 reps)

get that spidey physique

This plan will allow you to cut fat and tone up your muscles, as long as your diet is on par with your workout. Always place your diet in check first before beginning any exercise program, because if you exercise without being attentive to nutrition, you will inevitably be wasting your time in the gym. Exercise places demands on the body which need to be fulfilled with proper energy intake. Lack of energy will cause you to tap into your muscle stores and will lower your metabolism, decrease your strength and keep you from getting the results you would get if your diet was in check. So keep your spidey-senses keen and pair a healthy diet with the above workout to swing from the rooftops like Tobey Maguire.