Brie Larson is known for her dedication to her roles, which includes significant physical transformation. To portray Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), she committed to an intense workout routine that included deadlifts, one-arm pull-ups, and hip thrusts. More recently, she has embarked on a new adventure: dance.
Embracing Dance: A New Chapter in Fitness
Larson began dancing last year after "her inner voice was telling me to dance." She initially danced for six hours a day for seven months, culminating in a performance for friends and family. While she still dances, it's for fewer hours each day, as she realized she "was not supporting my system for how much I was asking of it." Dancing provides her with a phone-free time to connect with her body. "I don't even think about my phone during that time-it's just time with my body and figuring out how to use it," she says, emphasizing the importance of understanding and appreciating one's body. She dances for more than three hours every day. Since she's already mastered the basics, she's now learning specific choreography; she also wants to work on "going lower and going backwards."
The Captain Marvel Transformation
To be the first-ever female superhero to headline a Marvel movie, you have to be something special. Thankfully for comic book fans (and the members of the MCU left in limbo after the events of Avengers: Infinity War), Captain Marvel, as portrayed by Academy Award-winning actress Brie Larson, has more than enough power to lead her own 1990s-set film-then (potentially) save the universe from Thanos' plans in the final film of the MCU's current phase. Larson has the bonafides to play just about any role she'd want as an actress, but the physical demands of portraying a superhero gave the 29-year-old star a new type of challenge.
Larson admitted that she wasn't much for the gym before shooting the film-but that all changed as she trained for the role. “I just wanted to be a brain, so I’ve only cared about reading books and understanding words, and anything that involved my body made me itchy,” she told E! News. “But this was an opportunity for me to … make my body mine.” Larson worked with LA-based trainer Jason Walsh, who counts Matt Damon, Miles Teller, and John Krasinski as past clients, to get in superhero shape. "Brie came to me, and the good thing was we had 9 months," Walsh told Men's Health when we stopped by his gym. "Her character is very very physical, so we needed her to be super resilient, super strong, so that she can recover from this and not risk shutting down production."
To demonstrate how he helped Larson transform from a cerebral actress into a proud Instagram fitness maven and believable superhero, Walsh walked us through one of their typical training sessions, which calls for a progressive overload to help break through plateaus. "Brie worked out 5 days a week with me pretty much the whole nine months," says Walsh, before giving Larson the highest praise a trainer can bestow upon a client. "She worked her ass off to get into shape for this movie." If you want to give the program a try, check out the video above and follow the notes below. Don't be afraid to adjust the loads and weights to fit your own training level-and don't think that you can't take on the routine just because Larson happens to be a woman. "She got pound for pound as strong as any guy I know," says Walsh. "And that's saying something."
Read also: Larson's Diet and Workout
Brie Larson's Workout Routine for Captain Marvel
Brie Larson’s workout routine isn’t something for the faint of heart. If you’re thinking that this will build bulk and make your muscles visibly bigger, you’re right! Leading up to filming, she went through fight training twice a day, four days a week. Hands down, the biggest component of Brie Larson’s workout leading up to Captain Marvel was her strength training. This helped her pack on the muscle quickly. After building her strength and getting her muscle tone where they wanted it for the film, Brie was able to focus on maintenance rather than building more bulk. Instead of training with weights all the time, she shifted to bodyweight exercises and incorporated exercise bands, BOSU balls, and medicine balls into her routine more frequently.
The Warmup
- Full Body Foam Roll: 1 to 3 minutes in each position
- World's Greatest Stretch: 5 to 6 reps per side
Activation Exercises
The aim of these moves is to get the muscles that support your spine fully activated and ready to perform.
- Half-Kneeling Band Rows: 2 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Hip Thrusts: 2 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Bench Y-T-W Raise: 1 set of 10 to 15 reps for each motion
- Medicine Ball Slam: 2 sets of 10 to 15 reps
Primary Exercises
Walsh calls this section the "meat and potatoes" of the programing. "This is the body working, recruiting every single muscle, multi-joint movements," he says. "This is where you get the most out of your workout."
- Landmine Deadlift: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Single-Leg Landmine Deadlift: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps per leg
- Eccentric Bench Pushup: 2 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Isometric Pushup: 2 to 3 sets of 3 to 4 10 second holds at each position
- Weighted Pushup: 2 sets of 8 to 10 reps
You can use chains to get that dynamic load, but if you don't have any on hand, place a plate on your back to add weight. This can also help with your form-if the plate moves and slides, you need to squeeze your core more to keep your spine straight.
Dumbbell Total Body Complex: 6 reps of each movement
Read also: How Alison Brie Got in Shape for GLOW
- Upright Row
- Snatch
- Push Press
- Bent-Over Row Snatch
Chinup Series
- Isometric Chinup Hold: 2 to 3 sets of 3 to 4 10 second holds
- 90-Degree Chinup Hold: 2 to 3 sets of 3 to 4 10 second holds
- 3-Step Isometric Chinup: 2 sets of 2 to 3 reps
- Assisted Eccentric Chinup: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Assisted Chinup: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps
- Full Chinup: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps
Brie Larson's 5-Day Workout Plan
Brie Larson trains hard, and her strength training workouts are not for the faint of heart. She follows a 5-day workout plan with a mix of barbell, dumbbell, and bodyweight exercises. However, her training is not all lifting.
Day 1: Upper Body Pull
She starts the workout with heavy deadlifts. The deadlift is a powerhouse exercise that engages multiple muscles, including the back, glutes, and hamstrings, making it highly effective for building overall strength and functional fitness. It also promotes core stability and reinforces proper lifting mechanics, translating well to daily activities and reducing the risk of injury. Next is a seated cable row followed by a step-up bicep curl. The step-up bicep curl is two exercises in one. Holding a pair of dumbbells, step up onto a box while curling the weights. After those, Brie does three sets of lat pulldowns. The second to last exercise of the day is one of Brie's favorites, pull ups. She does these with various grips - overhand, underhand, neutral grip, and even with a towel to work on grip strength.
Day 2: Shoulders
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The second workout of the week is one most women mistakenly avoid. Having muscular shoulders can make a woman's body look more balanced and sculpted, creating a nice shape with a narrower waist. It also makes her posture look confident and strong. Beyond appearance, strong shoulders help with everyday activities and overall fitness. Brie starts the workout with push ups before moving into the bread-and-butter shoulder exercise, the overhead barbell press. After five sets of military press, she does dumbbell front raises followed by dumbbell shrugs. Next are two explosive movements - dumbbell power cleans and dumbbell snatch. Use good form on these, but aim to move the dumbbells as fast as possible.
Day 3: Legs
After three sets of air squats to warm up, Brie jumps into five sets of barbell back squats. The barbell squat is one of the best lower body exercises because it works multiple muscles simultaneously, including the quads, hamstrings, and glutes, helping build strength and muscle in the entire lower body. After squats, Brie loads up the barbell again for weighted hip thrusts. She is incredible at this movement, routinely using up to 400 pounds. After that, Brie performs overhead barbell lunges. These are no joke. To do an overhead barbell lunge, stand with your feet hip-width apart and hold a barbell overhead with straight arms. With the barbell overhead perform a full range of motion lunge.
Day 4: Upper Body Push (Chest and Triceps)
Exercise one is the classic barbell bench press. Brie does five sets, working up to a heavy set of 3 reps. After the bench press, she does an overhead triceps extension. Research shows triceps exercises in an overhead position increase muscle mass more than in a neutral position1. Next is an incline dumbbell press followed by a cable triceps pressdown and bodyweight dips. The last exercise of the workout is chain-resisted push ups. Brie takes her push up game seriously.
Day 5: Full Body
Brie starts the session with 45 minutes of cardio. She chooses between a treadmill, exercise bike, or rowing machine. All three pieces of cardio equipment are excellent options, depending on what you are in the mood for. After cardio, Brie starts the lifting session with front squats. The main difference between a front and back squat is how you position the barbell. In a front squat, the bar rests on the front of your shoulders, requiring a more upright posture and emphasizing the quadriceps. In a back squat, the bar sits across your upper back, allowing a slightly more forward-leaning position and highlighting the hamstrings and glutes. Most people find the front squat more challenging. After front squats, Brie does a bodybuilding classic, dumbbell Arnold presses. The Arnold press, named after Arnold Schwarzenegger, is a shoulder exercise where you start with dumbbells at shoulder height, palms facing you, and rotate the wrists as you press the weights overhead. Remember, days 6 and 7 are rest days, which are essential for maximum muscle growth.
Diet and Nutrition: Fueling the Body
To get ready for Captain Marvel, Brie needed to lose body fat. Her initial diet was strictly monitored. But once she hit that ideal level, her diet shifted. The goal was to help her pack on solid muscle, in true superhero fashion. Though her diet was full of clean foods and lean proteins, she never felt like she was depriving herself. Brie likes to keep her breakfast fairly simple. For lunch, Brie isn’t so focused on cutting things out of her diet. Instead, she tries to focus on eating wholesome, nutrient-dense foods. While filming Room, Brie ended up eating a lot of fresh vegetables and lean proteins. Her go-to lunch was something like a salad. However, when filming Captain Marvel, Brie was able to eat whatever her body was craving. Some days, this meant grabbing a sandwich while others, it meant eating salads packed with tons of fresh veg and lean proteins like grilled salmon or chicken. Dinner is when Brie gets to really indulge, especially when she’s training super hard. Her favourite recovery meal is pasta. But she’s still careful to only indulge in those carb-heavy meals when she’s getting regular intense workouts in. The secret to Brie’s success is in her snacks. When she was filming Room, she cut out almost all carbs. It allowed her to drop serious poundage and get into fighting shape quickly. She instead focused on indulging in things in moderation. If she had an intense workout session, she’d reward herself with a cookie or a donut. Some nights, she’d celebrate a successful shoot with pizza.
Embracing a ‘Bridge Meal’
For her training for Room, for which she gained nearly 7kg of muscle, her nutritionist Dr Philip Goglia turned her onto ‘bridge meals’. Or, in more simple terms, a between-meal snack usually consisting of vegetables or nuts. “The purpose of a bridge meal is to get to lunch so that you don’t overeat lunch,” he Dr Goglia told People. “You’re using fat metabolism and that will be your bridge meal to get to dinner so that dinner is an appetite environment that will not allow you to crave carbs because you’ve already eaten… you’re kind of full.
'A little fat and a little sugar' is your friend
While most people doing high-intensity training would avoid things like sugar and fat, Dr Goglia made it part of the routine. According to People, while training for Room, Larson would start her day with a protein shake (consisting of a protein powder, fruit, almond butter, water and ice) to get her going. “The most recent science has shown that a little bit of fat and a little bit of simple sugar will actually increase intensity rate while you train early in the morning… and allow you to still continue to train and burn fat,” Goglia said.
Homemade Meals and Seasonal Produce
During Brie's initial dance training, she snacked on protein bars and shakes. But soon, she realized that it wasn't enough food for her. "I was like, 'You need to romance yourself,'" she said. "I'm single, and it's like, 'I'm not cooking for myself, and how could I let any more in until I know how to romance myself?' I was like, 'Well then, we'll change.'" So, Brie started a new routine: On Sundays, she hits her local farmers' market for produce, then goes to the grocery store for any other ingredients she may need. She then meal preps her dishes for the week: For breakfast, it could be a frittata incorporating lots of veggies, meanwhile for lunch, she loves a chili, a protein-filled salad, or even tacos. Because of this, Brie adds that she's begun to understand produce seasons, which makes her feel more "grounded." Throughout the week, she then cooks herself dinner every day, rarely ordering takeout. "It's just a way that I relax," she says. "There's just nothing better to me then, at the end of the day, I'm cooking something that I'm excited about and watching a movie."
Supplement Choices
Brie mainly sticks with the basics when it comes to her supplements, taking creatine, protein powder, and multi-vitamin supplements. In addition, to support her hair, nail, skin, and joint health, she takes collagen. She also takes Thorne supplements.
The Importance of Rest and Recovery
Brie does a stretching routine every morning after spending time in the sauna. Incorporating daily stretching offers a myriad of benefits for both the body and mind. Stretching helps improve flexibility, making it easier to perform daily tasks and reducing the risk of injury. It promotes better posture and range of motion, enhancing mobility and comfort in everyday movements.
Aside from her workouts and diet, Brie makes her health a priority every day. She also drinks lots of water, takes Thorne supplements, and avoids drinking "too much" alcohol. "Those are the things that make me feel really good," she says. "I ask a lot of myself every day, and I feel like I can meet it." To unwind, Brie journals, partakes in cold plunges and saunas, takes her dogs for a walk, reads, and plays video games. "Right now, I'm reading a book called Patricia Wants to Cuddle," she says. "I just finished The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom last week. I'm figuring out what game's next. I played that last game for 500 hours, so I feel like I need to take a deep decompress before I leave it completely." But Brie isn't trying to reinvent the wellness wheel. "It's not anything that's a big secret-it's the most basic things," she says. "There are no new hacks."
Home Gym Setup
If you struggle to find time to make it to the gym, try working out at home. At first, this might look like doing a circuit of bodyweight exercises. However, you can get some equipment and slowly add it to your routine over time. Brie has a sick home gym set up. She has a Sorinex Apex Rack with cable attachments at the heart of the garage setup. Loaded with all of the bells and whistles, she can do pretty much anything on that. In addition, Brie also has adjustable dumbbells, bands, a landmine, cardio equipment, and more. Start simple with a set of dumbbells and some bands.
Key Principles from Brie Larson's Approach
- Progressive Overload: Setting new records in the gym is a form of progressive overload. Progressive overload is a fundamental principle in strength training that involves gradually increasing the demands on your muscles over time.
- Enjoyability: One of the most underrated aspects of fitness is enjoyability. You can have the best workout in the world on paper, but staying consistent will be challenging if you don't enjoy doing it.
- Protein Focus: To train like Brie, you must lift heavy weights. One thing you will notice when you look at Brie's meal plan is that she builds each meal around a protein source. Including protein in every meal offers several notable benefits for your overall health. Protein is essential for building and repairing tissues and supporting the growth of muscles, hair, and skin. By spreading protein intake throughout the day, you provide a steady supply of amino acids, the building blocks of protein, to your body. Moreover, protein supports metabolic function, contributing to the efficient burning of calories.
- Bodyweight Movements: One thing that stands out when looking at Brie Larson's workout routine is the emphasis on bodyweight movements. Bodyweight exercises, such as push ups, air squats, lunges, dips, and pull ups, offer a range of benefits. For one, they require little (or no) equipment, making them a convenient option for everyone. They also promote functional strength, aiding in daily activities and reducing the risk of injury.