Liam Hemsworth, the Australian actor known for his roles in "The Hunger Games" and soon to be seen as Geralt of Rivia in Netflix's "The Witcher," has garnered attention for his impressive physique. His dedication to fitness, combining rigorous workouts with a carefully planned diet, serves as an inspiration for those seeking to improve their own health and well-being. This article delves into the details of Hemsworth's diet and workout regimen, providing insights into the methods he employs to achieve his goals.
Intense Training for "The Witcher"
Following Henry Cavill's departure from "The Witcher," Liam Hemsworth is preparing to take on the role of Geralt of Rivia for the upcoming season premiering in 2025. Despite initial doubts, Hemsworth's commitment to training is evident. Since June, he has been diligently following a demanding workout routine, showing his readiness to step into Geralt's shoes.
Liam Hemsworth's Spectacular Routine
Strength Training
Strength training forms the core of Liam Hemsworth’s workout, training five times a week, with sessions of 60 to 90 minutes. He incorporates a mixture of calisthenics, sled pulls, sled pushes, and free-weight exercises.
Bodyweight Workouts
Liam Hemsworth’s bodyweight workouts demonstrate that one can achieve fitness goals without lifting heavy weights or frequenting a gym with dedication, consistency, and the right approach. Bodyweight exercises utilize your own weight to provide resistance against gravity. They can be done anywhere, anytime, without the need for gym equipment, making them incredibly versatile and accessible. Hemsworth incorporated a variety of bodyweight exercises into his routine, including:
- Pullups: Excellent for the back and biceps.
- Pushups
- Squats
- Dips
Cardiovascular Exercise
While strength training forms the core of Liam Hemsworth’s workouts, it’s essential not to overlook the importance of cardiovascular exercises. Activities like rowing, running, and hiking complement strength training, enhance heart health, and boost stamina. Hemsworth enjoys getting in his cardio in a more extreme way by surfing or snowboarding.
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Tabata Training
Insiders have revealed that Mr Hemsworth's impressive new physique is mostly thanks to an intense form of Japanese interval training that was initially designed to get the nation's speed skaters into shape. The training, called Tabata, has proved crucial to Hemsworth's extreme increase in muscle mass. It was designed in the 1996 by it's namesake, Dr Izumi Tabata from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports at Kagoshima Prefecture. Dr Tabata and his colleagues developed it as a means of training Olympic speed skaters. He found it was a more efficient way to burn calories and raise heart rate than a moderate intensity workout stretched over an hour. Modern versions of the workout involve doing as many repetitions of a few different body-weight exercises as possible within a short time period with very brief breaks in between. It's a form of high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which has been sweeping the fitness world for the past decade. The goal is to get your heart rate up to a target level over the short period, so that you can burn calories while also building muscle, according to Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. This frequent switching between exercises might help you burn more calories than doing a normal, less intense exercise over an hour, according to a 2013 study from the University of Wisconsin. 'I really enjoy Tabata. High intensity, timed workouts where you do a bunch of different exercises like burpees, bodyweight squats, pull-ups, push-ups, dips,' Hemsworth told Men's Health. Hemsworth's specific split includes seeing how many reps of each exercise he can do for twenty minutes, or seeing how quickly you can do 100 of each exercise.
Sample Muscle-Building Workout
Liam Hemsworth's Muscle-Building Workout:
1: 3-Way Iso-Hold Curl
Stand holding a barbell at your hips. Curl it up slightly; hold for 10 seconds. Curl halfway up; hold 10 seconds. Curl to the top; hold for 10 seconds. Do 1 rep. Do 3 sets.
2: Alternating Dumbbell Curl
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Stand holding heavy dumbbells at your sides, core tight. Squeeze your right biceps, curling the dumbbell up; lower it. Repeat on the other side. That’s 1 rep; do 8. Do 3 sets.
3: Lying Cable Curl
Lie on your back, grasping the handle of a cable machine. Squeeze your biceps, pulling the handle toward your shoulders. Return it to the bottom. Do as many reps as you can for 30 seconds. Do 3 sets.
4: Plate Push-Up Dropset
Get in push-up position with two weight plates on your back. Do as many pushups as possible. Remove a plate. Repeat. Remove the other plate. Repeat. Do 3 sets.
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5: Two-Way Cable Press-Down
Stand in front of a cable column, grasping a cable attachment with a shoulder-width grip. Straighten your elbows, pulling it down; do 10 reps. Narrow your hands; do 10 more reps.
Additional Exercises and Techniques
- EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute): A method to organize your workout so that you challenge yourself to perform each set efficiently.
- "Angie": A CrossFit WOD consisting of 100 reps each of pullups, pushups, situps, and squats.
- 3-Minute Fit Test: Three minutes, three moves: chinups, pushups, and burpees.
- Close-Grip Pushup: Challenges your triceps even more than a standard pushup.
- One-Leg Pushup: As you’re in a pushup position, raise one leg behind you.
- Medicine Ball Pushup: Adds instability and challenges your core.
- One-Arm Pushup: A feat of strength and skill.
- Suspended Pushup: An ultra-challenging variation using a suspension trainer like the TRX.
- Wide-Grip Pullup: Place your hands far apart on the bar.
- Sternum Chinup: Hang from the chinup bar with hands shoulder-width apart and palms facing you.
- Neutral-Grip Chinup: Use a chinup bar with parallel handles.
Diet and Nutrition
More impressive than his self-structured workouts, perhaps, is how he fuels them: for the past five months Liam Hemsworth has eaten a strictly vegan diet. His reasoning is an ethical one. It hasn’t been a massive shock to the system: he grew up on a largely, if not exclusively, plant-based diet owing to his mother’s vegetarianism. “I was always the weird kid who enjoyed eating Brussels sprouts,” he says. “Now it’s beans, legumes, lentils, nuts and seeds. And I have a lot of plant-based protein shakes.” Far from hampering his gains, he claims never to have felt better: “When I was eating meat I’d feel sluggish after meals and constantly want to lie down and have a nap. Meals included oatmeal, fried eggs, protein shakes, tuna, brown rice, salad, sweet potatoes, and chicken.
Mental and Emotional Well-being
“This last six months, honestly, just for keeping my head level and staying balanced, I’d say exercise has been big for me,” he says. He has done his research when it comes to health and wellness, rattling off the names of books and podcasts on nootropics and cold-water immersion therapy. It’s Wim Hof and his ice baths, however, that he is most keen on at the moment. “I know that when I’m working out really hard and doing more than four days a week, if I’m including an ice bath in among all that, my recovery is better, for sure,” he says. A week after our interview, Hemsworth and his brother Chris plan to train in Norway with Hof. That brotherly bond is something he has really leaned on. “I really look up to Chris. He has a stronger work ethic than most people I’ve ever worked with. He’s so focused and takes it so seriously, and he’s so good at it. Having him is incredible.”
Lifestyle and Activities
“I’ve been trying to spend as much time outdoors as I can,” he tells Men’s Health. “I don’t like generic weightlifting,” he says. “I mean, there are periods where I’m doing lots of that of course, but for the last 6 months I’ve been trying to spend as much time outdoors as I can: cycling, playing soccer or basketball, going for two-hour hikes and doing as many push-ups as I can on the way.” It is 10am in Los Angeles when we chat and Hemsworth has already been on a long trek through Malibu Canyon, getting up at 6am to avoid the blistering Californian sun. He has things to do, people to see, waves to ride - he surfed competitively up until the age of 18 and had ambitions of turning pro, before his acting career took off.