Featuring on the silver screen often calls for some form of training to stay fit, increase stamina for longer shoot hours, or just look good. Among various stars who have impressed fans with their acting, action, and physique, Alan Ritchson has to rank somewhere at the top. This was why exercise scientist Dr. Mike Israetel wanted to know more about his routine.
Dr. Israetel went through Ritchson’s workout routine and diet plan through various interviews, analyzing what helped the hunk get in shape. From eating a lot of high-calorie carb-loaded fast food to being open about TRT usage, he shared his opinion on every aspect of Ritchson’s training.
The actor once admitted how he had started working out intensely every single day when he was 17 years old, and only stopped when he once sustained a terrible injury. Dr. Israetel immediately condemned this habit, reiterating legendary bodybuilder Mike Mentzer’s training advice. The body grew only during the recovery phase and not during active training, and therefore, it wasn’t wise to train every single day.
Workout details
Ritchson revealed that a lot of his exercises were extremely aggressive, using his body weight as leverage to help him get ripped. One of the examples he gave was performing a whopping 25 pull-ups at a time.
However, Dr. Mike Israetel immediately caught the catch in the actor’s statement, pointing out that it was almost impossible to do that many pull-ups unless the technique was flawed. Generally, a proper pull-up involved going all the way up so the chin touches the bar and going all the way down to a dead hang. He believed one could perform ten pull-ups at the most with the proper technique.
Injuries
As he stated earlier, Ritchson had overworked his muscles at some point in his career to the extent that he sustained many injuries. He recalled how he’d end up frequently tearing a muscle or tendon due to the way he exercised.
Moving further into his workout plan, Dr. Israetel saw how the actor used rope exercises to warm up and admitted that he despised the tool. Ropes had always injured him in some way or another, and while he was happy that it worked for the actor, he tended to stay away from it.
Hypertrophy plan
Ritchson’s workout routine consisted of several exercises sustained within the rep range of 15-25 – calling it the ‘hypertrophy’ range. He performed tricep press downs, hammer curls, EZ bar curls, and a bunch of other arm exercises.
While Dr. Israetel admitted that these were all okay and passable exercises for training in general, he noticed that a full range of motion and more efficient exercises were lacking throughout. For performing 21s on the EZ bar, Ritchson had to prioritize full ROM first before focusing on the top and bottom partials. Even when the actor performed hip dips, the exercise scientist disapproved of the technique, expecting him to dip lower for better results.
Ritchson’s testosterone intake and comments from Dr. Mike Israetel
Finally, Ritchson’s interview on how he began TRT as a form of therapy and physique change resurfaced. The actor came clean on its use and explained he needed it because his intense training had resulted in a natural reduction of the hormone. The TRT was a way for him to compensate for its reduced levels that age had brought along anyway, and he confessed that while his training routine had been the same, the hormone helped him live a quality life.
Dr. Israetel was chuffed to see the actor so open about the usage and purpose of the additional supplement. He affirmed every single claim of Ritchson’s and went into the details of how TRT worked to improve one’s mood and productivity. In the actor’s case, it also boosted the performance of his training by increasing muscle mass and size.
In the end, the exercise scientist was satisfied with the way Ritchson’s training and diet plan worked for him specifically. While there were some things he’d change as a bodybuilding icon, it wasn’t horribly off the scale.
