Jorge Blanco
- Chris Hemsworth posted a video on Instagram of his newest workout routine.
- Hemsworth has shifted from lifting heavy weights to using his own bodyweight for resistance.
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Chris Hemsworth told fans he is taking a break from heavy weightlifting to transition into workouts based around controlling his own bodyweight.
The actor announced in an Instagram post that he is focusing on bodyweight functional movements concentrating on agility, strength, and speed as he prepares for his new role in the sequel to Netflix's "Extraction."
In the video, Hemsworth outlined the five-step process in his new weightless workouts, including a three-minute boxing round, a set of 50 deep squats, 40 sit throughs, 25 push ups, and 2o reps each for a variety of rotational core exercises.
For Hemsworth, this is a change in approach - normally he uses heavy resistance-based workouts to bulk up for roles, such as Thor. But for this role, his goal is core strength and speed, rather than bulky muscles.
What results to expect from bodyweight workouts vs. heavy weightlifting
Bodyweight functional movements, also known as calisthenics, don't build the bulk in the arms, chest, and lower body like heavy weightlifting.
Instead, they help build core strength, improving flexibility and coordination. Bodyweight workouts engage multiple large muscle groups at once, increasing your calorie burn.
Weightlifting, on the other hand, can be more effective for actors like Hemsworth to build strength and mass in specific muscles.
Hemsworth's bodyweight moves that don't require any equipment
You don't need any props to do most of the workouts - just your body and maybe a mat to put on the floor.
Hemsworth showed off a number of calisthetics that didn't require any equipment in the video, including:
- Deep squat/squat jump: Get down in a squat stance and either quickly push your legs straight to stand back up or jump up out of your stance. This workout builds strength in the hamstrings, glutes, and quads.
- Pushup: Get down on all fours, placing your hands slightly wider than your shoulders, and then push your body up off the ground with your arms and chest. This workout builds strength in the chest, biceps, and triceps.
- Sit through: Get in a crawl position with your hands under your shoulders and your knees underneath your hips, and then lift your right hand off the ground, and drive your left knee forward toward your right hand. This workout builds strength in the core.
Moves that require extra equipment
There are a few bodyweight function workouts that do require some sort of additional item, however it's not usually a weight or dumbell, but just something that allows you to use your own weight as resistance, like a hanging bar.
These include:
- Pull up: Stand directly below a hanging bar and hold it with both hands, then pull yourself up until your chin is above the bar then lower yourself back down and repeat. This workout build strength in the shoulders, biceps and triceps.
- Boxing: This requires a punching bag and boxing gloves, and you just have to pace out punches for however long you can. This workout builds upper-body strength and cardiovascular endurance.
Bodyweight functional movements have a number of unique health benefits
Adam Rivadeneyra, MD, a sports medicine physician with Hoag Orthopedic Institute in Irvine, California, told Insider's Kelly Burch bodyweight workouts don't just tone up your body - they're great for your overall health.
These workouts can help you lose weight, allow you to sleep better, improve your heart health, and reduce your risk for type 2 diabetes, Rivadeneyra said.