I remember watching the movie The Fast and the Furious and thinking how Paul Walker looked like a skinny geek in it. It was especially striking when he was on screen together with big guy Vin Diesel.
So, it was a big surprise to see him so well built in the movie Into the Blue. I think that he now has a physique that looks just right. He is not too big, but definitely has a decent amount of muscle.
Plus he’s super lean and that accentuates his proportions. In fact, I think his transformation is comparable to what Edward Norton did for American History X. But let’s get back to Paul…
How Paul Walker Build His Muscles Mass
For his movie Varsity Blues he had to put size because he was playing the role of an action guy. He started lifting weights, took creatine and got up to 205lbs / 92kg. Now if you follow a progressive overload full body workout for as long as it allows you to gain quickly and then follow it up with a split workout for a while you will get big.
The way to do the split workout is to divide the whole body up in 3 to 5 workouts. Like so:
Workout 1 – Chest and Triceps
Workout 2 – Shoulders
Workout 3 – Back
Workout 4 – Biceps
Workout 5 – Legs and Abs
A well thought out and structured workout plan will really help out in order to achieve such a body similar to a surfer’s physique. Here is a workout plan targeting the lean beach body look:Visual Impact. This workout is also aimed at the beach body look. However here the focus is on making the muscles both large and hard. There is a whole section in the manual on how to make your skin very tight around your muscles and your stomach.
Walker looked like a skinny geek in the Fast and Furious movies compared to all the other dudes. Yeah, I know that was on purpose – he was playing the underdog.
You can choose whether to train 1 or 2 muscle groups per day depending on how many days per week you can go to the gym and how much priority you want to put on each muscle group. This kind of workout is based on fatiguing the muscle – breaking it down a bit in fact, and letting it rest and grow a little bit bigger.
For each workout, train 1-2 muscle groups for 6-9 sets per muscle group and 9-12 total sets. In each set, do 8-12 repetitions. When you can get 12 reps on most sets of an exercise, it’s time to up the poundage next time you train.
Paul Walker’s Getting Ripped and Staying Lean
After he bulked up he went on a surf trip to El Salvador. He discovered that the extra weight was slowing him down and killing his endurance. When he came back from the trip, he was down to 180 lbs – the excess mass was gone.
He was left with just the right amount of muscle by practicing different sports. Walker is big on surfing and is also into martial arts – Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai kickboxing.
He says he tries to play a sport a day – besides surfing and beating people up, he also plays basketball and volleyball and also skates. The hard contractions from surfing, kickboxing and grappling sports preserve the exact amount of muscle you need for them. Plus, the qualities developed by different sports complement each other. “It’s the best way to live,” Paul says, and I couldn’t agree more.
Paul Walker a big Believer in the Paleo Diet
Walker says he eats lots of fish and enjoys read meat. He basically follows the paleo diet – fruits, veggies, and meat while avoiding processed flour and sugar.
Like many in the fitness world, Paul believes at least 75 percent of staying lean is how you eat. Well, I don’t know the exact percentage – some say 70, some say 90, whatever. The point is – your diet is key. You can’t out train a bad diet. Which means it is easier to eat the right foods and not try to compensate your excessive food consumption with exercise.
Paul Walker avoids the white grain foods – breads and sugars. He is also cautious with his salt consumption because salt tends to retain water under the skin and makes you look puffy.
Your Workout
Now, I have a few suggestions depending on were you are at right now. If you are lean, but lack muscle mass, you should go do the beginner strength training workout.
Once you reach the strength training milestones there, you should be pretty muscular, but if you need more, to train specifically for muscle size, check out the workouts mentioned above.
On the above photo you can see the effects of Paul Walker’s training for into the Blue. To the left – a very lean Paul with a sexy Jessica Alba. To the right – just for you guys – Jessica Alba by herself.
Update: Unfortunately Paul is no longer with us. Safe journey, buddy and thank you!
quote: This kind of workout is based on fatiguing the muscle – breaking it down a bit in fact, and letting it rest and grow a little bit bigger…
is this mean muscle soreness?
i am following the 10×5(with bicep curl), as i seek to add some mass to my bicep, from Pavel’s Beyond Bodybuilding(page 235 to be exact) and i have a few question.
1. Toward the last sets(6,7,8,9,10) i cant manage to do 5 reps. should i rest more or just finish with 4 or 3 or 2 reps?
2. The second day my bicep(and triceps, weird huh?) experience soreness, is this normal?
3. When should i continue training with this method again, try again tomorrow with the lighter weights(sore, baby!!) or lay off until the sore had gone???
Thx for answering, Yavor.
Chuck,
Here are the answers:
1. Instead of doing only 2-4 reps or resting more, DECREASE THE WEIGHT on the sets you cannot manage to do 5 reps.
2. It’s not weird buddy 🙂
3. Such a workout is to be done 2-3x per week (not every day!)
Keep me posted man,
Cheers,
Yavor
thx for the fast respond man, i think u replied me before the police show up for the call(in my country at least). my arm are still hurting(better today) and i might try this again next week!
Chuck,
no problem man – that’s why I created this blog. Btw – I’m curious where my visitors come from. Are you from the US?
Cheers buddy,
Yavor
Nope actually i am from Malaysia， but i am not a malay i am a chinese… hope not much racial issue goin on..
Chuck
Of course not buddy.
Cheers,
Yavor
Hi Yavor,
I read your article with attention…I’m just a little confused by all the readings on “how to be big” etc…
I’m 169 cm for 45 kgs, I’m a bjj practitioner (beginner level – 6 months) and people say I’m lean, got long but thin muscles. Frankly, I’m confused with all the programs I can find. I’m starting with a good nutrition plan but am still looking for a good workout programme. Do you think the one you’ve wrote is good for me?
Thank you very much.
Best,
Kei
Kei
I would suggest trainig with the beginner strength training program for a few months
This program will give you the FASTEST results if you train hard. Make sure to learn the proper technique for the exercises. As far as nutition goes, just make sure you eat regularly so that you recover from the workouts and have energy for the next ones.
Yavor
Hi I am a bit confused, at the moment I am 14 stone and have a little bit of fat on me
what would you suggest I do to get a body like Paul walker, should I cut the fat first or start doing weights along with cardio, if so which program should I start? I have a bit of muscle but it’s covered by fat?
I hope you reply, thanks
Danny,
you say you have some muscle, so i take it you are not complete beginner. go do the beginner strength training workout until you roughly reach the numbers there. Simultaneously I want you to decrease the amount of food you eat. 14 stone is 88kg, depending on how tall you are, that might be too much, unless you are over 186-188cm. This is phase one.
Phase two. After you roughly reach the working weights there, switch to a routine focusing on your arms and shoulders. 2-3 exercises per muscle group (biceps, triceps, shoulders), 8-12 reps per set, 1-2 times per week for each muscle. Again, decrease the food a bit if you still need to lose fat.
In both phases cardio is optional, if you’ve got the time. But – it is easier to lose fat by just decreasing the food, than by trying to burn it off through exercise.
Keep me posted on your progress!
Yavor
My main goal is to get the really defined abs. How do i best go about removing the layer of fat above my abs? I have decent ones now, but just need some advice to get that last big push to make them really show well. I have good top 2 and descent middle 2 abs. Just the bottom 2 are really bad. Also, how many days a week should I directly train my abs? If you could give me some advice to thin out the fat, how often to train them, and a couple good exercises I would greatly appreciate your advice!!
Ryan,
you can train them 3x per week. As for exercises, check out the renegade rows and full contact twist. Regarding the last layer of fat – I recommend contacting Craig over at Hollywood Body Fitness – he has experience in getting really, really ripped.
Cheers,
Yavor
hello every1 ,nice site by the way.i lost all the extra weight i wanted but still got those last pounds that are vey hard .i’m in kickboxing and do weights almost everyday.should i cut down my intake on carbs or just eat less so i could see better results..
Nick,
just try to eat less. For example – A nice breakfast, a moderate lunch and a very small dinner. You can change it how you want, but this is the principle – less food => you lose fat 🙂
Y.
Hey Yavor,
I’ve been doing weight training for about 6 years now, off and on. its only been this year where i have actually knuckled down to it and got my game on.
I’ve read hundreds of pages of how to build muscle, loose fat and routines. But they never seem to work that well. At the moment my routine is: (3sets of 8, 90% effort) chest and abs, rest, back and biceps, rest, shoulders and ticeps and then 2 days rest
I’m currently in the process of learning to breakdance too, which requires body to strength ability, but i dont have the strength yet.
What i am trying to ask is that do you have any ideas on how to point me in the right direction to achieve my goal, which is gain a little more size, get ripped and build a lot strength (without getting too huge)?
Also to point out, at the moment im using machines at the gym to lift weights, i know its bad (as other sites point out) but is it that bad?
Sorry its a massive comment ^^; lol hope to hear from you soon fella, many thanks!!
Alan
Alan, onto your Q’s:
1. gain a little more size,
2. get ripped and
3. build a lot strength (without getting too huge)?
4. machines bad?
1. You need to alternate between periods of size training andperiods of strength training until you reach desired size
I talk about this here: http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/workout-results/
2. Ripped means more muscle + very little fat. To do it- do weights (question 1), eat less (take a look at the chart here: http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/bulk-or-cut/) and add up to 5x per week of an exercise that makes you sweat and breath hard (circuit training, running, stairs, jumprope, boxing, soccer, basketball, etc).
3. You won;t get huge and ripped, don’t worry. You can get huge and fat or ripped and normal./ Lots of strength – depends. Once you get to desired size, switch to strength training only – check out this again:
http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/workout-results/
4. Machines are good onle for size training (again for strength vs. size read http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/workout-results/)
Important : train at 100% effort – not 90% Adaptation occurs because you challenge the body.
Yavor