Vin Diesel’s workout and diet secrets: How the Riddick actor stays in shape

If there was one actor who was destined to be an action hero it was Mark Sinclair Vincent, known to legions of his fans as Vin Diesel. While most new fans would associate him with The Fast and Furious franchise, his breakthrough as an action hero actually came a year before the first Fast and Furious movie with in the sci-fi thriller Pitch Black where he played a highly skilled predator called Richard B Riddick. As the fourth movie in the instalment Riddick hits the theatres in the USA on September 4 and in India on September 6 we look back at the fitness regime of one of Hollywood’s favourite action stars.

Unlike most other actors who bulk up specifically for movie roles, Diesel has always had a formidable physique going back to the days of his youth when he was a bouncer in one of America’s edgiest cities – New York. ‘I was a bouncer for ten years in New York City,’ he told Men’s Health. As a bouncer, he had to train not to look good but to be tough enough to keep troublemakers away. ‘I look formidable,’ Diesel accepts. ‘I have dangerous bones in my body.’ It’s what gives him what he calls the ‘dark, dangerous streak.’ Of course, this training for self-defence helped him construct a frame that few Hollywood actors can dream of competing with.

Training secrets

Diesel used weight training techniques influenced by old-school bodybuilding which focusses on maintain muscular mass. This includes sudden switches to activities like fight training and free-running which strips the body of any extra fat. His regime has changed over the years. ‘At this stage in my life I’m trying to tweak out every body part,’ he says. ‘When I was younger I was trying to gain as much weight as possible. Now I focus on each body part to define it. I shock the muscle with two sets of powerlifting and then go into higher-rep sets afterwards.’ He even turned to yoga and Pilates to stretch out the muscle and hopefully this will get rid of the notion that these exercises aren’t for real men! Other than Vin Diesel, find out more about how other Hollywood hunks stay in shape.

The Vin Diesel Workout

According to Hollywood Celebrity Workouts, he does weight lifting on alternate days which involves different body parts:

First he warm-ups on treadmill by doing a light jog for 5 minutes to get the blood flowing.

Monday (Chest and shoulders)

Barbell or dumbbell bench press – 4 sets X 5-6 reps
Incline dumbbell fly(no more than 30 degree angle) – 3 sets X 10-12 reps
Regular push ups – 2 sets X failure*
Dumbbell shoulder press – 3 sets X 6 reps
Upright row – 3 sets X 8 reps
Side lateral dumbbell raise – 3 sets X 10-12 reps
*Training to failure refers to doing as many reps of an exercise as humanly possible until the muscles can’t take it anymore and even a single rep is not possible.

Wednesday (back)

Deadlift – 3 sets X 5 reps
Wide grip cable row – 3 sets X 8 reps
Bent over dumbbell row – 3 sets X 10 reps
Pull ups – 4 sets X failure
Friday (arms and legs)

Incline dumbbell curl – 3 sets X 8 reps
Standing hammer curl – 3 sets X 10-12 reps
Triceps rope extension – 3 sets X 8 reps
Close grip push ups – 2 sets X failure
Leg press – 3 sets X 10 reps
Lunges – 2 sets X 8 reps(per leg)
Standing calf raise – 2 sets X 13 reps
We can see that Diesel’s regime consists of old school techniques which includes weight training on alternate days and cardio exercises like swimming and biking and also yoga and Pilates on the other days. You can also read about how Chris Hemsworth, Hugh Jackman, Kellan Lutz and Henry Cavill got ripped for their respective roles.

The Vin Diesel Diet

His diet consists of a mix of food items from all nutritional groups including protein, multivitamins and omega-3 fatty acids. To reduce the fat intake he looks to get his carbs from fibre, veggies and fruits. There’s also lean beef (about 500g a week), eggs (considered by many to be superfood), chicken and sweet potatoes. Of course, he follows age-old tested regime which needs you to eat instead of three meals, 6-8 smaller ones a day!

Diesel’s regime is without a doubt one of the old school ones, but it’s there to remind us – there’s no shortcut to achieving that dream body. You have to earn it the hard way!