Alpha Male Poll - Round#2 + Taylor Kitsch on the cover of Men's Health magazine
Round 2 of the Alpha Male poll is up and Tim Riggins and Eric Taylor are there, but they are losing. Quickly vote for them to help them win.
Go to Just Jared for HQ of the Men's health magazine.
The article:
Taylor Kitsch was a hockey player as he was growing up in Canada. Now he’s a certified personal trainer and plays a stud running back in Friday Night Lights. So he knows that conditioning means more than pushing iron at the gym, although he loves that, too. If he stuck to only one routine, he’d miss out on new ways to shape up. And he certainly wouldn’t have joined a down-and-dirty boxing gym in Austin, Texas, the city he calls home. But that’s where Kitsch, 28, now works out regularly. He ramped up his boxing while prepping for the role of Gambit, the card-throwing, combative mutant in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In the ring, he goes as hard as he can for 3 minutes, takes a minute off, and then repeats. This approach now infiltrates all of the actor’s cardio sessions, boxing or otherwise. “Keeping up that pace revs my metabolism and keeps it there all day,” says Kitsch. The result: more stamina, to be sure, but also cobblestone abs. Studies have shown that short interval training burns more fat than long, steady-state cardio sessions do. But you don’t have to don gloves to fortify your own workouts with the principles of pugilism. Just follow Kitsch’s model: high-intensity interval training; rapid-fire changes; and an emphasis on all-around conditioning. It works wonders for any sport, in any gym, with any workout.
Yeah, it sounds like a lot of hard work to get into shape … I’m glad I don’t have to bother with such nonsense. But I am very glad that hotties like Taylor Kitsch do worry about such things so … let’s read on. After the jump, check out another photo of Taylor from this issue of Men’s Health and learn his work-out tips so that YOU TOO can get into superhero shape …
Fight for a Better Body
1. Twist your core
As Gambit, Kitsch brandishes a 6-foot staff favored by martial artists, and hours of practice with it helped condition his rock-hard abs. “All that twisting worked my core like crazy,” Kitsch says. To mimic the move without getting splinters, do reverse cable woodchoppers. Attach a rope handle to the low pulley on a cable stack, bend at the waist and knees, and reach across your body to grab the handle with both hands. Next, forcefully bring it up and across your body as you simultaneously stand up. Do 10 repetitions, reverse your body position, and do 10 more reps.
2. Sync yourself
Gambit’s playing cards may rank among the least intimidating superhero weapons of all time, and we doubt card throwing is your top fitness goal. But every guy can benefit from good hand-eye coordination and a powerful release. Use a speed bag to develop both. Strike the bag by windmilling your fists in small, forward circles; keep your hands in front of your face and stare at them, not the bag, to keep them from drifting. Once you’ve punched the bag, allow it to hit the back part of the platform, rebound, and ricochet off the back part a second time before hitting it again.
3. Mix it up
If Kitsch does one routine for too long, he becomes bored. So he moves around the boxing gym, jumping rope and hitting the speed bag and heavy bag. Boxing also has mental benefits. “Nothing keeps you more alert than having punches thrown at you,” he says.
Um, I dunno how practical these tips really are but it is a very jovial way to incorporate Taylor’s Gambit role into this piece on working out. Well done! I think I’ll leave the heavy duty physical fitness routines to the pros … and I’ll just admire the photos. Who’s with me?
Source