# How do Hollywood stars get so buff, so quickly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 11, 2003, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539 "2003-11-11T03:11:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MrWhy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9f8e36/32.png) [@MrWhy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrWhy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/21 "2003-11-12T02:05:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jimdigritz \* > \*\*Most non-genetic freaks gain best on an abbreviated, high intensity weights program of less than 2 hours a week. \*\* Do you have a cite for this? From a legitimate peer reviewed scientific journal or similar type of respected source please, not a muscle magazine or fitness website without references. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/22 "2003-11-12T02:47:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MrWhy \* > \*\*Do you have a cite for this? From a legitimate peer reviewed scientific journal or similar type of respected source please, not a muscle magazine or fitness website without references. \*\* You’re not going to find one. The notion that any one training program is the best all the time is antiquated and not supported by evidence. ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/23 "2003-11-12T13:17:00Z")
I’ve followed **jk1245** ’s plan, but in a slightly different way; your tax dollars at work! > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jk1245 \* > \*\*It’s easy and you can do it too. > > All you need to do is: > > - hire a personal trainer who will come to your house whenever > you are available (not you going to the gym when they are > available) > \*\* That would be Technical Sergeant Mendoza, and Major Jacobs. They decided that I would be available starting at 0500 Monday through Saturday, and 0700 on Sundays. > [@](#): > > \*\* > > - Buy a room full of the best eqiuipment money can buy (much > easier to stick to a program if you don’t even have to leave your house) > \*\* They would march me and my three hundred closest friends in the world out onto the parade ground as the July sun rose over San Antonio, and lead us in a rousing aerobic exercise routine combining pushups, situps, and more pushups. To break the monotony, we would go on long marches or runs. > [@](#): > > \*\* > > - Hire a nutritionist to plan every meal for you according to your > health goals > - Hire a personal chef to prepare those meals for you > \*\* Meals took about a half hour, eight minutes of which were spent eating. The meals were well-balanced, and prepared according to some arcane military text on what a “good meal” is. With only eight minutes to eat each meal, one’s body chooses which foods to take from the buffet based on what one needs. > [@](#): > > \*\* > > - quit your job so you can have 3-4 hours a day to work out > \*\* For 30 days, this was my job. I had to meet certain baseline requirements just to get to field training, but by the end of it, I had nearly zero body-fat (I would sink in salt water) and was in the best shape of my life. The seven pounds I lost during the second week came back almost exactly two weeks after I stopped training. I saw people in worse shape than I come out looking as good as I did. Thirty days is more than enough time to take someone who is trim, but not necessarily buff, and make them look like a musclebound hunk. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/24 "2003-11-12T13:47:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ultrafilter \* > \*\*You’re not going to find one. The notion that any one training program is the best all the time is antiquated and not supported by evidence. \*\* You’re previous posts on fitness have been uniformally excellent. I’d be interested in your views on my original question. The old weightlifting chestnut is that a man can gain, on average, no more than 5 pounds of muscle per year, the rest being fat. I’m not sure if I believe that. While you’re at it, can you discuss what I would call muscle rebound–that is, lifting weights, gaining muscle mass, laying off lifting for a year or two, then hitting the weights again and experiencing accelerated muscular development. (This might help explain the Hollywood phenomena.) ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/25 "2003-11-12T14:00:25Z")
i’d say steroids, most likely. Its not unnatural for someone who has never used steroids before to gain 25 lbs of muscle in 8 weeks with them. Secondly, it would take 2-3 years minimum of very intense exercise/diet/drug use to look like arnold did. People don’t just look like that because they do steroids for a few weeks. ---
**Author:** ![phreesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@phreesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phreesh)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/26 "2003-11-12T14:14:46Z")
To defend Toby Maguire for no reason at all, production was shut down for a period of time (sorry, no cite) while he got himself into shape. He was not huge in the movie, so I would discredit the steriods speculation. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/27 "2003-11-12T14:32:31Z")
"“Look as good when YOU are almost 60 you will not, eh?” I just saw Arnie in T3. No way is that his body or his hair, it’s made up. Body doubles give people the impression they are fit. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/28 "2003-11-12T15:29:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Carnac the Magnificent! \* > **You’re previous posts on fitness have been uniformally excellent. I’d be interested in your views on my original question.** Thanks, I’ll do what I can. \*\* > [@](#): > > The old weightlifting chestnut is that a man can gain, on average, no more than 5 pounds of muscle per year, the rest being fat. I’m not sure if I believe that.\*\* Gaining new muscle is a slow process, and the older you get, the slower it becomes. Most advanced trainees would crawl through broken glass to add 5 lbs. of muscle a year. Newer trainees can put on more, but it’s tough. But regaining old muscle is not the same as gaining new muscle, which leads nicely to your next paragraph… \*\* > [@](#): > > While you’re at it, can you discuss what I would call muscle rebound–that is, lifting weights, gaining muscle mass, laying off lifting for a year or two, then hitting the weights again and experiencing accelerated muscular development. (This might help explain the Hollywood phenomena.) \*\* This is exactly what I think is going on. These people have been in good shape before, which makes a **huge** difference in how easy it is to get in shape. Is it because of some arcane physiology? Or is it just because it’s easier to visualize your goals when you’ve been there before? No one knows yet. That their jobs depend on their looks and that they have the time and money to train a lot has a big impact too. Just for fun, I’ll throw in an [article](http://www.testosterone.net/nation_articles/256beast.jsp) written by a strength coach who went from 18% bodyfat to 5% in 14 weeks (and put on some muscle too). I think his story is relevant here. ---
**Author:** ![critter42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@critter42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/critter42)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/29 "2003-11-12T16:01:21Z")
I, too, was on **Jurph’s** fitness plan. My particular plan was an 8 week course provided by the United States Navy. I’m 5’ 6" in stocking feet Start of training: Weight: 200 lbs Waist: 40 in Body Fat: 25% (BMI wasn’t measured when I was in, just Body Fat % guesstimate) End of training: Weight: 152 lbs Waist: 30 in Body Fat: 9% I was not able to pass the mid-training physical fitness test - my abdominal and back muscles were very week from years of being a spare tire, and I could not complete the sit-up requirements - so I was put on a special regimen for a week to specifically focus on and strengthen those muscles, and was eventually able to max out the points you could get from situps during the test. Anecdotal as it may be, with the right diet and excercise routine and the right motivation (and a Drill Instructor (called Company Commanders in Navy boot camp) screaming in your ear is excellent motivation 😉 ), a lot can be accomplished in two months 🙂 critter42 ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/30 "2003-11-12T16:38:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by phreesh \* > \*\*To defend Toby Maguire for no reason at all, production was shut down for a period of time (sorry, no cite) while he got himself into shape. \*\* Yeah, but he still used computer effects for all the skyscraper hopping, so he couldn’t have been _that_ fit. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jimdigritz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@jimdigritz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimdigritz)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2003, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/31 "2003-11-13T12:05:53Z")
MrWhy, as someone else stated, you would be surprised at the lack of scientific research into this area. Here is one cite from the Scientific American journal: [http://www.sciam.com/askexpert\_question.cfm?chanID=sa005&articleID=0001F61F-3A31-1F98-BA3183414B7F0000&topic\_id=3](http://www.sciam.com/askexpert_question.cfm?chanID=sa005&articleID=0001F61F-3A31-1F98-BA3183414B7F0000&topic_id=3) Jim ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2003, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/32 "2003-11-13T14:19:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jurph \* > \*\*I’ve followed **jk1245** ’s plan, but in a slightly different way; your tax dollars at work! > That would be Technical Sergeant Mendoza, and Major Jacobs. They decided that I would be available starting at 0500 Monday through Saturday, and 0700 on Sundays. > They would march me and my three hundred closest friends in the world out onto the parade ground as the July sun rose over San Antonio, and lead us in a rousing aerobic exercise routine combining pushups, situps, and more pushups. To break the monotony, we would go on long marches or runs. > Meals took about a half hour, eight minutes of which were spent eating. The meals were well-balanced, and prepared according to some arcane military text on what a “good meal” is. With only eight minutes to eat each meal, one’s body chooses which foods to take from the buffet based on what one needs. > > For 30 days, this was my job. I had to meet certain baseline requirements just to get to field training, but by the end of it, I had nearly zero body-fat (I would sink in salt water) and was in the best shape of my life. The seven pounds I lost during the second week came back almost exactly two weeks after I stopped training. > > I saw people in worse shape than I come out looking as good as I did. Thirty days is more than enough time to take someone who is trim, but not necessarily buff, and make them look like a musclebound hunk. \*\* Mendoza, eh? Were you in the 323d Training Squadron, by any chance? Because I had a Master Sergeant Mendoza that beat the living hell out of me during PC, to the tune of 22 pounds and 7% body fat. Boy, do I need someone like that to beat me into shape now. ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2003, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539/33 "2003-11-13T15:05:15Z")
I’m pretty sure that’s the same guy; like all MTIs, he was sharp as a knife, and way too good at trapping you in your own words. I don’t doubt for a second that he made MSgt. He and Technical Sergeant Orosco (along with Senior Master Sergeant Gallifarro) were the cadre who scared me into shape. The funny thing is, now that I’m commissioned, I could totally sit down and have a beer with any of the officers who were there (were I the type to sit down and have a beer with anyone). I _still_ don’t think I could talk to those NCO’s at anything other than the position of attention. My apologies for the hijack. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-hollywood-stars-get-so-buff-so-quickly/212539.md?page=1)