It’s no secret we’re fans of Chris Hemsworth at Coach, and his Centr fitness app is one of our favorite workout apps (and it’s offering a seven-day trial at the moment). So whenever Hemsworth posts a workout on his Instagram account we’re keen to try it.
The 40-year-old shared a quick snippet of a recent workout, revealing the content and duration of his session (a compact 40 minutes) without disclosing the format.
So I asked the Trainer Academy’s Domenic Angelino to fill in the gaps, creating a testing yet relatively short workout Coach readers can try out themselves.
Next time you’re in the gym, make like Hemsworth and give it a go. Need to brush up on how to do each exercise? Click the exercise names below to read our form guides.
How To Do Domenic Angelino’s Chris Hemsworth–Inspired Workout
1 Medicine ball slam
Sets 4 Reps 6 Rest 30sec
“High-power exercises should be performed earlier in a workout,“ says Angelino. “This helps get around your ability to perform them being limited by fatigue. Power exercises, more than any other, are extremely ineffective when performed while fatigued.”
2 Single-arm kettlebell snatch
Sets 4 Reps 6 each side Rest 45sec
Hemsworth’s post suggests he does this move third in his workout, but Angelino says most people could benefit from bumping it up to second. This is because you’ll be able to attack it with fresh shoulders rather than wearing out the working muscles ahead of time with overhead carries, potentially leading to a deterioration in form.
Like all kettlebell exercises in this workout, this move can also be done with a dumbbell. Read our dumbbell snatch form guide for more.
3 Overhead kettlebell farmer’s carry
Sets 2 Time 30sec Rest 30sec
4A Squat curl press
Sets 4 Reps 8 Rest 0sec
Superset the squat curl press and bent-over row, meaning you perform one set of the squat curl press, one set of the bent-over row, rest for 45 seconds, then repeat until all the sets have been completed.
4B Supinated barbell bent-over row
Sets 4 Reps 8 Rest 45sec
Perform a bent-over row with an underhand grip.
5 Single-arm triceps kick-back
Sets 4 Reps 12 each arm Rest 30sec
6 Sprint
Sets 5 Time 30sec Rest 45sec
“Aim to sprint at roughly 90 to 95% of your maximum speed,” says Angelino.
What Are The Benefits Of Chris Hemsworth’s Workout?
While there aren’t many similarities between Hemsworth and the rest of us, one thing most of us have in common is that we have too much else going on to spend hours on every workout.
“I love this type of workout,” Hemsworth writes in the caption. “Being able to cover a lot of bases—explosiveness, strength, stability, speed and hypertrophy—helps me feel functional and strong. Continually moving for about 40 minutes.”
Making sure you can fit training around the rest of your responsibilities is an important factor in developing a sustainable long-term workout plan, Angelino tells me. And that’s not the only advantage of Hemsworth’s high-volume, low-rest session.
“Workouts like this will help you burn more calories, increase your muscular endurance, improve your cardiovascular system and increase the size of your type I [slow-twitch] muscle fibers.”
But Agelino warns that, just because the workout will pass by quickly, that doesn’t mean all of your movements should be rapid.
“Some exercises, like a medicine ball slam, are great to do quickly because they are designed to help you increase muscular power—the rate at which you produce force.”
But for strength-based exercises, such as the supinated bent-over row, you should focus on your form and change gears throughout the movement.
“You’ll notice that Hemsworth moves more quickly during the concentric [lifting] phase of the reps he performs, and more slowly during the eccentric [lowering] phase,” says Angelino.
“The concentric phase is where you’re applying the most effort, like when you row a barbell to your abdomen. The eccentric phase is the opposite—it’s the easier part of the movement.
“Going faster during the concentric phase and slower during the eccentric phase will lead to you recruiting more muscle fibers.”
More muscle fiber recruitment can boost the potential for muscle growth. Thor-like physique, here we come!
