Featured Image Credit: UNILAD/Amazon Prime Video
Topics: Health, Film and TV, Celebrity
Emily Brown
Jack Reacher might be ex-military; a big, muscly, hardened man who's used to all sorts of intense action - but that doesn't mean I couldn't keep up with him, does it?
I might be smaller, younger and much less experienced on the battleground, but when the opportunity came up to train like Reacher, I decided to give it a try.
It's the absolutely shredded Alan Ritchson who takes on the role of Reacher in Prime Video's series about the former officer, where Buster Reeves works as stunt coordinator.
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Reeves collaborated with Ritchson on physical action stunts and gym sessions, and came up with a workout that allows even the average person like me to 'build strength like action hero Jack Reacher'.
So, how did I fare?
Not well, guys. Not well at all.
I did the workout on a Saturday, and was optimistic when I went into Barry's Bootcamp, where the session was being held.
A friendly dog in the gym put me at ease and settled me into a false sense of security, but when I entered the workout room and noticed the red lights and loud music, my confidence quickly began to deteriorate.
The session lasted an hour, and consisted of four 15-minute routines; two involving floor work and weights, and two involving a treadmill.
I knew there were going to be weights involved, but somehow I missed the memo about the treadmill. Cardio was coming, and it wasn't going to be easy.
Reeves' workout for Reacher begins with the champagne press - pressing two dumbbells over your head - for three sets of 15 reps.
Up next we have the 'renegade row, push up and twist', which involves doing a plank on dumbbells, rowing each weight up in turn, then doing a pushup before twisting each dumbbell up to the ceiling.
At this point, I'm sure you can imagine, I was having a lot of regrets.
Up next we have one leg glute thrusts with dumbbells, followed by three sets of 50 Russian twists.
The first 15 minutes of floor work was more than enough for me, but I was then instructed to get on the treadmill, where I had to run for ever-increasing speeds for 15 minutes, never slowing to more than a jog.
Then it was back to the floor, where the Reacher workout continued with lunges, bent over rows and reverse flys, where I had to push the dumbbells out to the side to make an arc.
The rowing movement continues with the 'bent over row to tricep kickback', where you have to 'row' the weights up before pushing them out behind you, before moving on to three sets of 15 front raises, raising the dumbbell up to your shoulder.
Finally - I say 'finally', but there's more treadmilling yet - there's the dumbbell swing squat, which is pretty much what it says on the tin. Pop yourself into a squat, and swing the dumbbell between your legs, up to head height.
It's safe to say I was well and truly exhausted by this point, but I had to get that last 15 minutes of running in, this time with an incline to make things even more difficult.
I did manage to complete the workout, though whether I did it successfully or not is a different question. By the final floor sets, my muscles had completely forgotten how to be muscles, and my FitBit had no idea what had hit it.
In spite of this, I was actually feeling pretty good when I left the workout and grabbed a protein-filled smoothie to celebrate, but what I didn't realize at the time was that the end of the workout in no way meant the end of this experience.
As I mentioned, I did the workout on a Saturday. By Tuesday, the pain is only just beginning to ease.
When I say I could barely move the day after this workout, I mean it. Though there was a lot of focus on upper body in the workout, it was actually my legs that proved most problematic in the following days, when the squats and treadmill obviously took their toll.
I complained with every step, and the few stairs up to my apartment became my Everest.
It's safe to say I'm not as fit as Jack Reacher, or as Reeves, whose daily schedule when he's training involves an hour of kickboxing, wrestling or Jiu Jitsu, followed by at least an hour of weight lifting, and 30 minutes of cardio.
Even reading that has made me exhausted, but if you want to see whether you can cope with Reacher's workout, why not give it a go for yourself to see how you fare?
Alternatively, you could plop yourself on the sofa and just watch Reacher do the hard work. That will probably be my preference, going forwards.
Reacher season 2 is now streaming on Prime Video.