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The Brad Pitt Workout - Get Abs Like Brad Pitt in Fight Club

Get the Body that Everybody Wants (for some reason)
By Adam Sinicki

Many people claim that the first rule of success is to 'give the people what they want' and so, despite it being against my beliefs and better judgement, I present to you an article on how to get the abs that everyone wants - Brad Pitt's (in fight club). For some reason this guy has the mid-section everyone wants. Not Arnie, not Bruce, not Sly... but Brad. Who am I to argue? Especially when he's pulled Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie.
If you really do just want abs then you are in for an easy ride - although it's paramount that you also train your obliques (the lines on either side of your abs) and your serratus muscles (the lines near your lats) too to get a mid-section that will really stand out (and this is one of the big secrets as to why The Pitman's look so good). Following is the Brad Pitt workout routine you need to get your abs and the rest of your body looking like Bradman's.

Brad Pitt Workout

To have visible abs all you need is a bodyfat percentage under 7% and this is why Brad's workout for fightclub ended with CV every day. In order to achieve this you need to do a lot of CV yourself - that means running, skipping and cycling. Skipping is a particularly good choice as it's static and will burn allot of calories fast - that's why boxers use this method. Shadow Boxing too is a great way to burn off fat and if you put your hips into your punches you can get a really good burn from your abs and obliques. You'll have your own personal fight club (sort of). Another option is swimming.
To be effective you should do your CV most days for at least twenty minutes. I recommend 30 minutes 5 days a week (baring in mind this is a plan that focusses entirely on the abs). Mix up the methods you use depending on what you're doing that day. By keeping things interesting you will stimulate the muscles more and stimulate yourself more. Of course some conventional calisthenics will also be required if you are to build solid muscle in that area. Sit ups, crunches and leg raises will target the abs and as you get stronger you can mix it up a bit by keeping your legs raised, holding a weight plate, using an incline bench, or holding a stick behind your head.

Brad Pitt Fight Club Workout

Finally you need to train those obliques that I keep banging on about. To target these you can simply add a twist on the end of the movement (better with that pole behind your head). Alternatively you can lie on the ground and bring you knee and opposite elbow up to touch, then repeat on the other side (1 set). Another great way to hit the obliques is to do the previously mentioned movement quickly without resting your legs or arms on the floor so that you look like you're riding a bike and swinging your elbows. Do these movements to failiure so that when you finally rest your stomache burns and you feel that reassuring pain in your gut - this is what a real Brad Pitt workout routine that gets results needs to feel like.

Train the abs the same five days as you do the CV for about fifteen minutes. Do the sit ups before the CV too as it will make them work harder when you're running or skipping. To bring them into play even more you can also tense them up while you work.
In total this should take you 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week. Combine this with a fairly light diet (low in carbs and looooow in fat) and you should start to see results within a few weeks. There you go - the workout you need for Brad Pitt's abs.

The Rest of the Brad Pitt Workout Routine

So abs every day and CV every day is what you need to get those abs, but Pitt is more than just a set of abs. If you want to get the rest of your body looking like Edward Norton's unusual alter ego, you need to do resistance work.
Apparently Brad's workout routine used a 'split' meaning he trained a different body part on each day so that it then had a week to rest. A bit of internet browsing brought this up:


Chest Day
3 X 75 push ups
3 X bench press
3 X nautilus press
3 X incline press
3 X pec deck machine

Back Day
3 X 25 pull ups
3 X seated rows
3 X lat pull downs
3 X t bar rows

Shoulders Day
3 X arnold press
3 X laterals
3 X front raises

Biceps & Triceps
3 X preacher curl machine
3 X ez curls cable
3 X hammer curls
3 X push downs

If this really is the Brad Pitt workout for Fight Club then he's missing out legs... naughty Brad. He's getting leg training from his CV probably - but some squats would go a long way to triggering the kind of chemical changes in the body that lead to fast growth and fat loss. So make sure you include those things yourself.
So I recommend doing the above workout plus:

Legs Day
3 x Squats
3 x Calf Raises
3 X Hamstring Curls
3 X Leg Extentions

That and some sit ups and CV at the end of each day, and you're looking at getting a nice set of those abs and the rest of the body (but better) for yourself.

Meanwhile here's something to keep you motivated: