How Many Sets and Reps are in Brad Pitt’s Workout Routine?

I have a question about Brad Pitt’s workout routine that he did to get in incredible shape for the movie “Troy”. He was much bigger and more muscular in “Troy” than he was in “Fight Club” and this is the physique I’m going for. He was definitely ripped in “Fight Club” but I think he was a little too skinny for my taste. I’m on the skinny side right now and I really want to pack on some muscle to bulk up a little bit. I have been working out for about 1 year and I haven’t really made any significant gains so far. If you can provide some muscle building tips and a basic workout routine that Brad used to pack on muscle that would be great!

Brad Pitt really made a drastic physique change in the five years between the movies “Fight Club” and “Troy”. In “Fight Club”, Pitt only weighed 150-155 pounds at about 5-6% body fat. He trained and dieted very hard for the role of “Tyler Durden” in order to get absolutely shredded and ripped. For the movie “Troy”, Pitt packed on 10-15 pounds of solid muscle to play the role of the legendary warrior Achilles.

The training routines and diet plans for the two roles are very different. One is for a super lean and shredded physique and the other is for a bulked up and more muscular body. For the movie “Troy”, Pitt focused on mass building multi-joint exercises like squats, deadlifts and barbell bench press in order to pack on the muscle needed to play a beefed up warrior. Pitt’s diet was also very different and consisted of an increase in calories and protein to build muscle and recover from intense workouts.

Since it sounds like you are more of a hardgainer with an ectomorph body type (very lean), there are several things you need to do in order to stimulate growth in order to pack on muscle mass. This comes down to the foods you eat and the way you train. You noted that you have been working out for 1 year but you didn’t mention the types of exercises you are including in your workouts. This is critical since it’s what separates the skinny hardgainers from the mass monsters in the gym. If you want to get big, you need to lift big!

Focus on compound multi-joint exercises that recruit the most muscle groups. These movements will stimulate your entire body and produce high surges of growth hormone and testosterone which are powerful muscle building hormones. The 3 core exercises that should be the staple of your workouts include barbell squats, deadlifts and the barbell bench press.

Barbell Squats
Squats work your quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteus (butt muscles) which are the foundation of your physique.

Deadlifts
Deadlifts work your entire body and it’s an outstanding movement to build thickness in your back.

Barbell Bench Press
The bench press is the king of all mass building exercises for your chest.

Stick with these 3 exercises as the cornerstone of your workout regimen and make sure to go as heavy as you can with lower repetitions (5-7 reps per set) for the most muscle simulation and growth!

The other element to packing on muscle and bulking up is your diet. The foods you eat on a daily basis are critical for gaining the amount of muscle you really want. You absolutely have to fuel your body with the best nutrient dense foods to prime your body for workouts, recover from intense training and supply the nutrients needed to fuel your body at an optimal level. I can’t emphasize the importance of your diet enough since without a proper nutrition plan, you will not make significant gains in building lean muscle mass. To learn the basics of proper nutrition with a list of the best muscle building foods to include in your diet, I highly recommend reading the Nutrition 101 article to provide the roadmap you need to reach your muscle building goals.

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