- Alan Ritchson plays the titular character in Prime Video’s “Reacher” series.
- The actor is known for his sculpted muscular look in the show.
- He told Business Insider that corned beef and pushps are key to his physique.
Watching Alan Ritchson in “Reacher,” it’s hard not to notice that he is extremely ripped.
In the show that just launched its third season on Prime Video, Ritchson plays a former military investigator whose intimidating size and strength are handy for fighting off hordes of bad guys.
When Business Insider asked Ritchson how he built his hulking physique, and his arms in particular, he said, half-joking: “you gotta eat constantly. You have to eat every five to 10 minutes. A lot of pizza, a lot of cookies, and millions of pushups.”
Maria Sten, who plays Frances Neagley in “Reacher,” added: “A lot of canned beef!”
“That’s right!” Ritchson said. “The corned beef and hash! She knows, she’s got the secret. That’s the juice. Corned beef and hash and eggs, baby. Puts a little hair on your chest. And some pull-ups.”
Last year, the actor told Men’s Health that he aims to eat 4,000 calories a day and do five 30-minute workouts a week, usually involving cable exercises that focus on his upper body.
Here’s how to apply Ritchson’s recommendations if you also want to be shredded.
You need extra calories to build muscle
Eating cookies to get ripped may sound counterintuitive, but a calorie surplus, or eating more energy than you burn, is optimal for building muscle.
But the more you eat, the more fat you’re likely to gain. That’s why bodybuilders typically “bulk” — or gain mass — for a few months, before “shredding” or “cutting” to lose fat and reveal the muscle.
It’s notoriously hard to lose fat and build muscle at the same time because they have opposing calorie requirements. Plus, it’s easier to do when you’re new to lifting.
To build muscle while gaining as little fat as possible, personal trainers and sports dietitians generally recommend eating around or just over your maintenance calories.
And while pizza and cookies provide a lot of energy from fats and carbs, corned beef hash with eggs will be more satisfying — and help you hit your nutritional goals without eating lots of calories — because it’s high in protein.
“You can do all the weight training you want, but if you don’t give your body the right building blocks to build new muscle, your results will be suboptimal,” sports nutritionist Mike Molloy previously told BI. “With that in mind, I would recommend consuming somewhere between 1.6 and 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.”
Protein is essential for building muscle, but most dietitians agree it’s also important to eat a balanced diet with carbs and fats for energy.
Lift progressively heavier weights to gain muscle
As for Ritchson’s recommendation of push-ups for Reacher-size arms, they can certainly be part of the puzzle. Push-ups, and pull-ups, work the core. Push-ups and pull-ups also work the chest and back, respectively. Rows, lateral raises, bicep curls, and tricep extensions will also help you sculpt your arms, bodybuilding coach Cliff Wilson previously told BI.
Overall, you need to train hard to build muscle. Lift heavy weights that you find challenging (mostly in sets of eight to 12 reps). Try to gradually increase the reps and/or weight, a process called progressive overload.
Building muscle also requires enough rest and recovery time: It’s between training sessions that your muscles repair and rebuild stronger — and bigger.
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