What Is Will Smith’s Exercise Routine That Helps Him Stay in Shape?

Will Smith has earned a name for himself as one of the hardest working actors in Hollywood. One of the finest actors of his generation, Smith has done it all - from comedy, sci-fi and romance to drama, thriller, and action.

His action skills are second to none, and the actor has essayed some of the most badass action characters on screen. Read on to learn what kind of exercise routine the actor follows to maintain his ripped physique.

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Will Smith’s Exercise Routine

Will Smith has never shied away from building up his body and slimming down for his roles. The actor is known for his commitment to the physical requirements of any given role and has worked hard to live up to taht.

For instance, he gained 35 pounds of weight for the movie 'Ali' and started training 12 months before filming began. Smith's best transformation was for the record-breaking movie Suicide Squad, for which he built his rock-hard eight-pack abs.

Smith is also motivated to achieve new levels with his body and regularly shares that with his fans. Recently, he released a a six-part mini-transformation series on YouTube called “Best Shape of My Life", where he vowed to lose 20 pounds in 20 days. The star pulled that off.

He follows some routine training principles in each of his transformation journeys, such as:

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1) Progressive Overload

Progressive overload is the fundamental principle of resistance training. If you consistently lift the same weight, you'll eventually reach a plateau.

There are two efficient methods to overload muscles. You can either lift a greater weight while training the same muscle area or complete more repetitions than in your previous session.

2) Work Around Injuries

Will Smith is known for his work ethic and has proved that time and again. While shooting for Suicide Squad, he tore a calf muscle in a cast-sparring session early during the production. He was told that he would have to rest for six weeks.

The actor, though, devised a workaround training plan with his personal trainer and shocked everyone with his amazing physique in the movie.

3) Basics are the Best

Smith's trainer Aaron Ferguson is known for sticking to basic bodybuilding techniques and training, instead of following new training and diet fads.

“Using very controlled motions with not too much weight, but perfect form, because we couldn’t chance anyone getting injured again. We tried to build up the shoulders and slim down the waist to give that real action-figure look, which, I think, we accomplished," Ferguson said.

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4) Keep your NEAT high

Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy expended by you during all activities other than sleeping, eating and sports-like activity. Maintaining a high NEAT helps any weight-loss regimen, and Smith followed that religiously by aiming for a step count of 10,000 per day. Some days, he even logged 20,000 steps.

Days of Training

Will Smith followed a five-day training split and utilised his weekend to allow his muscles to recover from his tough training regimen. To sculpt an eight-pack for his role in Suicide Squad, he alternated days of training with an ab-training routine.

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Will Smith's Training Plan

The following is Will Smith's five-day training schedule:

Day 1: Chest

Push-Ups: 3 sets of 20 reps each

Barbell Bench Press: 5 sets of 5 reps each

Incline Barbell Bench Press: 5 sets of 5 reps each

Incline Dumbbell Bench Press: 5 sets of 5 reps each

Upright Cable Flys: 3 sets of 10 reps (high to low) each

Lying Dumbbell Punch: 2 sets to Failure.

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Day 2: Shoulders

Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Seated): Standing 2 sets of 20 reps each

Barbell Shoulder Press (Barbell): 4 sets of 6 reps each

Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Seated): 4 sets of 6 reps each

Behind-the-Neck Barbell Press: Standing 4 sets of 8 reps each

Dumbbell Lateral Raises: 4 sets of 8 reps each

Dumbbell Front Raises: Plate Front Raise 3 sets of 10-12 reps each

Dumbbell Air Punch: 4 sets to Failure.

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Day 3: Back

Chin-Ups (Front, Wide-Grip): 50 reps

Dumbbell Bent Over Row (One-Arm): 4 sets of 6 reps each

Barbell Bent Over Row: 2 sets of 6 reps each

Barbell Bent Over Row: Reverse Grip 2 sets of 6 reps each

Pulldowns (Front, Wide-Grip): 4 sets of 6-8 reps each

Chin-Ups (Front, Wide-Grip): 3 sets of 10 reps each.

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Day 4: Arms

Cable Pushdowns (Heavy): 4 sets of 8 reps each

Barbell Arm Curls: 4 sets of 8 reps each

Barbell Triceps Extensions: Incline Bench Skullcrusher 4 sets of 8 reps each

Dumbbell Arm Curls (Incline): Alternating 4 sets of 8 reps each

Dumbbell Triceps Kickbacks: 4 sets of 8 reps each

Dumbbell Hammer Curls: 4 sets of 8 reps each.

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Day 5: Legs

Hip Abductions (Machine, Seated): Seated or Cable 20 reps

Front Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps each

Full Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps each

Dumbbell Lunges: 3 sets of 8 reps each

Leg Press: Single Leg 4 sets of 8 reps each

Box Jump: 4 sets of 30 seconds each.

The actor also included crunch machine exercises and a hanging leg raise every other day for his ab-training routine.

Will Smith usually consumes 3,500 calories every day. A regular day for him includes eggs, oatmeal, chicken breast with vegetables, beef with vegetables and a protein shake in his diet.