It's A Wonderful Life

The Action Hero Body : The Complete Workout Secrets from Hollywood's Top Trainer
by Jørgen de Mey

Trainer to the stars Jørgen de Mey reveals the unique program he has used to transform the bodies of action-hero film stars Angelina Jolie, Ben Affleck, and many other superstars.

When movie producer Jerry Bruckheimer needs an actor to get physically prepared for a role in one of his adventure films (Black Hawk Down, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor) the first thing he does is call Jørgen de Mey. The results de Mey produces in a short amount of time are astonishing. Now this legendary trainer - convinced that his "action-reaction" method of nutrition and physical training can help any healthy person reach his or her personal best - details a three-stage workout that in just 3 weeks will start to show positive changes: more endurance, increased strength, weight loss, signs of a more muscular body, and better cardiovascular output. De Mey's unique sequencing of workouts combined with his focus on "clean" foods and a special, protein-rich diet will have readers action hero fit with a blockbuster body in no time.

HERE'S AN ACTION HERO in all of us. Chances are you won't believe that about yourself, but it's true. After reading this book and following the guidelines I offer in it, you'll see the proof in your own transformed physique and sense of well-being.

For more than 2 decades, I've taught and lived my "action-reaction" method of nutrition and physical training, and I've mastered it well enough to help any healthy person reach his or her personal best. It's this "best" in us that ultimately turns us into Action Heroes. I've seen it work for dozens upon dozens of people, and I've been through the process myself. I'm the living proof that it works and that it can work for you.

My own transformation began in the Netherlands, where I grew up. As a child I was always sick. My immune system couldn't guard me even from sudden changes in temperature. On a normal spring day, for instance, I'd run outside the house without a jacket and invariably catch a cold. Whenever I imposed an additional strain on my immune system, such as inadequate sleep, overexertion, or improper diet, I became an easy target for invading viruses and bacteria.

This happened too many times to count during my childhood. Finally, when I was about 12 years old, I said to myself, "This must stop! I don't want to be sick anymore!"

I decided that I had to eat better, following the guidelines my grandma taught me. "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day," she'd remind me. "Eat a sandwich with meat for lunch, and vegetables, meat, and potatoes for dinner." This was when I first realized how important a sensible diet was to becoming healthy and strong, both physically and mentally.

Without knowing where it might lead, by resolving to become healthy, I'd created a big challenge for myself. That didn't stop me, though. I was determined to succeed. The day-to-day stress and strain on my system continued-I was biking 16 miles to school every day, doing homework, doing chores around a local farm, and playing, of course. Even though I remained skinny, I became much stronger than I looked. And I was sick far less often.

I'd begun the process of becoming an Action Hero.

About this time my brother Berry became involved in boxing and then bodybuilding. He was genetically blessed in that he could build muscles quite easily with weight lifting and following a nutritionally sound diet. When I was 15, I shifted from building my body, as I'd already been doing for several years, to a more formal weight-training program like Berry's. I also got serious about understanding the role nutrition plays in increasing strength and improving health.

FOLLOW THE GUIDELINES

Media often greatly influence our attitudes about diet. Unfortunately, they often present incorrect information.

How many times have you heard that pasta, potatoes, and bread aren't good for you? The fact is, they can be great sources of energy and micronutrients when they're incorporated into a well-balanced diet. You've probably also heard that pork (the "other white meat") is healthy. People often place it in the same category as lean chicken or fish. But pork is way too high in fat and relatively low in protein. A chicken breast with no skin has just as much protein as a comparable piece of pork, but only half the calories.

Many people say they can eat whatever they want, including junk food, without ever getting fat. These individuals might burn more calories than the average person, but they're still depriving their bodies of essential building blocks in the form of usable nutrients, such as protein, complex carbohydrates, and essential fats. Their bodies will become progressively more unhealthy and less efficient as a result.

You and so many of your friends can pretty much eat whatever you want as long as the diet's tweaked to the Action Hero lifestyle.

Eat as much as you want from "good" food, but only what you need.

Let me repeat: Eat as much as you want from "good" food, but only what you need.

For openers, "bad" food does nothing constructive for the body. On the contrary, "bad" food is more like cancer-it slowly makes the body weaker over time, causing joint pain, fatigue, and an overall diminishment of condition and performance.

But by applying certain lifestyle adjustments-such as a healthy diet, exercise, and proper rest-you can experience better performance and a better way of life.

Or perhaps you fall into the category of people who used to be thin and able to eat anything without getting fat. But now you're in your late twenties or early thirties, and those extra 10 or 15 pounds seem to have come from nowhere and apparently plan to stick around indefinitely.

If, on the other hand, you're of the group raised on an average American diet of high calories and huge portions, you probably became fat and unhealthy at an early age. This group in particular is destined-doomed, really-to remain unhealthy for the rest of their (usually short) lives unless they take charge now and follow the guidelines outlined in this book.

With weight lifting added to my routine, my overall health improved, as did my muscle strength. Naturally my appetite increased, too, so I started eating more. However, I didn't jeopardize the beliefs my grandma had instilled in me. I just added more of the food she'd recommended: bigger breakfasts, four sandwiches at midmorning, four more in the early afternoon, a bottle of yogurt drink on the way home from school, and then a big dinner.

At this point I was changing from a boy into a man. My growth hormone and testosterone levels peaked at about the same time, and I capitalized on that by gaining 22 pounds of muscle between the ages of 17 and 18.

While coaching my brother for bodybuilding contests, I learned how to balance training with rest in conjunction with the proper foods. Berry had been my inspiration since an early age. He possessed all the Action Hero qualities: strength, passion, gentleness, healthy looks, and a great outlook on life.

When he turned 18, he trained less than a year before he took the national Mr. Iron Man junior competition, and in the same year he also took the Mr. Hercules title. At 20, he won the Grand Prix of Holland, which qualified him to compete in the Mr. Europe senior competition. He went on to win the whole show. Nobody under 21 had ever done that, other than seven-time Mr. Olympia and now California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Of course, I realized that only a handful of athletes ever manage such accomplishments. Nonetheless, we can all learn from them by studying the ways in which they reached their outstanding goals. We can learn how to harness our own strength and discipline to obtain our personal goals. This applies to all aspects of life. You don't have to be a professional to act like one. I've lived by this rule since a young age.

All through Berry's career, I continued to learn about the good and bad aspects of training and diet. I transformed from a kid who caught colds when he ran outside without a coat to a healthy man who has maintained his personal physical best for many years.

I learned that it's possible to become an Action Hero, and I'd like to help you attain this healthy goal yourself.

From Personal Best to Personal Trainer

When my brother and I came to the United States in 1989, I didn't have anything going for myself personally or professionally. I had quit my job in Holland and was starting to hate the weather and social structure there. So Berry didn't have to try very hard to convince me to come along with him.

That summer, during a cookout hosted by the Barbarian Brothers, then-young actors who starred in a late 1980s movie, The Barbarians, I met Jim Crabbe, vice president of William Morris Agency. Earlier, before I arrived in the United States, he'd invited me to stay at his place and even use his car until I had my feet on the ground in my new country.

He kept his word, not only about staying at his house but also about allowing me to drive his big Ford convertible. What a deal, and how nice of him to follow through on a promise like that. He was the one who made it possible for me to stay in the United States.

Not long after I arrived in Los Angeles, I landed a job as a security officer, complete with a black leather belt and handcuffs (no weapons, though). I worked the swing shift Wednesday through Sunday. It was hard work, standing on my feet, walking around for 8 hours, making civil arrests, and to be honest, I had the time of my life. The pay wasn't much, but it allowed me to get by, especially since I didn't have to pay rent. Besides, there I was, in sunny southern California. That was what mattered most.

One day my brother said to me, "Jørgy, you should be a personal trainer. You've been coaching, supporting, and motivating me for 10 years now, and I think one of your greatest strengths is that you're dedicated to helping people in the same way you'd help yourself."

Little did I know his comment would change my life forever.

Beginning that month, I went to Gold's Gym in Venice every day to study other trainers, how they worked with their clients, what they did right and, more important, what they did wrong. I got my first client shortly thereafter.

Two months later, I relocated to a tough neighborhood of Venice, not far from the gym. I decided at that point to concentrate exclusively on personal training. It was, after all, what I knew best and loved the most.

With that in mind, I met with a trainer who worked with a lot of Hollywood celebrities, and he employed me to train some of his clients. He also helped me understand the benefits of superset-oriented workouts and circuit training. (A superset, by the way, is nothing more than two or more exercises performed one after the other. Typically, these exercises work opposing muscles: back and chest, or biceps and triceps. This allows you to work one muscle group while resting the other.) I was expanding the variety of workouts for my clients and had a suitable routine for every person I trained, helping them aim toward the goals and results they sought.

I loved the challenge of tapping into other people's potentials, goals, and needs. It seemed like I had a natural feeling for this type of work- an instinct, a gift. I was more than ever convinced that this was the right career for me.

During this time I met Jerry Bruckheimer, a good-looking, healthy, and trim man. I had no clue about the entertainment business, but I soon learned he wasn't a man of many words. He apparently liked the workouts and what I had to say about nutrition and bodybuilding, and he thanked me at the end of the 10 days when my employer, his own trainer, returned.

One afternoon, I came home and listened to a message on the answering machine: "Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson want you to come down to Paramount Pictures to meet with them." Before that meeting, I found out more about the movie business and, specifically, those two individuals. Then I put on my best jeans, shirt, and cowboy boots, and off I went.

I was nervous as I walked into their office at Paramount Pictures, though I tried to look as composed as I could. I stopped halfway between Don's and Jerry's desks. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, and then Don said, "We, Jerry and I, want you to be our trainer."

At last, I thought, the moment of truth.

I've trained Jerry for 15 years now, and he's referred me to numerous clients, including Ben Affleck, Faye Dunaway, Josh Hartnett, Robert Towne, Bridget Moynahan, Tom Sizemore, Jerry O'Connell, Maria Bello, Piper Perabo, and Jeremy Irons. As he's done so many times before, he discovered a talent-in my case, an ability to be a personal trainer-and helped me make the most of it. He gave me a great opportunity, and I took it.

ACTION!

Action Hero: Jerry Bruckheimer Career accomplishments: Film producer known for dozens of successful action and adventure movies. Along with his partner, the late Don Simpson, Jerry produced 15 Academy Award-nominated films. Their films also won two Oscars for Best Song, four Grammys, and three Golden Globes. Their top hits included Beverly Hills Cop and Top Gun. After his partner died at 51, Jerry went on to produce Con Air, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, Coyote Ugly, Pirates of the Caribbean, and National Treasure, among others. He's also produced for television, notably the popular CSI, Without a Trace, and The Amazing Race. Physical goals: To maintain muscularity, strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular condition. Training program: Superset-oriented workouts in accordance with the Action Hero training system, and abdominal work with stretching. Results: Slender, athletic build with great strength and endurance in lower and upper body. Jerry has been my most committed trainee over the years. We share a lot of beliefs about training and diet-and what those two things together can mean to one's health, other than just being strong. Jerry has been training according to a 4-day schedule. Monday: back, rear delts, and biceps heavy and triceps light; Tuesday: chest, side delts, and triceps heavy and biceps light; Thursday: legs and calves; Friday: shoulders heavy and biceps/triceps light. Besides working out with me, he plays hockey and practices hockey on "off" days. With this 4-day schedule, he's maintained his overall body strength, and that's kept him stable on the ice. When you ask him how he can work so hard, he'll give you the same reasons and explanations detailed in this book. Even when Jerry is on the road, he finds the time to work out, following a circuit schedule-which I have explained in this book. Every 2 or 3 days, he'll train his back, chest, delts, biceps, and triceps on the same day for four or five rotations, 1 2 to 15 reps each set, and with weights set at around 70 percent of his peak capacity (that is, one exercise for each muscle group). This keeps his muscles conditioned and strong, and it also keeps his entire body in optimal condition. Hard and heavy training helps maintain muscle tone and strength. Plus, the integration of cardiovascular conditioning, such as riding a stationary bike or ice skating, into a workout program helps one's lung capacity for better, deeper breathing.

© 2005 by Jørgen de Mey. All rights reserved. No Part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any other information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

About the Author

Jørgen de Mey, is a sought-after personal trainer who has worked with, among others, movie stars Ben Affleck, Faye Dunaway, Jeremy Irons, Josh Hartnett, and Angelina Jolie; director and screenwriter Robert Towne; film and TV producer Jerry Bruckheimer; supermodel Estella Warren; and comedy writer Bill Lawrence.