Ryan Reynolds’ Workout Routine & Diet (Updated)

Ryan Reynolds might be in his 40s but you have to admit he’s looking good.

The Hollywood funnyman has a physique that most of us can only dream of, yet it is possible to achieve with the right approach.

Ryan Reynolds has made us envious of his physique numerous times throughout his career, with notable moments including his appearances in Blade: Trinity and The Amityville Horror.

Yet, almost two decades later, Ryan Reynold is still keeping himself in envious shape as the dual-wielding Marvel anti-hero Deadpool.

It takes hard work to look like a cinematic superhero, but it goes to show that age doesn’t matter if you’re looking to put on muscle and get cut.

But how exactly does he do it?

It’s no secret that Hollywood actors get help from trainers and dieticians to be camera-ready in a matter of months.

In fact, for Blade: Trinity, Ryan Reynolds packed on 11 kilograms of muscle in just three months, which is some serious dedication.

Luckily, there is online footage of Ryan Reynolds working out, as well as basic information on what he eats, which we can use to understand his fitness regimen.

We can also assess his physique from a scientific perspective to get a general idea of his workout routine and diet.

So, keep reading this guide to find out everything you want to know about how to achieve Ryan Reynolds’ physique.

Breaking Down Ryan Reynolds’ Physique

First of all, let’s break down Ryan Reynolds’ physique to get a good idea of what is to be achieved.

It goes without saying that Ryan Reynolds is lean and athletically built with a 6’ 2” (188 cm) mesomorph body shape.

He is not vein-popping shredded, so we’ll put him at a healthy body fat percentage of around 10%.

To achieve his exact physique, you don’t have to stand as tall as him but it will help if your body type is mesomorph.

However, don’t panic if that’s not the case, as you can still achieve a similar muscle definition as Ryan Reynolds.

Overall, this tells us that Ryan Reynolds focuses on functional, metabolic exercises that simultaneously elevate his heart rate and tear muscle while watching his diet on a daily basis to keep body fat to a minimum.

Ryan Reynolds’ Workout

Ryan Reynolds is trained by Don Saladino. Don Saladino has also helped the likes of fellow Marvel heroes Hugh Jackman, Sebastian Stan, and Scarlett Johansson get in shape for their roles, so it’s fair to say the man knows a thing or two about looking like a Hollywood superhero.

Online footage of Ryan Reynolds working out shows him performing medicine ball throw downs, leg raises, neutral grip pull-ups, weighted lunges, and even crash mat backflips — which confirms he takes a functional, plyometric approach to his exercises.

In fact, Ryan Reynolds is quoted as saying he prefers “function over fashion”; he keeps his workouts safe and methodical, avoiding heavy weights and overload.

Additionally, Don Saladino himself has explained that Ryan Reynolds’ routine involves a full-body workout spread over five days.

So, Ryan Reynolds does not utilize the traditional workout split that progressively overloads muscle groups separately, but a workout routine that involves moderate training of each muscle consecutively.

Ryan Reynolds’ Diet

We can see that Ryan Reynolds likes to stay lean and athletic. After all, he has a full six-pack that accounts for his low body fat percentage.

In fact, Don Saladino (his trainer) has explained that Ryan Reynolds eats sweet potato, oatmeal, brown rice, and fruit as part of his diet.

Sweet potato, oatmeal, and brown rice, in particular, are all unrefined carbs, which are good sources of energy.

From this, we can come to the conclusion that Ryan Reynolds maintains a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet, while maintaining little to no consumption of sugars, fats, and unhealthy food in general — such as processed foods and refined carbs.

Ryan Reynolds trains a full-body workout routine and is not small by male physical standards, so we can assume his daily calorie intake for recovery and muscle maintenance is around 2500 to 3000 calories.

Target Muscles and Exercises

Now that we have run through Ryan Reynolds’ general workout routine and diet, what are the target muscles to hit and the main exercises needed to train them?

As mentioned above, Ryan Reynolds sports a lean, athletic build, meaning he has low body fat and adequate muscle definition.

He has visible six-pack abs, prominent obliques, defined pecs, and chiselled arms and shoulders.

So, below, we highlight these muscle groups individually and provide a few exercises that can help you to achieve Ryan Reynolds’ lean physique.

Abs and Obliques

Ryan Reynolds has a full six-pack and that alone requires serious dedication — both in the gym and in the kitchen.

Ryan Reynolds has been seen doing leg raises and likes to maintain a healthy diet, but what else does he do?

A quick note: it’s worth mentioning that whether you can achieve a full six-pack is unfortunately down to genetics.

Everyone can achieve visible abs, but whether your abdominal muscles form a four-pack, six-pack, or eight pack is a matter of genetic makeup.

Key ab and core exercises that we can assume Ryan Reynolds incorporates into his routine include sit-ups, crunches, hanging knee/leg raises, planks, and mountain climbers.

As for his obliques, we’re looking at Russian twists, side planks, bicycles, around the worlds, and window wipers.

Chest

Ryan Reynolds has a full chest so there’s no doubt he trains his chest regularly to hit all areas of his pecs, including his upper, lower, and inner chest.

Exercises to achieve this include the bench press and dumbbell press, push-ups, and chest dips.

Ryan Reynolds likes to train functionally, so we can take a good guess that he performs these exercises in a plyometric style without overloading himself with heavy weights.

Shoulders and Arms

Ryan Reynolds’ arms and shoulders are chiselled and well-defined but not big in size.

This is more evidence of his functional training that focuses on metabolic movements that build muscle but avoid muscular overload.

So, it could be the case that Ryan Reynolds’ arms and shoulders are the results of secondhand muscle growth through compound exercises such as push-ups, bench/dumbbell presses, pull-ups, chin-ups, and rows.

It’s unlikely that he trains isolation exercises due to his workout preferences but, if he does, it would involve bicep curls, tricep extensions, and shoulder presses.

Rep Ranges and Sets

Last but not least, rep ranges and sets. Ryan Reynolds leans towards functional movements and plyometric exercises that boost his heart rate (for accelerated fat loss) and build muscle simultaneously.

So, he trains hypertrophy and endurance for his general fitness and athletic physique, but not strength via weight overload.

As a result, it’s likely that Ryan Reynolds performs high numbers of sets and reps per muscle, with little to no rest, as part of his daily full-body workout routine.

Specifically, this would mean performing 3 to 5 (or more) sets of 8 to 25 reps and above, resting for 1 minute or less between each set.

Conclusion

And that’s it. That wraps up our updated guide to Ryan Reynolds’ workout routine and diet that you can use to achieve Ryan Reynolds’ lean and muscular athlete’s physique.

Just remember, it might not be possible to look exactly like Ryan Reynolds — due to genetics and height — but you can achieve the same body fat percentage and muscle definition.

After all, who doesn’t want to look like a Marvel superhero? Happy training!