10/23/2021 0 Comments The Tom Holland Workout - Train To Be The Leading Man of An Entire Hollywood Studio (or at least 2 franchises and counting)
Tom Holland is really coming into his own and apparently it’s time for Spidey to do some growing up too. No Way Home looks like an absolutely insane and amazing (no pun intended) last chapter for this coming of age arc we’ve seen Spider Man go through since his debut in the MCU. As well as an insane setup for the upcoming Doctor Strange sequel. So, for the first time ever I’ve designed a program template inspired by Spider Man as well as, arguably, the best actor to ever take up the role in what is arguably one of the greatest contemporary film universes/franchises. I hope you’re ready for some bodyweight/calisthenics madness because this template is not for the faint of heart. But if you can stick with it - you’ll be ready to kick some ass with The Avengers and maybe even dive into your own multiverse of madness.
Intro
As a 90’s baby, I know this might be blasphemous, but Tom Holland is probably my favorite Spider Manactor. I think he’s an incredible talent outside of the MCU but he was able to do something the previous two Spideys were not. He pulled off being a great Spider Man and a great Peter Parker. I think one of the major contributing factors for this success has been the physicality he’s been able to bring to the role. And this is due in no small part to his history as a gymnast and dancer. He was actually pushed into carpentry by his parents, but decided to try out for a handful of movie roles in the process and landed them all. One of these was the MCU x Sony’s Spider Man and the rest is history. As I said, I truly think his history as a gymnast made him ideal for this role and that’s for several reasons. For one, the Russo brothers seemed to think so. Which means that most of the casting directors probably thought so as well, as Holland made sure to include displays of his gymnastic abilities in each audition for the role. But mainly I think it made him perfect because his gymnastics training from his youth led to his parkour training in his adolescence and this made him more versatile. This, coupled with him branching out from ballet into hip-hop dance coalesced into the perfect background in the eyes of casting directors and stunt coordinators. He has a strong base, he's a great learner, and he can memorize a routine. Couple that with the looks, charisma, and his dad’s comedic charm and you’ve got a great Peter Parker that you can count on to bring several arcs to the silver screen. Now, even though I relate to this training progression a lot I can only offer insight on a few things. It was traditional martial arts that was the catalyst for my training career, not classical ballet, and I went from acrobatics to (martial arts-)tricking. No formal gymnastics and no formal hip hop dance training. But there’s a lot of overlap in these skill sets. It is in this zone of overlap that I will extrapolate what’s necessary to make this program template. We’ll be using Gymnastic Strength Training as well as one of the preferred programming methods of Holland and his trainer to get a web slinging physique complete with the functional strength necessary to save New York. And probably the multiverse.
Overview
Peter Parker might be a Queensbridge native but for this template we’re gonna borrow a little from one of his archnemesis’ hometown - Russia. Ironic, considering Kraven is slated to show up in No Way Home. Russia has made many innovations in the world of sports science but one of the most niche and ingenious (in my book anyway) is the Podkatchka. A podkatchka is a Russian gymnastics strength circuit designed to progress strength and conditioning for straight arm and bent arm skills. Made up of about 5-12 stations, a Podkatchka can work either straight arm skills or bent arm skills. Therefore, these are usually performed on alternating days. It should be noted that these are usually entirely upper body or at least upper body dominant. Most of you are, at the very least, casual physical culturists. At most, many of you are either recreational athletes, tactical athletes, functional athletes and even amateur athletes. I bring that up to say that this isn’t Reddit. Most of you aren’t 30 year old gymnastics enthusiasts whose sole purpose in life is to obsessively compulsively master the planche or maltese. Most of you have incorporated calisthenics or gymnastic strength training into your own training and periodization because you realize the value that it brings. Shots fired? Maybe. If you know, you know. That being said, nothing in this home podkatchka template is going to be something junior or professional gymnasts employ. Those guys and gals have basically been training since they could take their first steps and you literally can’t just jump into those skills after weeks or months. It takes years and years. The point of the majority of these programs is to be accessible. These strength circuits will be cut in half and will only use those progressions that your intermediate bar athlete/calisthenics athlete would have progressed. We will use the bar and/or rings/suspension trainer. The other half of your training session will be comprised of lower body skills. Some of which have their origins in gymnastics or acrobatics but are now found in other derivative practices, such as the Kip-Up movement. Tom Holland’s circuits were far less sport specific and considerably more varied. Not only in movement modalities but training modalities as well. From the small glimpse that we see of his training, there was a lot of cardio and conditioning included on strength days as warm-ups and finishers. Apparently, according to Holland, he also used electrical impulses to stimulate his muscles as well. We won’t be doing either of these. Instead, you’re going to knock out your conditioning on the day following your full body podkatchka-esque training. The Program The Who Tom Holland is around 5’9” or 5’10” at about 150lbs give or take. He’s incredibly lean, and there’s a function to this leanness. Although Disney doesn’t want him going too crazy, Tom Holland performs a lot of his own stunts. Apparently not as much as he’d like to. But this is understandable because he’s essentially their Million Dollar Baby. He’s two years my junior at the time of writing this article, at only 25 years old. He has what could be considered an extensive training background. With the aforementioned history of gymnastics and formal training in two different disciplines of dancing. Those interested in this program may be younger or older, but I suggest you have a proportionate training history. By this, I mean that you should at least be an intermediate level bar athlete/calisthenics athlete. If your frame matches Holland’s, you might expect to achieve similar aesthetics with proper nutrition and respect to rest and recovery. Taller physical culturists may need to steel themselves harder when it comes to working through progressions such as levers. Bottom line – this template is geared towards those with at least 1-2 years in the calisthenics game. The secondary template is for those who are at a similar level when it comes to suspension training. I chose suspension training over ring training, specifically, because the technical proficiency required for a podkatchka on rings is usually in the wheelhouse of someone who would already have a dedicated gymnastics coach and probably access to a gymnastics training facility. A word on nutrition – it seems Tom Holland only ever had to lose weight once. When he initially began training for the role. This kind of training is intense and I would not recommend doing this on any sort of calorie deficit. If you’ve kept up with higher athletic demands (such as those of an endurance athlete) then you might be able to get away with it as this is tame in comparison. But if that type of training demand is not in your wheelhouse I wouldn’t try it. On the other hand, you can do this if you’re in a calorie surplus. Not too high of a surplus, though, as too much weight is counterproductive to this type of training. Whatever type of dietary protocol allows you to hit your macros sustainably and safely is the one that’s right. There is no magic pill or secret weapon. Certain diets have inherent benefits on an individual basis and what works for your gym bro may not work for you. The What This is a 5-day program template utilizing a 3-day full body split with two days of conditioning in between. The strength and hypertrophy days will see you going through the aforementioned “mini podkatchkas” and the conditioning days will use a standard template that is more geared toward GPP and skillwork, so as not to impede recovery. The three strength and hypertrophy days will be quite demanding. Both the “Full Body A” and “Full Body B” sessions will break your training session up into two circuits. The first will be the upper body “mini podkatchka” composed of dynamic movement progressions that will see you zoning in on the 6-10rep range. The 2nd circuit will be a lower body circuit that will be within the same rep range and is designed for strength, explosiveness, and hypertrophy. As you begin you will be more so progressing your strength and power. But as you progress through the upper ceiling of sets/reps prescribed for each movement you will lean more toward hypertrophy as you close out the program. Since all of this works on a spectrum and sets/reps are generally arbitrary until you get into the truly sport specific programming, you don’t have to worry about making gains in one department over another. The primary template utilizes intermediate calisthenics/GST progressions. This isn’t one or the other across the board. The GST progressions include movements like planche pushup progressions, front lever progressions, and handstand progressions. The Progressive Calisthenics progressions include movements such as the bar muscle up, the typewriter pullup, the towel pullup and most of the lower body movements. And then there are movements such as the “Dip to L-Sit” which is widely practiced by all types of calisthenics athletes and physical culturists. For the Suspension Training template, I’ve gone with intermediate progressions again. I’ve selected movements we might see executed by athletes on the rings but which can be scaled at a physical culturists discretion depending on work space and personal range of skill. For the primary template, I condensed the average number of stations into only three. But these 3 stations use an essential push, an essential pull, and a combination movement. This will give you just a sample of what it’s like to complete a full podkatchka. I used the same method of exercise selection for the suspension training template. And while the suspension training circuit is definitely challenging, it’s not in the same neighborhood as doing something like this on the rings with true gymnastic form and discipline. It is, however, a great building block. The lower body circuits are simple enough. You have a squat/press, a core progression, and then a hinge. Even though it’s only three movements, executing these consecutively in a circuit will leave you wondering what you got yourself into. Kinda like Pete when he stuck to Ebony Maw’s ship and realized he was probably definitely in way over his head. But progression is the name of the game and you’ll get the hang of it quick enough. The conditioning sessions should ideally be done about 24hrs after the strength and hypertrophy days. That’s generally a ballpark figure. But just remember that even Peter Parker needs to rest and recover from his web-slinging, multiverse defending escapades. In these conditioning sessions you’ll complete a 10-15min warm up of something that isn’t too demanding. For all intents and purposes, you’ll be doing LISS or low intensity steady state. The general rule of thumb here is that you want to be able to hold a conversation while maintaining this activity. So practice your quips and one-liners to make sure that you’re not overdoing on the intensity. This means something like kettlebell swings or burpees are out. Running, jump rope, and swimming are in. The Why Let’s take a look at what the programming consists of and then we’ll get into the reasoning behind it. Full Body A Upper Body Circuit/Podkatchka
Upper Body Podkatchka
For the “Full Body A” Upper Body Circuit I chose three signature movements used by a variety of Calisthenics Athletes. The Planche Pushup Progression is your horizontal press for this session. Choose a progression that is adequate for this linear model. If you can do more than 8 reps already, its too easy. The Suspension Training alternative to this is the RTO Pushup. If you find this too difficult or find the form necessary to be too awkward, you can opt for the Chest Press x Fly movement. You want to choose a leverage that makes it difficult to hit the lower end of the prescribed rep range. But not so difficult that you can’t. The next movement in the circuit is the Typewriter Pullup for those of you sticking to the bars. And the Towel Pullup for those of you on Suspension Trainers. I chose the Typewriter Pullup as the vertical pull because the constant tension is a lot like the engagement you feel when doing Ring Pullups. And when the Podkatchkas gymnasts use are programmed with ring pulling progressions, rope climbs, and multi-movement transitions, this is the closest you’ll get to that feeling if never coming off the bars. I chose the Towel Pull Up progression for those of you on Suspension Trainers because, well, the Suspended Pull Up really isn’t going to do much for you at this level. Let’s be honest. Additionally, the Towel Pull Up builds insane strength very similar to what you’ll get when you start progressing Ring Pullups. And the point of this circuit is that of a strength circuit. The final movement in the sequence is the Bar Muscle Up for the Bar Athletes. Again, I wanted something extremely dynamic and holistic to finish this off. We are paying homage to the Podkatchka, after all. A pull into a push where the hollow body position makes or breaks the movement is some quintessential gymnastics. You don’t have to be a gymnast to do it. But you should be training like one to do it effectively and efficiently. The Suspension Training alternative is the Suspended Muscle Up and while it is not as demanding as the Bar Muscle Up or Ring Muscle Up it does introduce you to the movement pattern while firing up the stabilizers necessary to progress to those movements. In the Lower Body Circuit we have the Jump Split Squat/Suspended Split Squat, into the Windshield Wiper, into the Table Bridge. Podkatchkas are usually pretty much exclusively upper body circuits. But I wanted to this to be full body and while there are certainly lower body gymnastic progressions, I wanted this to be relatively accessible. Most lower body gymnastic progressions are there for tumbling and acrobatics. The exercise selection pattern for this was simple. You do a squat//lower body press, into a core movement, into hinge. Not only did I choose the movements that are thematic to the template as far as performance and inspiration, but also the most challenging. The program as a whole was inspired by the overlap between the extremely specific and to some, unconventional, strength-skill training for climbers (Nathan Drake), Calisthenics Athletes, and Gymnasts/Acrobats (Tom Holland/Peter Parker). The “Full Body B” Upper Body Circuit starts with the Lever x Handstand, into the Ice Cream Maker, into the Dip to L-Sit. If the Lever to Handstand is currently out of reach for you or if you’re on the Suspension Trainer you can opt for the Full Range of Motion Handstand Pushup progression that is adequate for this rep range, which is likely whichever progression you’re currently on. The Ice Cream Maker is a dynamic progression of the Front Lever and if you’re on the Suspension Trainer you’re gonna swap this out for either a One Arm Row progression with a low leverage or the Suspension Trainer Power Pull. For the Dip to L-Sit, you have the option of simply doing L-Sit Dips. As long as it fits with the linear progression of starting with six reps and progressing to ten. For those of you on the Suspension Trainer you’re going to do the Atomic Pushup. The exercise selection pattern and reasoning is the exact same here as with the “Full Body A” podkatchka. The movements here are a little more demanding which is why this circuit is done only once a week. For the Lower Body Circuit you’re starting with the Pistol Squat, into the Kip-Up, into the Dragon Flag. Remember that these are progressions. You start with the Pistol Squat progression for your strength level. For the Suspension Trainer crowd you have a little more wiggle room because you’re doing an Assisted Pistol and can either play with how much assistance you get from the Suspension Trainer or you can vary how deep and parallel your squat is. The Kip-Up progression is your hinge in this circuit and if this is something you haven’t been working on you should pace yourself and make sure you have your form down as this is a very demanding movement. For the Dragon Flag you can go for reps but if you’re more comfortable holding it for time then, by all means, use a time based progression. The How For each circuit you’ll complete one round and then rest for 3 minutes. A round consists of executing a full set for at least the minimum prescribed reps, taking as little rest as possible (no more than 30 seconds), and then executing the next movement. And so on and so on until the circuit is complete. Only then will you take the 3 minute rest before diving into the next round. This is the same throughout, for both the upper body “mini podkatchka” and the lower body circuit. Once you finished the prescribed rounds for the first circuit you rest up to 3 minutes and repeat with the next circuit. Upon completion of both circuits, you’re done. That’s it. You’re an Avenger now. After the first 10-15min of LISS you’re going to move onto skillwork. The skills I’ve given as examples are all thematic to the MCU’s webhead. However, you can swap out skills specific to your own personal performance goals if you’d like. Skillwork is a one-off circuit of 4 favored skills trained for 5 minutes each. This totals out at 20 minutes putting you at a grand total of 30-35 minutes of conditioning altogether. Alternatively, if skillwork isn’t in your wheelhouse at all you can opt for completing an additional 10-15min of LISS conditioning work. As always, I encourage you to make the template your own. On the final two days of the week, you’ll rest. This can include active recovery. If you’ve never trained with programming akin to what is presented here - I suggest your active recovery be really low impact. Something like a mobility WOD, mobility and stretching sessions, yoga. All of these things can be overdone and have the intensity turned up so I cannot stress enough that whatever you choose should be light. I wouldn’t exceed more than 30-45 minutes of total activity tops. Tom Holland Full Body Franchise Strength and Conditioning Template Strength Circuits Full Body “A”
Full Body “B”
Cardio x Conditioning Conditioning x Skill Work
Wrapping Up
I pretty much made this entire template before the trailer for Uncharted Dropped which reminded me that Sony is apparently hedging all their bets on Tom Holland and that he’s playing Nathan Drake. Nathan Drake is legitimately one of my favorite video game protagonists ever. Like Top 5. So there may actually be a separate template. But I can’t imagine much of the training for Uncharted was a major switch up – besides the possible addition of parkour training and maybe some climbing. So long story short, I kinda shoehorned in Uncharted thing in the title. As I always say, remember to pay as much attention to rest and recovery as you do to training. As well as nutrition. This programming is definitely on the intense side. Even if you’re a more advanced Calisthenics Athlete, no matter the discipline, the programming itself is what makes this intense. So remember to pace yourself and prioritize prehab and rehab. I cannot stress that last part enough. I know that you guys who do Gymnastic Strength crowd and Progressive Calisthenics crowd, among others, are always mindful of this facet of training. But as with any training, mobility work can make or break your progress and this kind of training definitely won’t be an exception. In fact, it’s the textbook rule. So before I sign off I want to make sure understand the importance of this. If you’ve made it this far – do not start this template or any similar programming without respect to prehab and rehab work. Remember. Rest x Recovery x Prehab x Rehab. Throw in the dietary protocol that’s right for you and helps you hit your macros and all nutritional goals, and you literally have the recipe for success. With a little bit of mindset, of course. And with that, I leave you with the Tom Holland training template. Make it your own. Apply the principles. And you’re ready to take on the multiverse. Or be a world class thief. As always, the choice is yours. Stay Prymal, Shredded Shaman
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Shredded ShamanLifelong athlete and martial artist. I'm on a mission to bring back the good old days of Physical Culture and make this fit lifestyle a lot more enjoyable. Archives
October 2022
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