Orlando Bloom may not make such a regular appearance on the big screen these days, but he’s clearly been putting his time off to good use and hitting the gym.
The English actor, best known for his roles as Legolas in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit prequel series, as well as Will Turner in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, hasn’t ever exactly been out of shape, but judging by a recent Instagram video, the man has got himself absolutely jacked.
Captioning his workout video, Orlando says he “broke [his] back when he was 19 and they said [he’d] never walk again.” Clearly, he used that bombshell claim as motivation to ensure he would prove his doctors wrong.
Orlando demonstrates three exercises in his Instagram video: an EZ bar bicep curl; using an ab roller to torch his core muscles and a cable rear delt fly to target and strengthen his posterior muscles. Understandably, Orlando’s video has received hundreds of comments, including those from English rugby player Danny Cipriani saying “Go on lad!!” while some others have tagged Orlando’s wife, US pop singer Katy Perry, waiting for her to comment on her husband’s progress.
If you want to attempt Orlando Bloom’s workout – and you really should, because it’s pretty simple – here’s what you need to do.
EZ Bar Bicep Curl: Orlando has chosen to use an EZ bar for his bicep curls, as opposed to a straight barbell. Using an EZ bar places less stress on the wrists and helps to isolate both the biceps and triceps.
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To start, add some plate weights onto the bar and grab the handles using an underhand grip. Stand shoulder-width apart and slowly curl the bar upwards, ensuring you keep your elbows close to your sides. You can choose to curl the bar a full 180-degrees, or you could try implementing the 90-degree technique put forward by Dr Joel Seedman.
Repeat for 10 – 12 reps for 3 – 4 sets.
Ab Roller: The ab roller is an incredibly affordable piece of equipment that you can use practically anywhere. It’s by no means an easy exercise to perform, but it is one that will have your abs begging for you to stop.
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To use an ab roller correctly, make sure you don’t attempt to roll out as far as possible if you’ve never used one before. To set up, kneel on the ground and grab the ab roller handles with an overhand grip. Engage both your glutes and your abs, place a slight bend in your elbow, and begin rolling the ab roller out in front of you. Lower yourself as far as is comfortable, because remember, you have to engage your core muscles to help return the ab roller to the starting position.
Cable Rear Delt Fly: The cable rear delt fly can also be called a reverse cable fly. Either way, it serves to strengthen and build the rear section of the deltoid muscle in the shoulders, but also benefits the front and middle sections of the deltoid, plus a range of other upper body muscles.
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To perform, stand in-between a pair of cables with feet shoulder-width apart. Set the pulleys of the cables to just above head height and remove any handle attachments. Take hold of the left pulley with your right hand and the right with your left hand, so that your arms are crossed.
Take a step back to engage some tension in the cables and, keeping your core tight and your gaze fixed in front of you, bring your arms back towards you. Try and keep your arms as straight as possible throughout the exercise, and keep pulling back until you feel a pinch in your shoulder blades. Slowly return your arms to their starting position to complete one rep.
Perform the cable rear delt fly for 10 reps and 3 – 4 sets.
Orlando Bloom’s upper body workout is a relatively simple one, yet one that can also be incredibly effective if performed correctly.
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