Alexander Skarsgard is no stranger to getting his kit off for both the small and big screens. He always has had a good body, as we all have seen, this despite the fact that he hates dieting.
Bu,t for his most recent movie Tarzan, Skarsgard burst into screen with an amazing sculpted eighth pack abs.
So how exactly did a guy who doesn’t like watching what he eats achieves such a feat?
First of all, he chose to partner up with a nutritionist he trusts. While Warner Bros. offered him the service of one of their trainers, the Swedish actor instead chose his friend and fellow Swede Magnus Lygdbäck to whip him into shape.
Despite being countrymen, the two actually met in Los Angeles. “When you have to see the same person every morning at 4:30 a.m., it’s important you get on well with them,” Skarsgard explains why he handpicked Lygdbäck.
Alexander then spent three months bulking his body up by eating an astounding 7,000 calories a day and then lifting heavy weights. He ended up adding 11kg to his weight.
Of course, binge eating is not really that hard for most of us. In fact, most of us are probably too good at it. Hey, we can probably throw in the weight lifting and we’ll be all right.
The really hard part came when Alexander had to tone his body so he could achieve the eight pack abs we see on-screen. So he went on a very strict “sugar-gluten-what-dairy-and-alcohol-free diet”. Which consisted of six smaller meals per day to increase his metabolism. This was coupled with a twice daily training regiment.
When filming ended, Alexander immediately swung back to the carbs.
“I spent four days just in bed, being fed by Dad,” he told EW, referring to his father, legendary actor Stellan Skarsgard.
“He cooked these pastas with rich sauces and bone marrow and fried mozzarella and tons of beer and wine. It was the most incredible weekend of my life,” he mused.
Now that is one great way to celebrate the end of filming!
