How to Get Jacked Like a Superhero

SUPERHERO: BANE (TOM HARDY)
MOVIE: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (JULY 20)

Bane is less a superhero than a supervillain, but that doesn't mean Tom Hardy, an actor known for his body transformations (see Bronson and Warrior for proof), didn't get insanely jacked up to play him. How closely director Christopher Nolan hews to Bane's back story from the comics remains to be seen, but the character is written as a physical juggernaut who developed intense strength in a prison gym in the fictional Caribbean Republic of Santa Prisca, where he also learned to fight mercilessly. Bane's physical prowess moves to superhuman levels when he becomes the only surviving test subject of a powerful drug simply called Venom, which he has to receive every 12 hours or, um, bad things will happen.

How He Did It:
Hardy's trainer takes an unconventional approach to the old-fashioned muscle confusion technique by splitting up Hardy's workouts into brief, four-times-per-day sessions. The workouts typically fall first thing in the morning, at lunchtime, in the early evening and before bedtime and last for approximately 20 minutes with a focus on strength training. Beginners should plan to start with just the morning and evening workouts before adding in the other two as you become more comfortable with the regimen.