A Workout Fit For a Viking: Training Like The Northman

Just one look at the promotional pictures for The Northman shows the hard work and dedication Alexander Skarsgård put into his character. In the new movie, directed by Robert Eggers, Skarsgård plays  a young Viking prince on a quest to avenge his father’s murder. The film required a powerful and beast-like leading man, and Skarsgård was up for the challenge. The man responsible for getting Skarsgård into true Northman shape? Fitness trainer, Swiss native and true transformer, Magnus Lygdbäck.

In honor of film’s release, Focus Features, Universal’s indie label, held a beautiful premiere of The Northman in West Hollywood days before the official release date. Following the screening, the celebrity trainer himself lead attendees through a workout, to #trainlikethenorthman. During the event, Lygdbäck spoke candidly about the mental and physical stamina required to prepare for a role like this, along with the diet and lifestyle habits necessary to care for the body.

THE PHASES

He explains the different phases he put Skarsgård through – first, “you’ve got the bulking or the build up phase, which is where you want to gain a strong foundation of muscle mass to prevent injury. This is also the phase where you get to eat a lot of food – it’s Alex’s favorite. Then, then is the cutting phase – in which you want to keep the muscle and shred the fat.” He explains a normal cutting phase would be 8-10 weeks, but because the goal was for Skarsgård to not be too shredded, “the cutting phase for Alex was about 3 weeks so he could look a bit thicker.” Finally, you enter the maintenance phase, in which “you keep all that muscle mass on, while you prepare to prevent injury.”

THE WORKOUTS

Lygdbäck focused not only strength training and building muscle mass for Skarsgård, but he states the functionality of movements specific to a role like this. He emphasizes, for example, “not wanting to get injured on set while swinging an axe over and over for 12 hours straight.” He then takes the event’s group through a structured and thought-out workout focusing on shoulder stability, hip mobility,  and an overall strengthening workout with banded work and bodyweight primarily – “a typical day I would put Alex through before a tough, physical day on set.” Curious about the moves?

[Magnus Lygdback; Photo: Ivanna Jackson, 1 Hotel West Hollywood]

The Northman Workout

Warm Up: Bear Crawls (30 sec x 2)

Circuit #1: (30 sec each x 2)

Banded Side Steps with Toe Touch 

Goblet Squat

Circuit #2: (with Superband) (30 sec each x 2)

Standing Rows 

Holding Band

Circuit #3: (30 sec each x 2)

Lateral Raises (with Superband) 

Skaters 

Circuit #4: (30 sec each x 2)

Rolling Knee Tuck (30 sec x 2)

Rotating Kickthrough (30 sec x 2)

THE FOOD

A perfect workout plan will never be sufficient alone, as we all know you can’t out-train a “bad diet.” So how does Lygdbäck tie nutrition in when preparing an actor for a role? “I try to approach the nutrition with the most balance or sense as possible. We allowed Alex to have a glass of wine on Saturdays, and eating the food he actually enjoys.” He emphasizes that “any diet is hard to stick to when you don’t get to enjoy any foods that you like.” And Lygdbäck doesn’t just shell out instructions and go home. He is super involved – “I’m actually designing the menu with the chefs, and I’m making sure that someone like Alex is getting the food on time and he is finishing it.”

Lygdbäck’s Food Philosophy: eat 5 times per day, and focus on a balanced approach of macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, and proteins). Lygdbäck reiterates that everyone’s approach will be slightly different based on numerous factors, and calories will correlate to their workout plan, as you overeat when bulking, under-eat when cutting, and keep up your calories during maintenance in the “sweet spot.”

[Photo: Ivanna Jackson, 1 Hotel West Hollywood]

THE MINDSET

Actors are still human beings and need a strong reason behind their efforts. Lygdbäck says “It’s easy when you do big movies because it’s going to be there forever, and [the actor’s] grandkids are going to watch it. Every actor is different, and you have to communicate in a way to make them feel inspired and understand what they’re there for.” But actors are just like us, and they do have periods of low motivation. “Some days are just so tough when you don’t get enough sleep, you’re dieting – and you need that extra push.” While every human being is different, Lygdbäck is quick to put Skarsgård in the disciplined category. “Alex makes my job very easy, and he is always the hardest worker in the room. I guided him, but all the credit is his.”

Now you can train like The Northman too – to try out Lygdbäck’s workout plan, check out The Magnus Method on the Playbook app. 

See Alex Skarsgård in The Northman, now in theaters!