Here is the precise gym protocol than Bale followed during the six weeks between wrapping on The Machinist and doing his first screen test for Batman.Įven though there are just six exercises here, by the time they were done, Bale would be completely exhausted. They are multi joint movements, the most common ones being squats, deadlifts, bench press and military press. A compound exercise is one that requires a large number of muscles in the body to work together in order to do the work. The reliance on just a few compound exercises allowed Bale to go all out on the exercises that really matter when it comes to packing on quick mass. H also added in plenty of agility and plyometric type work to develop the speed and fluidity to transform him into an authentic looking superhero.
His training to play Batman consisted of explosive movements with heavy resistance, and compound exercises. In fact, he has a reputation as one of the hardest training guys in Hollywood. The Bruce Wayne physique had to be lean and agile not slow and pudgy.Ĭhristian is no stranger to hard, heavy exercise. He ate clean in that he didn’t touch junk food or even alcohol. The total calorie count that Christian consumed every day while claiming back the weight that he’d just lost was between 35. Protein drinks, consisting of hydrolyzed whey protein concentrate, would also add to the calorie count. This was to be achieved by concentrating on lean proteins such as pork, steak and lamb. At every meal his goal was to get 50 grams of protein intro his body. He didn’t have time to slowly start rebuilding calories. He immediately threw himself into a bulking routine. His long term strategy was to eventually gain back all the muscle with an extra few pounds added for good measure.īetween the last day of filming on The Machinist and his first screen test for Batman, Bale had only six weeks. Christian knew when he was preparing for the role in The Machinist, that his next gig was to play the caped crusader. He managed to go from 184 down to 121 pounds in just 12 weeks.Įven though this crazy amount of weight loss sounds very dangerous, the whole thing was done under the supervision of a doctor, nutritionist and personal trainer. Despite this pitiful level of caloric intake, he then threw himself into intense workouts. His diet consisted of just a single apple and a can of tuna. This made him the ideal choice to take on the Batman challenge.įor his role in The Machinist, Christian had to lose 63 pounds in just three months. While the dramatic weight loss for The Machinist was the most extreme example, he has demonstrated an iron will and steely discipline on many occasions as he manipulated his diet and exercise regime in order to either add or gain weight. When you take a look at Christian Bale’s body of work, you can’t help but be impressed at the lengths he has gone to in order to inhabit the characters he plays. Did he turn to steroids or other artificial means of packing on muscle? Or was it all down to discipline and hard training? An Actor’s Devotion to his Craft How did he achieve these amazing results.
For his turn as Batman, he rocked the scale at 189. When he filmed The Machinist, Bale weighed in at a mere 120 pounds. That he was able to go from that to the physique he revealed less than a year later in The Dark Knight is the most amazing transformation we have ever seen. His dramatic weight loss was so extreme that he looked like an emaciated skeleton. When Christian Bale appeared in the 2004 move The Machinist he was a scary sight.