14 DAY TRIAL // It’s not uncommon for celebrities to lose weight or gain muscle mass for a certain movie role. Just in the latest blockbuster, “Iron Man 2,” there are at least three stars who accepted to alter their figures to better suit the part: Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow and, of course, Robert Downey Jr. Downey is no stranger to this type of excessive dieting, but that still doesn’t make it right, AFTA-certified trainer Sylwia Wiesenberg says in a recent piece for That’s Fit.
While Johansson had to lose a few pounds and Gwyneth to simply tone up and pack some muscle, Downey’s challenge was perhaps the hardest, especially since he’d just lost weight for “Sherlock Holmes” when he started working on “Iron Man 2.” This meant that whatever physical improvement he aimed for, he had to get there fast because he had very little time to prepare. And it’s precisely here where these yo-yoing regimes are dangerous, Wiesenberg points out: because they put too much strain on the body, as opposed to increasing or decreasing the intensity of the workouts gradually.
“It’s not healthy. It puts a strain on your heart, especially if your body isn’t ready. In order to gain bulk this fast, many celebrities end up on a short program that packs on heavy, heavy weight, and works the muscles to an extreme in order to get them to grow,” the expert says. To add insult to injury, many celebrities who gain a lot of muscle mass stop working out the moment production for the film wraps, which sends their weight spiraling out of control – together with their metabolism.
“I realize many people, especially celebrities, don’t have hours a day to work out when they are not training for a particular role. But still, if you are working out intensely for two months, gradually decrease the amount of time each day; don’t just stop working out altogether. This way, your body won’t go through that rapid change of size – yo-yoing from extra strong to flabby back to extra strong again isn’t good. For the average person it is much better to follow more gradual and sustainable program that incorporates exercises into lifestyle on daily basis,” Wiesenberg explains.
Downey is not the only celebrity to have made international headlines because of his physical transformation. Jake Gyllenhaal will debut his buff physique in “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” made possible with many hours a day doing strength training and Parkour (freerunning). Before that, Christian Bale repeatedly made it into the news for his weight loss or hard rock muscles.