Taking on a role that involves long action sequences is demanding for actors with a solid fitness level, let alone those who rarely step foot in a gym.
But that was the reality Charlie Cox faced when he first landed the lead role in Marvel’s Daredevil. As Cox explained in an interview with Business Insider, before he was cast, he’d ‘never really been in shape’ and mostly relied on the occasional run to stay active.
But the role demanded hours of fight choreography and the kind of specific programming needed to perform long action sequences, so he had to make a change.
Cox’s 3 Training Principles Stick To Sport-Specific Movement
Cox’s trainer Naqam Washington ensured the actor would be ready to take on the role. ‘Nowadays, people train to get optimal movement from their body. They train like an athlete,’ Washington told Business Insider. ‘We did modern, sport specific, MMA movement.’
That ethos shaped everything from his strength training to his conditioning workouts. Washington explained that sessions focused on functional movement patterns that would support fight scenes rather than bodybuilding splits for aesthetics. ‘Remember back in the day when people used to work out one body part per day. Nobody works out like that now,’ he said. ‘We’ll do some primary muscle, but in a sport-specific, functional way, not the heavy three sets of 12. We did none of that.’
Marvel Studios
The trainer’s programme focused on compound lifts, explosive movements and exercises which work the body athletically. These types of exercises can improve strength, power and coordination simultaneously, making them particularly useful for sports and physically demanding roles.
Follow A Clear Timetable
‘I never do seven days [in a week], because you are supposed to rest. I tend to do five days,’ Cox said. ‘Before the show I [tried] to do six days a week. I [tried] to get myself into good enough shape so when we [started] shooting, I [could] concentrate on the show and the acting part of it.’
According to Washington, a typical session lasted around 75 minutes, with the occasional extra 15 to 20 minutes added if time allowed.
Make Space For Cardio
Alongside strength work and fight training, Cox also kept cardio in the programme. ‘I love to do cardio. I like to run and sweat a lot, and I think that’s quite helpful,’ he said. Washington rotated different conditioning methods depending on the session, including treadmill hill intervals, rowing sprints and prowler pushes to build the kind of endurance needed for demanding fight scenes.
The Nutrition
As someone who is naturally pretty skinny, Cox said he had to be ‘militant’ with what he ate and how often he ate it. The actor explained he needed to eat ‘six, seven times a day’ and consume plenty of carbohydrates to support muscle growth.
Washington echoed the importance of nutrition, explaining that body composition is ultimately determined by energy balance. ‘If Charlie wants to gain weight in lean muscle mass, his caloric intake has to be more than his energy expenditure, mathematically. If you want to lose weight, your energy expenditure should be more than your caloric intake.’
It’s important to note that while actors sometimes adopt very strict nutrition protocols, they aren’t always suitable for the average gym-goer, and it’s important to consult a nutritionist before changing your diet.
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