Hemsworth’s Efficient New Routine Gives Superhero Physique Without Old Thor Grind
Australian actor, producer, and global star Chris Hemsworth, 42, has been known to lean on high-volume workouts and diet plans throughout his journey bulking up to play Thor, better known as the Marvel Comics’ God of Thunder, in previous films. While marathon sessions, like his viral 1,000-rep bodyweight workout, and up to ten meals a day proved to be effective for Hemsworth at the time, these extreme routines left him drained and made other activities far more difficult.
For Avengers: Doomsday, scheduled to release on December 18, 2026, Hemsworth and his longtime trainer Luke Zocchi took a much different approach. Hemsworth focused on significantly shorter, 45-minute strength sessions every other day, combined with combat training, swimming and his usual surfing. The goal was not only to obviously target muscle growth in the more exposed areas shown on screen, but to also define a more recoverable fitness plan that improved his overall life.
“When we did ‘Thor: Love and Thunder,’ that was during Covid so we had a year to prep,” Zocchi told The Independent. “We trained super hard for that film, and Chris was huge in it. This time he was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t know if I want to do that again.’ We haven’t killed ourselves anywhere near as much on this one and he still looks really good. Because he’s built that foundation [of fitness and muscle] so many times, I think it’s a bit easier to get back to that point.”
Leveraging that foundation into his reinvented outlook, Hemsworth scaled back training volume without losing results. These sessions, one of which outlined via Zocchi below, are intense yet concise, designed with a performance-meets-aesthetics philosophy that keeps him both healthy and camera-ready.
Chris Hemsworth’s 45-Minute ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Workout
Warm-Up: Shoulder Circuit (Light Dumbbells)
- Lateral raise – 3 sets × 8 reps
- Front raise – 3 sets × 8 reps
- Overhead press – 3 sets × 8 reps
- Rest: 60 sec (after each circuit)
Main Push Workout
- Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 4 sets × 8–12 reps (Final set: three-step drop set)
- Rest: 60 sec
- Incline Dumbbell Bench Press – 3 sets × 12 reps
- Rest: 60 sec
- Single-Arm Cable Lateral Raise – 4 sets × 12 reps (each side)
- Rest: 60 sec
- Cable Machine Rear Delt Flye – 3 sets × 15 reps
- Rest: 60 sec
- Cable Machine Straight Bar Triceps Push-Down – 3 sets × 12 reps (Final set: three-step drop set)
- Rest: 60 sec
Drop Set Instructions (for first & last exercise): Perform as many reps as possible with working weight, then drop weight 10–20% and perform as many reps as possible. From there, without rest, drop weight another 10–20% and go through a set to failure. Repeat a final time to complete the three-step drop set.
Duration: ~45 minutes
Frequency: Every other day
Doomsday Awaits Hemsworth’s Thor
Hemsworth has earned multiple fan-voted honors for his portrayal of Thor since making his Marvel debut in 2011, including People’s Choice Awards wins for Favorite Action Movie Star and Male Movie Star in 2022, as well as a Teen Choice Awards trophy for Choice Summer Movie Star: Male, among others. He was also named People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive in 2014 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2024 in recognition of his lasting impact on the film industry.
Avengers: Doomsday is an American superhero film based on Marvel Comics’ iconic team of Avengers, set to serve as the 39th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and a sequel to 2019’s Avengers: Endgame.
*Image via Instagram @chrishemsworth
