How Does The Rock's Strength Coach Keep Him Healthy and Strong at 50?

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is one of the most successful actors of all time, but he's also a massive human being. He's 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs around 250 pounds. As intimidating as he can be in movies like the Fast and Furious franchise, Johnson pushes himself even further to achieve even greater strength. And according to his longtime trainer, Dave Rienzi, the two are always looking for new ways to improve Johnson's physical performance.

To keep Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson—who turned 50 this year—in antihero shape for his role in Black Adam without putting him in danger of overtraining or injury, Rienzi implemented these four strategies in his routine.

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Here's How The Rock Maintains His Strength at 50

1) Pre-exhaust workout method

Johnson avoids training with heavyweights, so he makes lighter loads challenging by pairing isolation exercises with compound movements. For example, he’ll do a set of a chest fly on the cable machine, then follow it up immediately with a bench press. The aerobics from the isolation move leave his chest tired and make the compound move harder even with a moderate weight.

This was also his secret to building the ultimate 3D superhero arm for black adam.

2) Glutes workout

Rienzi (the Rock's coach) emphasizes working the posterior chain. Johnson does Romanian deadlifts 2 or 3 times weekly to target his back muscles, glutes, and hamstrings. Strong glute muscles help protect the lower back—and enable him to be explosive.

3) Squats as a finisher workout

To strengthen his quadriceps and hamstrings, Johnson ends his leg days with squats. He doesn't do them first because he wants to start light and save the heaviest weight for last. That way, by the time he gets to squats, his quads are already fatigued from other lifts such as Romanian deadlifts, so he can put more stress on his legs when doing squats.

4) Slow paced

Johnson says that he incorporates at least two moves during every workout that involve time under tension. For example, he’ll grab a moderate weight for a biceps curl then curl up and squeeze his biceps for four seconds before lowering the weight slowly for another four seconds.

“35-pound dumbbell curls with a 4-second negative for 10 reps is a brutal exercise,” Rienzi says. Do 3 to 4 sets and enjoy the burn!

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Wrapping Up'

He’s a beast, 50, and hasn’t lost any steps. He is the latest example of a Hollywood star who loves working out so much that he spends quite a bit of time doing it—both at the gym and at home. Needless to say, his regime is pretty intense. While not everyone can or wants to follow his exact regiment, there are a few things easy enough for anyone to do.

Add interval training, pick up free weights instead of machines, try advanced exercises like the clean and jerk or deadlift on your next trip to the gym. Then, don't forget to hydrate (the Rock drinks 1 gallon of water per day!).