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Get Jacked Like Zac Efron

By Jeff Vrabel

Zac Efron Shirtless; Zac Efron MTV awards; Zac Efron neighbours; How do i get abs?; Who has the best abs in Hollywood?;
Zac Efron Shirtless; Zac Efron MTV awards; Zac Efron neighbours; How do i get abs?; Who has the best abs in Hollywood?;

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You may not have heard of Zac Efron but the women in your life certainly have. Recreate his workout to transform your body


The MTV movie awards happened four days ago, but women everywhere are still talking about one thing: Zac Efron's bare chest.

The 26-year-old actor won Best Shirtless Performance during the Sunday night awards telecast. While Efron accepted the trophy, British singer and actress Rita Ora ripped open his shirt. Efron finished the job by tossing the shirt aside and flexing for the crowd.

Go ahead: Roll your eyes. (We did.) But even as you do so, you've got to admit the guy is ripped. Who wouldn't want to sport a six-pack like that?

Efron didn't always look like this, though. Two years ago, he was 66 kgs, lean and cardio fit. Then he started training for his leading role as a marine in The Lucky One. Four months later, he'd gained eight kgs and packed on slabs of muscle—and he's kept that physique ever since.

Zac Efron's trainer, Logan Hood of Epoch Training, used these four principles in transforming the young actor's physique to look like a Marine in four short months.

Control the variables
Building a Marine-calibre body calls for a comprehensive approach. "Training is only one piece of the puzzle," Hood says. "Sleep is huge. Stress is huge. Fuel you're putting in your body is an enormous component. But nobody brags about having followed a regimented diet for four months." You have to decide what's more important: eating that entire pizza or having the body you want.

Opt for quality over quantity
Efron worked out five days a week, about an hour each time. "That's another misconception," Hood says. "If you're eating appropriately and getting enough rest, you don't need to train all day. All the work's happening when you're outside of the gym."

Go old-school
You don't need fancy equipment. Hood put Efron through a regimen of "typical old powerlifting stuff": squats, dead-lifts, heavy overhead presses, weighted pullups—simple exercises that over time allow for heavier and heavier weights.

Stick with the plan
Efron didn't bulk up overnight. Nobody can: "It's months and months of process and diet," Hood says. "What people see on the screen is a guy who basically immersed himself into a training process over a period of time. It's more than just doing exercise and taking more protein."
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