In his new movie "The Wolverine," Hugh Jackman reprises his "X-Men" role as the fierce comic book character with impressive strength and more than a few battle scars. To help prepare for the physically demanding role of Wolverine, Jackman amped up his workouts and now says that he actually has a secret love of working out.
In his upcoming interview on "Oprah's Next Chapter," the chiseled 44-year-old credits his personal trainer's distinct philosophy with helping him enjoy his workouts. "I have a trainer whose philosophy is... 'I'm not going to kill you every time; I'm going to make you want to do it,'" Jackman explains in the video above. "You know, sometimes you train so hard that you just dread going. I haven't trained like that. And, actually, the results have been better."
"For 'Wolverine,' did you [work out] three hours a day?" Oprah asks.
"Three," Jackman answers, nodding. "Two hours in the morning and about 45 minutes in the afternoon. It's very time-consuming!"
"And what were you eating?" Oprah wonders. "Is this where you get to eat everything? You have to eat 6,000 calories a day?"
"Yes," Jackman says. He then explains that his 6,000-calorie-per-day diet was suggested by the buff wrestler-turned-Hollywood-action-hero Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson after Jackman called him up looking for advice on how to build more lean muscle.
"He went through the diet. It was 6,000 calories, eating every two hours," Jackman recalls. "It was like, two chicken breasts, steamed broccoli, beans and maybe some carbs."
This suggested diet and exercise regimen helped the Aussie actor bulk up to play Wolverine, but it was Jackman's own personality that may have helped him actually enjoy the challenging process. "I'm someone who likes routine and discipline, weirdly," Jackman says. "I kind of revel when I've got a structure."
Watch Jackman's full interview on "Oprah's Next Chapter," airing Sunday, July 28, at 9 p.m. ET on OWN.
Related
Before You Go
