Tom Holland Inspired Workout
4-day plan for an athletic look.
Tom Holland built his Spider-Man-ready physique around gymnastics, bodyweight work and conditioning—not a traditional bulk. The goal was a lean, capable body that could sprint, jump, control its position in the air and handle long stunt days. The routines reported from his film preparation are demanding, so treat this as an athletic template to scale to your experience, not a prescription to copy rep for rep.
Training philosophy: perform first, look athletic second
Holland’s background in competitive gymnastics gave him unusual body awareness, coordination and explosive control. For Spider-Man, trainers George Ashwell and Duffy Gaver reportedly built on that base with full-body sessions that added lean muscle without sacrificing speed or agility.
The common thread is functional fitness: pushing, pulling, squatting, hinging, bracing, running and moving through space. Short rests and multi-muscle circuits keep the heart rate high while the movement selection supports the demands of action work.
A Tom Holland-inspired weekly split
This structure reflects the training themes associated with his preparation. Keep at least one easier day and reduce volume if performance or sleep starts to decline.
- Monday: full-body bodyweight ladder or conditioning circuit.
- Tuesday: upper-body strength plus gymnastics or calisthenics skill work.
- Wednesday: lower-body functional strength and core training.
- Thursday: boxing, intervals or another conditioning session.
- Friday: full-body circuit with bodyweight and dumbbells.
- Saturday: mobility, gymnastics fundamentals, a sport or stunt-style movement practice.
- Sunday: active recovery such as walking, hiking, surfing, golf or easy cycling.
Monday: the bodyweight ladder workout
One of the best-known sessions linked to Holland is a rising and falling ladder: 1 pull-up, 2 dips, 3 press-ups, 4 sit-ups and 5 squats; then 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10, continuing until the final 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 round before working back down. Completed in full, it approaches 1,500 repetitions.
This is an advanced endurance test that can take about an hour. Its value is the combination of upper-body pulling and pushing, leg work, trunk endurance and grit—not the headline rep count. Start with a 1-to-3 ladder or one trip up only, using rows, incline push-ups and bench-assisted dips where needed.
- Pull-ups
- Dips
- Press-ups (push-ups)
- Sit-ups
- Bodyweight squats
Tuesday: upper-body strength plus gymnastics
Upper-body work combines compound strength with positions that challenge shoulder stability and trunk control. A reported Duffy Gaver circuit used five rounds, with the first serving as a warm-up, short rests between exercises and longer rests between rounds.
Choose loads you can control. Gymnastics progressions should make you better at hanging, supporting and stabilizing before you attempt advanced ring skills or weighted high-volume circuits.
- Pull-ups: 3 sets of 6–12 reps
- Bench press: 10 controlled reps
- Weighted or bodyweight dips: 3 sets of 8–10 reps
- Renegade rows: 10–20 reps per arm
- Shoulder taps: 20 reps per arm
- Ring push-ups or basic ring-support work
Wednesday: lower body and core movility
This approach favors strength that transfers to jumping, running, landing and changing direction rather than chasing maximum leg size. Use compound patterns and single-leg work, then train the core as a way to transfer force and maintain position under fatigue.
Prioritize clean deadlift and squat technique. If your lower back or knees lose position, reduce the load, range or density before adding more work.
- Deadlifts: moderate-load sets of 8–10 reps
- Goblet squats: 4 sets of 10–12 reps
- Reverse lunges: 3 sets of 10 reps per leg
- Dumbbell thrusters: 15–20 reps
- Leg raises or floor wipers: 3 sets of 10–15 reps
- Bear crawls and plank variations: 45–60-second intervals
Thursday: boxing and HIIT conditioning
Boxing builds rhythm, footwork, coordination and cardiovascular fitness. Interval work adds repeat-effort conditioning that resembles the stop-start output of a demanding action sequence.
Technique comes first: work with a qualified coach for striking, and do not turn every conditioning day into an all-out test. Keep one or two repetitions in reserve on strength movements and use easy cardio when fatigue is high.
- Heavy bag: 5 rounds of 3 minutes
- Speed bag or shadow boxing: 3 rounds of 2–3 minutes
- Jump rope: 5-minute intervals
- Burpees: 4 sets of 15 reps
- Battle ropes: 4 rounds of 30 seconds
- Sprints: 10 rounds of 20 seconds hard / 40 seconds easy
Friday: full-body functional circuit
Ashwell’s reported approach paired a posterior-chain leg movement with horizontal pushing and pulling, then an anterior-leg movement with vertical pushing and pulling. Each round becomes a compact full-body conditioning stimulus rather than an isolated-body-part workout.
Complete four to five rounds only when your technique stays crisp. Rest roughly 30 seconds between exercises and up to two minutes between rounds; beginners can halve the work and rest longer.
- Bear crawls: 60 seconds
- Shoulder taps: 20 reps per arm
- Dumbbell thrusters: 20 reps
- Renegade rows: 10–20 reps per arm
- Push-ups: 20–30 reps
- TRX rows or bodyweight rows: 3 sets of 12 reps
Saturday: gymnastics, power and mobility
Gymnastics practice is the differentiator in Holland’s training history. It develops spatial awareness, body tension, mobility and coordination that standard gym work often misses. This work can be less structured than a lifting session while still being highly demanding.
Use safe progressions and professional coaching for tumbling, handstands, rings and landing skills. A simple session of mobility, supported handstands, crawling and low-volume jumps is more useful than forcing advanced tricks.
- Handstand holds or wall-supported handstands
- Ring support holds, rows and dips
- Box jumps: 4 sets of 5 reps
- Broad jumps: 4 sets of 5 reps
- L-sit progressions: 3 quality holds
- Mobility and flexibility circuit
Pre-workout fuel and recovery
A practical pre-training meal for a morning circuit is easy-to-digest carbohydrate plus protein: porridge or oats, fruit, nuts and a protein shake are examples often associated with Holland’s preparation. Give yourself enough time to digest and include dynamic mobility before loaded or explosive work.
Recovery supports the entire plan. Aim for 7–9 hours of sleep, eat sufficient protein across the day, include carbohydrates after high-volume sessions and use rest days for genuinely easy activity. Batch-cooked foods such as chicken or cod can make protein intake easier to sustain, but consistency matters more than a celebrity food list.
How to apply the system without overreaching
The useful lesson is not to recreate a film-prep schedule exactly. Build a capable base: two or three full-body strength sessions, one conditioning day, regular walking and progressive calisthenics. Add gymnastics skills only as your shoulders, wrists and trunk control improve.
Holland’s physique reflects a system of movement quality, full-body training, conditioning, protein intake and disciplined recovery. Train to become more capable; the lean, athletic look is the by-product of that process.