Netflix’s ‘The Witcher’, which was released before Christmas 2019 and stars Henry Cavill as Gerald, has become the hottest series of the 2019 holiday season. To prepare for such a demanding role, Cavill has been working hard to build strong, muscular arms. Henry Cavill has been doing the following 3 arm exercises. Officially released on Netflix on December 20, 2019 and promised to be as dramatic and thrilling as Game of Thrones, The Witcher has proven that to be true by surpassing Disney+’s The Madalorian to become the hottest series of 2019 (albeit controversially, of course!). Many people think that Henry Cavill’s Gerald and his adherence to the original novel “carried the team” for the film, making the audience ignore the huge flaws and other supporting character’s appearance. Whether right or wrong, anyone who has seen the film must admit that Henry’s transformation is great (because he is a big fan of the game The Witcher). But put aside the controversy, in this article you will discover 3 arm exercises of Henry Cavill to strengthen the muscles and supplement the sword fighting scenes of the character Gerald.

Photo: KATALIN VERMES

Cavill worked out with trainer Dave Rienzi on a comprehensive training program that would give Cavill the stamina he needed to complete the extremely grueling sword-swinging scenes after so many long days of filming. Henry Cavill did a variety of different exercises, from Romanian Deadlifts for his hamstrings and glutes to Pallof presses to develop core strength.

But of course, arm training was still the top priority in Henry Cavill’s training program. He did a lot of arm exercises, but the most typical were the following 3 exercises. This will be the perfect exercise to end your workout, after going through skullcrushers, heavy standing curls, or shoulder presses. Let’s find out which 3 exercises are with ELLE Man!

1. Dual Cable Reverse-Grip Kickback 

Why?

With this exercise, you’re going to hit your triceps hard. If you keep your upper arms completely parallel to the ground, you’re going to squeeze your triceps hard on every rep, because they’re going to be under almost all the stress.

How to do it:

Stand facing a cable post and grab the handles. Swing your arms forward to your waist, until your torso is parallel to the floor. Then, straighten your arms, pull and hold with your triceps, and release back to the starting position.

Do 4 sets of 10, with a 45-second rest between each set.

2. Three-Way Shoulder Raise 

Why?

Shoulder presses aren’t just about military presses. Shoulder raises, done correctly, can also help develop your deltoids. The key to this exercise is to keep your shoulder blades tight, and never let your wrists go higher than your shoulders. This exercise will stimulate overall growth in your shoulder muscles.

How to do it:

Stand up straight and hold two dumbbells at your sides. Start by extending the dumbbells out to the sides, then lower them. Continue to extend the dumbbells out to the sides at a 45-degree angle to your body, then lower them. Finally, extend the dumbbells forward, and lower them.

This is one rep; do 3 sets of 5.

3. Iso-Hold Biceps Curl 

Why?

Building big biceps is more than just curling with a heavy dumbbell. The key is to squeeze your biceps on each rep and hold that position. And this curl exercise will make you continuously do that squeeze.

How to do it:

Curl 2 dumbbells, and hold the position above. Then, squeeze your right biceps and lower the left dumbbell down at the same time, then curl back. Repeat the same movement on the other side. That’s one rep, do 3 sets, each set about 10-12 times.

You can refer to more exercises by Henry Cavill in the video below! Wish you have an effective gym session with 3 upper arm exercises!