The Hottest Vanity Muscles—And How To Get Them
The world’s top celebrity trainers share their exercises, workouts, and tips for the muscle groups everyone wants to improve.
ABS
The Move: Swiss Ball Plank Rolls
This exercise is a favorite from Ashley Borden, who trained Ryan Gosling. Get into a plank position, placing your forearms on a bench and your feet on a Swiss ball. Keeping your back straight and your butt level, squeeze your abs, bend your knees, and roll the ball toward the bench, then back to start. Don’t drive your hips into the air—focus on bringing your knees to your chest.
PECS
The Move: Bosu Ball Push-up
This exercise builds your pecs in two ways, says Rich McDonald, an actor, a college pole-vaulting champ, and Kellan Lutz’s personal trainer: the explosive press and the dynamic absorption of movement during the landing. Hold a Bosu ball bottom-side up and lower into a push-up. Explode back up so that the ball lifts off the ground. Once it falls back to the floor, go right into your next push-up. Never pull the Bosu up; the ball should rise only from the power of your arm straightening.
See Kellan Lutz’s Pecs
BICEPS
The Move: Standing One-Arm Cable Curl
Bobby Strom, the trainer who helped sculpt Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively in Green Lantern, swears by this cheat-free move. Grab a high cable handle with one hand and walk to the other side of the station. Hold on to the machine’s frame with your free hand. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and with the cable at shoulder height; keep your arm parallel to the floor. With your elbow steady, curl the handle toward your head. (Holding on to the frame will prevent you from using your momentum.)
See Ryan Reynolds’ Biceps
QUADS
The Move: Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat
Beckham entrusts his quads to Ben Yauss, the strength coach for the LA Galaxy, who loves this dynamic move. Stand with dumbbells at your sides in front of a bench. Reach one foot back and place it on the bench. Keeping your back straight, sit through your hips and squat down so your front thigh is parallel to the floor. Hold, then press back up from the ball of the heel.
See David Beckham’s Quads
CALVES
The Move: Single Leg Acceleration Wall Drill
Avoid the calf-muscle machines at the gym, as the weight can put undue stress on your knees, ankles, and Achilles tendons. Your body weight is plenty, Yauss says. Stand in a split stance with your hands pressing on a wall. Lift your front knee up toward your chest and hold. Slowly lift up and lower your back heel for 30 seconds then switch legs. That’s one set. Try for five.
See Mikhail Baryshnikov’s Calves
TRICEPS
The Move: Diamond Push-up
Last year the American Council on Exercise and researchers at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse compared the eight most popular triceps exercises—including those that involve weights—and found that this push-up was the most effective. Get into a push-up position with your thumbs and index fingers touching. Lower yourself until your chest is a few inches above the ground and repeat.
See Zac Efron’s Triceps
DELTS
The Move: Dumbbell Clean and Press
To grow your shoulders fast, do this move from Simon Waterson, an ex-British Commando who helped get Chris Evans jacked for Captain America. Stand with your feet slightly wider apart than shoulder-width, with an upright dumbbell on the ground in front of you. Squat down and pick up the bell with one hand. As you stand back up, swing the bell up to your same-side shoulder. Once standing, press the bell above your head. Hold at the top, then lower the bell and squat back down.
See Rafael Nadal’s Delts
TRAPS
The Move: Seated Behind-the-Back Half-Row.
Traditional traps exercises are the most controversial in the fitness world, since so many put undue stress on the neck and shoulders. Leave those to pros and gym rats. To shape yours safely, do this modified row. Grab a pair of dumbbells and sit on a bench. Let the bells hang behind you. Keeping your neck neutral and your back straight, brace your core, squeeze your shoulder blades together, and slowly lift the bells up no higher than your mid-back.
See Tim Tebow’s Traps
OBLIQUES & DEVIL’S HORNS
The Move: Roundhouse Kick
Gregory Joujon-Roche, one of Pitt’s personal trainers for Troyand the founder of L.A.’s Holistic Fitness, admits there’s no way to single out the inguinal ligament—but sculpting your obliques can help increase the indentation below your inguinal, making those horns more pronounced. Stand at a slight angle to a heavy bag. Raise your knee, pivot on your planted foot, and kick the bag with the top of your foot. The key is lifting your knee high, as if over a table in front you, before beginning your kick. Repeat and try to increase speed. After a minute, switch legs. Remember, engage your obliques—not hips—when elevating the knee and kicking.
- By Mike Dawson
See Brad Pitt’s Obliques
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photos: Eric Ray Davidson
