WWE’s Undisputed Champion, Drew McIntyre is chiseled like a Greek god, but he’s agile too. At 6’5”, and 275 pounds plus, he can just as easily clobber you with one of his huge fists as blast you with a flying “Claymore Kick.” Indeed, when wrestling in a different town every night, against the larger-than-life superstars of WWE, a special set of tools is required. You need to be strong yet flexible, lean yet full of stamina and, of course, totally unwilling to quit. So, when I was given the opportunity to get into the gym with the big man from Ayr, Scotland, I jumped at the chance, feeling excitement and trepidation in equal measure. In the end, McIntyre proved to be that perfect combination of a dream gym coach who is also willing to be your worst nightmare, but mercifully, there were some serious belly laughs along the way.
With WWE bodyslamming its way through England as part of the “Road to Royal Rumble” tour, I packed up my gym bag and headed to boxing legend, Anthony Joshua’s BXR Gym 9, a state-of-the-art fitness space in Marylebone, London. It was here that I would be greeted by the current WWE Undisputed Champion, Drew McIntyre, who looked all too pleased to be putting me through my paces.
Now, I should explain that I’ve known Drew for over 25 years. I’ve seen him wrestle in dimly lit bingo halls and progress all the way to the gigantic stadiums of WrestleMania, but if I thought that the big Scot would go easy on me, I would have been gravely mistaken. The workout of the day was a full body circuit, making perfect sense, as it tested both strength and endurance, placing similar demands on the body as a bigtime bout in WWE. “Pain is pleasure, pain is beauty,” uttered the champ as I spluttered through my reps. I knew we were in for a long day!
Inside Drew McIntyre’s ‘Not-So-EMOM’ Full-Body Circuit
The workout was pitched as an EMOM, that’s Every Minute On The Minute, so each exercise was to be performed for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of rest. You then move on to the next station and repeat. Here were the moves, but of course, anything can happen in WWE, so things didn’t go as expected.
- Bicep Curls
- Lying Dumbbell Chest Press
- Goblet Squats
- Plank
- TRX Low Row
- Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat
- Dumbbell Seated Shoulder Press
- Weighed Plate Russian Twists
How McIntyre Trains Like a Match Has No Time Limit
Apparently, when the WWE Champion is coaching you, time and reps become a blurred concept. “Time doesn’t exist,” mocked McIntyre as I tried to figure out the quickest way to the showers. “I am Father Time, and I say move your arse,” commanded the man who not only eliminated Brock Lesnar from a Royal Rumble, but also pinned his shoulders to the mat at WrestleMania 36. Of course, there’s no set time for a pro wrestling match, and no limit to the number of times you might need to lift a burly opponent, so why should gym sessions be any more civilized?
Things got off to an intimidating start when McIntyre began ‘motivating’ me during bicep curls. “More, more,” demanded the Scottish Warrior, who recently dethroned ‘The American Nightmare’, Cody Rhodes. Right now, however, I was experiencing my very own British nightmare. “Look at those arms,” quipped an unimpressed Drew McIntyre, taking the opportunity to show me his own bulging biceps. Wanting to grow my own guns to the same monstrous level, I asked the champ how many more curls I’d need to complete, in order to compete. “About 50,000,” he responded. “So, let’s start now.”
By the time I hit the TRX (Total Resistance eXercise) suspension trainer, the sweat was flowing. With time no longer a concept in this supposed EMOM, every time I completed an additionally requested set of reps, more would follow. “If you can do two, you can do three more,” challenged WWE’s Undisputed champ. If only you could tap out of a workout! Still, undeterred, I sucked it up. “You’re not maxed out!?” questioned McIntyre as I moved on to the next station. I would be soon, however.
During the plate weighted Russian Twists, 30 seconds of exercise would have felt like heaven compared to what McIntyre had in store. “I’m timing you, you’ve got, like, five minutes left,” harangued the harbinger of bad news. “I don’t do reps, I do time, and it’s time you shut up and do the reps,” he balked. At this point, I wasn’t sure that my famous coaches’ assertion of pain being pleasure and beauty was strictly accurate. And to prove it, I collapsed in pain… in a very ugly way. “I didn’t say stop,” bellowed the less than sympathetic WWE Superstar.
Of course, the beasting of a fitness writer, and an old buddy, was all in good fun, and while I questioned our friendship as I lay prone, just like his hapless opponents, I did get the point of the exercise. Attempting to train for the rigors of WWE requires pushing yourself to, and past your own perceived limits. There’s no accounting for reps, or time, when you’re in the ring with the likes of Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, or WWE’s Undisputed Champion, Drew McIntyre.
WWE Raw streams on Netflix in the U.S. In Canada, the UK, and Ireland, you can also view SmackDown, NXT, and premium live events such as Royal Rumble on Saturday, January 31st, while U.S. viewers can watch Royal Rumble via ESPN.
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