Since 2009, I have followed the exploits of this big bald tough guy 👩🦲 named Saitama. And in a revelation made a few years ago now, he shares his surprising training program .
First, an introduction to the manga if you don't know it: Saitama is a bald hero who has an unconventional problem. He is too strong to satisfy his desire for a challenging fight, and often finishes off his enemies with a single punch, hence the expression "One Punch Man".
In the series, he reveals his secret training that transformed him from a simple Japanese person into a superhero 🐱🏍. Discover the training now: “One Punch Man”.
The training program: One Punch Man
- 100 Push-ups
- 100 Abs
- 100 Squats
- 10Km run (or 6.2 miles)
- Each day !!!
That's all. Did you expect something incredible because I teased it as the biggest mystery 🧙♂️ in history?
What will Saitama's training bring you?
Now, a few observations about this program, in comparison to real programs like Insanity Workout .
Are you going to blow everything up with one punch and go bald ? Probably not. But the routine is quite good and provides excellent health and body benefits 👩⚕️.
This program allows you to perform many primary movements. Do some pushing movements (push-ups) , strength exercises (abs) , leg exercises (squats), and some cardio (running) .
In other words, these strength exercises hit a large number of muscle groups in a more natural way. No pulley loops, no strange movements forced into the machine, while limiting the risk of injury 🩹 since all exercises are based on body weight only.
We can consider that such a routine is perfect for a real fighter. Boxers, martial artists, and other athletes who seek both explosiveness and muscular endurance 💪 (to be able to deliver MANY good punches, not just one) practice high-repetition exercises, such as this is the case for Saitama's 100 repetitions.
Your cardiovascular conditioning and muscular endurance would be phenomenal in the upper body (100 push-ups in a row is a lot), but don't expect more than a regular gymnast's body and legs 🤸♂️. From a muscular point of view, 100 squats and 100 abs are not the best way to stimulate these areas.
Your cardiovascular health will be incredible, because you have a good balance between strength work and cardio work , and the two together transform your body into a machine 🤖 of dynamism.
And since it's all about weight, you won't have to be afraid of gaining weight. Because if you start to gain weight 🍔 (fat), it becomes more difficult to do push-ups, squats and sit-ups. This bodybuilding exercise is therefore very effective in regulating fat gain, but also in encouraging muscle gain.
However, this program is not the best if you are looking to achieve significant muscle size or strength. You will see a positive increase in muscle size and an increase in strength, but the program is not optimized for these two points. If these are your goals, it's best to follow a more conventional "weightlifting" type weight training program 🏋️♂️ .
Also missing is a pull-type move . If we included pull-ups, we would have a complete foolproof workout program. If you have access to a barbell (not this one 🍫) or if you can afford one, add pull-ups without thinking. For this exercise, don't expect to do 100!
The benefits of One Punch Man training:
- Muscular endurance
- Cardiovascular endurance
- Really, really fun and an RP side for Otakus
- Without the fuss
- No equipment needed!
Cons of the One Punch Man workout:
- Not the most effective for hypertrophy (growth in muscle size)
- Does not allow for excellent brute force production
- You will have to reduce the amount of training a little because 7 days a week is exhausting in the long term.
How to pass Saitama's training
If you're inspired by your favorite anime to exercise (hell, that's how I started), then go for it! This workout is a pretty fun and intuitive way to get serious about exercise, even if you're currently in poor physical condition 🥼 .
That said, Saitama's training isn't as simple as doing 100 reps of the 3 exercises and running 10K. But I have a solution.
Separate the 100 repetitions into several sets , with a 2 to 3 minute break between each set. So, instead of doing 100 reps of push-ups, you will do 5 sets of 20 (100 reps in total). Then 5 sets of 25 (125 reps in total). Then 4×25 (100 repetitions in total). And so on 👌.
The idea is that the fewer sets you need to reach (or exceed) 100 reps, the more your muscular endurance and raw strength potential improves 🔝 . And eventually, you'll discover that you only need one set to reach 100 push-ups!
ANOTHER OPTION: Instead of having one workout time to do all of this, aim to work in small sets of 1 to 10 repetitions throughout the day of each exercise. For example, in the morning, do 10 push-ups, then 10 sit-ups, then 10 squats. About an hour later , start again 🏁.
I also advise you not to do this every day, even if you can do it. Your body needs time to rest and recover. This is where you build your strength and endurance. If you constantly tear down your muscle fibers without giving your body a rest, you will block your progress ❌. Instead, I suggest you train 3 to 4 days a week .
I'd say 3 to start, but make it 4 if you're as ambitious as Saitama or Genos . If you feel the need to do more, let me know how it goes... but I imagine you'll quickly reach a plateau of stagnation.
A variation to start One Punch Man training
First week :
Monday: 5 × 5 Push-ups | 5 × 10 Abs | 5 × 5 Squats
Wednesday: 5 × 6 push -ups | 5 × 11 Abs | 5 × 6 Squats
Friday: 5 × 7 P omps | 5 × 12 Abs | 5 × 7 Squats
Second week:
Monday: 5 × 8 P omps | 5 × 13 Abs | 5 × 8 Squats
Wednesday: 5 × 9 P omps | 5 × 14 Abs | 5 × 9 Squats
Friday: 5 × 10 push -ups | 5 × 15 Abs | 5 × 10 Squats
Third week:
Monday: 7 × 6 P omps | 7 × 10 Abs | 7 × 8 Squats
Wednesday: 7 × 7 P omps | 7 × 11 Abs | 7 × 9 Squats
Friday: 7 × 8 P omps | 7 × 12 Abs | 7 × 10 Squats
The idea is to stick to sets of 5-7 at first . Increase your repetitions by 1 per set until you reach a plateau of stagnation.
Then add other sets with fewer repetitions. If you can't reach 5 × 10 (5 sets of 10 reps, 50 reps total), the next day, try 7 × 7 (7 sets of 7 reps, 49 reps total). This way, your reps are pretty much the same, but you make them last longer, which gives you time to recover ⏲ .
But if you can reach 5 × 10, then you should try 5 × 11 next workout. Do you see where I’m going with this 🤔? Always use the 5 sets as a reference point ! And whenever you feel like it, you can replace a training day with a “trial day” . In other words, you do your best to reach 100 on each exercise.
Saitama's training diet?
Saitama has only one rule: don't skip breakfast (and a banana in the morning is good too 🍌). But in reality, your results come from your diet...
Lucky for you 🤩, it's not difficult. There are 2 major rules for developing your hero strength:
1. More protein - at least 1.6 g per kilo of body weight 📈. Don't hesitate to do a little more or a little less because the studies differ, but know that you probably won't need more than that.
2. More vegetables – to make bowel movements easier, balance your body's PH and get some vitamins and minerals. You should aim to eat vegetables 🥕 with your protein 🍖.
Diet is a huge topic that sparks a lot of debate, with a million different books and a million experts who will tell you they know what's best. Do whatever you want as long as you have enough protein and your food seems healthy and balanced 🧘♂️ . If you see results with your diet, then you are on the right track, otherwise try something else.
If you exercise three days a week or more, I would also supplement your diet with a dose of protein powder during the day (ideally after exercise). This type of product can be found on sites like MyProtein .
If you now feel ready to become the real hero 🦸♂️ , don't wait any longer to put on the iconic Saitama costume .
Conclusion
I hope this program will help you flourish in your efforts. And who knows, with effort and training, you might become the next Saitama .
Thank you all for reading this far, hope it motivates you as much as I did when I wrote this blog. We'll have to hang on, because Saitama even went bald . Then good luck !