Get fit like Chris Hemsworth

From his hilltop home above Byron Bay, actor Chris Hemsworth, best known for playing Thor, is explaining why he decided to make a health and fitness app.

“I get more questions about health and nutrition and how to stay fit and healthy than I do about my films,” he says, his big blonde dog, Sunny, resting at his feet. “So I thought, ‘Great, this app is a chance to share that on a global scale.’”

The app could’ve been Body by Thor: A Definitive Guide to Maximum Muscle, but that’s not what Hemsworth chose to make. Instead he made Centr, a compilation of daily workouts, recipes and mindfulness exercises customised for individual goals – whether you’re trying to gain mass, trim down, or just feel better about yourself.

“This certainly isn’t something people should be intimidated by and think is far too intense for them if they never worked out before,” he says. “These are very tailored, specific workouts for your needs and your specific body type and age and weight.”

Want to cook healthier food? Hemsworth’s favourite chefs share their recipes. Need to quiet your mind? You’ll find daily meditations.

In this interview, Hemsworth reveals more of what you can expect from the app.

What does the app’s name, Centr, refer to?
To centring yourself. These days, if I’m training but my head isn’t quite in it, it’s not as effective. Centr is a holistic view of health – mind, body and nutrition. I’ve found that you really need all three of those.

What does it offer on the fitness side?
We have a number of different experts who cover all bases of training and movement: everything from yoga, pilates and heavy-weight regimens to functional movements and high-intensity interval workouts.

I’ve found cross-training to be the most efficient and effective exercise – the 20-, 30-, 40-minute workouts. I used to train a lot longer, but I found myself having far more injuries and not actually getting the results I wanted.

How much of what’s in the app have you done?
This is all stuff that I’ve done. All of this was created around the people and exercises and movements that I was inspired by. This is how I train. This is how I think and approach my life and that’s what this journey was about: opening up my own personal experience to the rest of the world.

Who are the other people in the app?
This is the team of experts I’ve interacted with over the years to make me a healthier, happier person – and that team is now your team.

Some of them I’ve grown up with. Luke Zocchi, who I went to school with and have known since I was 5 years old, has been my trainer for a number of years. Bobby Holland Hanton, my stunt guy, was a gymnast originally. He’s one of the fittest, strongest humans I’ve ever met and is unusually aware of his health and fitness regimen.

Rulk is somebody I’ve followed on social media. His training is not only unique but highly functional and can be applied to beginners, experts, or anyone rehabbing who just wants to get movement back in their body.

My wife, Elsa, is offering up her own style of training: She’s done a lot of yoga over the years; she’s also done a lot of boxing and kickboxing. And then we have a number of martial arts trainers, yoga trainers, pilates, and so on. So we’re trying to cover all bases.

Results are a great motivator. If you’re using this app, what are some benchmarks that help you know it’s working?
Aesthetically, you’re going to notice an obvious physical change. But what I find more important is my mental state. When I train and I eat right and am more self-aware, that’s when I feel far more positive and happier.

I have more energy, I sleep better. I’m less inclined to be agitated by certain things or overreact to certain situations. I think that should be all of our motivation: How can we achieve a happier existence?

Centr: Workouts and Meal Plans

Exercise At Home Or At The Gym

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