The Rock, a.k.a Dwayne Johnson, may as well be Miriam Webster’s definition for ripped. While his work ethic is second to none, his muscle mass and low body fat can be attributed to his disciplined diet. In fact, so many people want to follow his secrets for success, both in and out of the gym, that he even started his own workout clothing line with Under Armour. Because who doesn’t want to look good and feel good while working out?
The Rock’s diet remains relatively the same despite a few alterations in portion size and which foods he eats for particular movies. Regardless of which movie he’s eating for, we know one thing is true. He eats a lot!
That may not make sense in terms of diet but he likes to think of diet in a different way.
Let’s explore how.
The Rock’s Typical Diet
In order to understand the Rock’s diet, we must first really understand what he means by diet. It isn’t the normal association of restriction in intake. It’s more about choosing a healthy lifestyle and diet.
He has two diet plans essentially. One is his “normal” regimen for staying fit and healthy, while the other is for packing on more muscle mass for a specific role.
These plans are the “Five-Meal Diet Plan” and the “Seven-Meal Diet Plan”.
Note: His diet plan is not cheap! Just for one day, you’ll need to buy 20 ounces of steak alone with chicken and salmon.
Five-Meal Plan:
His five-meal day plan consists of high protein intake, simple carbs, and some vegetables.
Here is what the Rock typically eats on an average day.
Meal 1:
- 10 oz steak
- 2 cups of oatmeal
- 3 egg whites
- 1 whole egg
- 1 glass of watermelon juice
Meal 2:
- 2 servings of chicken
- 2 bell peppers
- 3 cups of mushrooms
- 3 cups of broccoli
- 1 protein shake
Meal 3:
- 9 oz salmon
- 8 asparagus tips
- 2 cups of rice medley
- 2 whole egg
- 3 cups of broccoli
Meal 4:
- 10 oz steak
- 8 asparagus tips
- 3 baked potatoes
- 1 glass of orange juice
Meal 5:
- 10 egg whites
- 20 grams of casein protein
Seven-Meal Plan:
This looks very similar to his five-meal except a lot more cod is introduced and lean protein as he tries to bulk up on muscle mass and cut down on body fat.
Here is what the Rock typically eats during his bulking diet plan.
Meal 1:
- 10 oz cod
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 cups of oatmeal
Meal 2:
- 8 oz cod
- 12 oz sweet potato
- 1 cup of vegetables
Meal 3:
- 8 oz chicken
- 2 cups of white rice
- 1 cup of vegetables
Meal 4:
- 8 oz cod
- 2 cups of rice
- 1 cup of vegetables
- 1 tbsp of fish oil – 122
Meal 5:
- 18 oz steak
- 12 oz baked potato
- Spinach salad
Meal 6:
- 10 oz cod
- 2 cups of rice
- salad
Meal 7:
- 18 oz 30 grams of casein protein
- 10 egg white omelet
- 1 cup of vegetables
- 1 tbsp of omega-3 fish oil
This seven-meal plan is near twice the amount of calories that an average male eats. This comes in around 5,200 calories per day.
Why does he eat like this? Simply, his body demands it. With an intense workout regimen on its own and the need for him to be extra-large and lean in his roles on set, he becomes the Michael Phelps of movies. Some days the Rock reported 14 hours on set which did not include any of his rigorous time spent in the gym.
The Cod
Some parts of his diet are worth mentioning. During his seven-meal plan, he would eat 36 ounces of cod! This is nearly 2.3 pounds of fish alone in a day. Better yet, that’s 821 pounds of cod in a year!
Cod is a lean source of protein whereas other proteins can cause inflammation. This is one of the likely reasons you will see the massive amounts of cod in his daily diet when prepping for a bulkier role.
Different Roles, Different Plans
Johnson has come out and said that for different movies and roles he will change his diet and workout plan based on the body look he is aiming for. When he filmed Baywatch with Zac Efron he came in at a leaner 238 and admitted he was aiming for less bulk.
Having said that, his approach to two of his most notable roles as Zeus’ son in Hercules, and Hobbs, in the Fast and Furious series, his diet drastically changed. Mainly in calories.
Hercules Diet
The intense diet the Rock chose to follow for his role in Hercules is commonly referred to as the “12 Labours’ Diet”. This diet follows the example from the seven-meal plan outlined above. Johnson noted, “I went for the demigod look: big and mean.” And he nailed it.
The Rock spoke about how his calorie intake went up immensely because his workouts also matched the intensity of his role. For nearly six months he followed the seven-meal plan a day.
While Johnson always says his workout and diet plans change from movie to movie, Hercules was a different animal because he went 172 days on this strict diet. In this case, he promised that once it was a wrap in filming he would beat his famous cheat day when he housed:
- 12 pancakes
- Four pizzas
- 21 brownies
- A stein of milk
Fast Five Diet
For the Fast Five film, the Rock put on a minimum of 30 pounds in lean muscle mass by pushing a 6,000 caloric intake a day. Weighing in at 260 his frame was meant to challenge the also ripped figure of Vin Diesel.
He was able to make this massive change by following the seven-meal-a-day plan. However, the Rock allowed himself one cheat day a week where he housed down some of his favorite foods.
Speaking Of Cheat Meals
A cheat meal to the Rock is quite a serious event. As noted above that was for one day of food! Since his discipline is all about the “go big or go home” attitude, so are his days off from following these intense diets.
Here are a number of his cheat meal days that he has so graciously shared via Instagram.
Five Pints Of Ice Cream
To end 2019 we saw the Rock obliterating five pints of Salt & Straw ice cream.
Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes and Tequila
Of course, the pancakes were extra large in portion sizes. To add some more calories why not throw on some of his crunchy peanut butter and maple syrup. Don’t forget the Tequila either!
Two Bacon Cheeseburgers Accompanied With An Array Of Sugary Delights
Besides two bacon cheeseburgers with fries and some tequila, the Rock made room for at least five oversized cookies, a few brownies, and a fat piece of cheesecake.
Six Sushi Platters with a Platter Of Cookies
Why choose one roll when you can simply have the whole menu? And of course, you have to finish off with a plate of cookies.
Eight Pieces of French Toast With a Slice of Apple Pie
Sort of like apple pie-flavored french toast?
Two Turkey Subs and a Plate of Brownies
Arguably larger than footlongs accompanied with peanut-butter fudge brownies.
The Workouts
Regardless of those cheat meals, you can’t take in all those calories without putting some serious effort into the gym. The Rock spends an enormous amount of time on set but also spends a lot of his energy dedicated to his body and building large muscle mass.
Here are some of his general workout routines that change based on the movies he is preparing for.
Day 1: Leg Day
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
Breakfast
- Barbell Walking Lunge – 4 sets, 25 reps
- Leg Press – 4 sets, 25 reps
- Leg Extensions – 3 sets, 20 reps
- Barbell Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Single-Leg Hack Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Hack Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Romanian Deadlift – 4 sets, 10 reps
- Seated Leg Curl – 3 sets, 20 reps
- Thigh Abductor – 4 sets, 12 reps
Day 2: Back Day
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
Breakfast
- Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Bent-Over Barbell Row – 4 sets, 12 reps
- One-Arm Dumbbell Row – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Barbell Deadlift – 3 sets, 10 reps
- Pull-ups – 3 sets, to failure
- Dumbbell Shrug – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Inverted Row – 3 sets, to failure
- Hyperextensions Back – 4 sets, 12 reps
Day 3: Shoulders
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
Breakfast
- Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Standing Military Press – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Front Dumbbell Raise- 4 sets, 12 reps
- Side Lateral Raise – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Reverse Machine Flyes – 4 sets, 15 reps
- Seated Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise – 4 sets, 12 reps
Day 4: Arms/Abs Day
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
Breakfast
- Dumbbell Bicep Curl – 4 sets, 15 reps
- Hammer Curls – 4 sets, 15 reps
- Spider Curl- 4 sets, to failure
- Triceps Pushdown – 4 sets, 15 reps
- Overhead Triceps – 3 sets, 15 reps
- Hanging Leg Raise – 4 sets, 20 reps
- Rope Crunch – 4 sets, 20 reps
- Russian Twist – 4 sets, 20 reps
Day 5: Leg Day
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
Breakfast
- Barbell Walking Lunge – 4 sets, 25 reps
- Leg Press – 4 sets, 25 reps
- Leg Extensions – 3 sets, 20 reps
- Barbell Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Single-Leg Hack Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Hack Squat – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Romanian Deadlift – 4 sets, 10 reps
- Seated Leg Curl – 3 sets, 20 reps
- Thigh Abductor – 4 sets, 12 reps
Day 6: Chest Day
- 30-50 minutes of cardio (treadmill)
- Barbell Bench Press- Medium Grip – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Incline Dumbbell Press – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Dumbbell Bench Press – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Flat Bench Cable Flyes – 4 sets, to failure
- Incline Hammer Curls – 4 sets, 12 reps
- Dips – Chest Version – 4 sets, to failure
Day 7: Rest!
To say the least, the Rock’s workouts are just as intense as his food regimen.
What If I Tried His Diet?
You wouldn’t be the first to ask, which is why a guy named Mark Webster made the investment both financially and mentally and tried it out.
He updated his journey online following the routine from Feb 1st to March 1st.
Here’s what happened.
Besides spending $1,262 in food that month Webster found that the routine actually was quite time intensive and interrupted his day every so many hours to eat. He also had to prep the food every 2-3 days for hours because it was impossible to prep on a meal-to-meal basis.
To be exact eating at a reasonable pace Webster found himself eating for 20 minutes seven times a day. This worked out to two hours and 20 minutes a day dedicated just to chowing down.
Webster knew that he couldn’t only follow the diet plan but also needed to exercise the same amount as well. In that month he put in about 60 hours of exercise averaging out about two hours a day.
So between the meal prep, eating, and exercising, nearly five hours a day was gone!
So what were the results? While Webster’s body weight hardly moved (206 to 207 lbs) he increased a solid amount of muscle mass and found himself benching more and lifting heavier. For a 37-year-old guy who had been in relatively good shape, he admitted this was not the plan for everyone and required the intense amount of discipline you think it does, if not more.
Eat To Win
The Rock takes eating to win to a whole new level. In fact, everything he does is always in a big way which is why he is so successful and in the shape that he is in. The dedication to diet, exercise, and simply his time during the day, is not an easy task to follow.
But his methods work and as proven, not just for him.
In short, his efforts are just as respectable as his body.
