The Samus Aran Workout

Samus Aran Quick Navigation Links:
Character Breakdown: Samus Aran
The Samus Aran Workout
The Skills of Samus Aran
The Mind of Samus Aran

Sorry for the two-day break, guys, my father-in-laws funeral proceedings kind of took up my time.  To make up for it, I’m posting this today, Saturday, and you’ll get another post tomorrow, Sunday(weekend updates, whee!).  Also, our current quest, Activate the Book of Faces, has stalled at 36 likes!  We’re sooo, close!  Consider sharing the Facebook page or one of the blog post with your friends, so we can hit fifty, and get weekend updates next week, too!

Okay, so let’s start with admitting something to ourselves here.  Samus Aran is infused with both Chozo AND Metroid DNA.  She is not completely human, and as such, she is capable of doing things that no human would be capable of, such as jumping twice her own height(without her power suit, as shown in Zero Mission), and other assorted physical feats.  She does, however, still work off of a basic blueprint we can go with!  Samus is 6’3″, 198 lbs (1.9m, 90 kg for our metric friends), and is described as being in peak physical condition, with a somewhat slender, but well-muscled body.  From his we can see she is not a bodybuilder, but rather focused on “functional” strength.

Samus had two different phases to her physical training in life.  Her younger years(4-15 years old), she was raised and trained by the Chozo.  They gave her Chozo DNA to boost her physical capabilities, but besides this, much of her training appeared to be gymnastic in nature.  She was also taught physical combat moves, and acquainted with power suit mechanics.  After this, she entered training in the Galactic Federation police branch, where she honed her shooting and combat skills.  We’re going to take the approach of practical, physical strength, which means maintaining a good power-to-weight ratio, as well as the cardiovascular health necessary to sustain prolonged combat.

Note: This workout is split into four levels, so it can be easily plugged into the RPG Fitness system!

Equipment Needed:
Chinup Bar(seriously, if you don’t have one yet, get one)
Rings for Chinup Bar(I just got some heavy rope from the hardware store, looped it through two short lengths of PVC pipe, and hung it from the bar.

Strength Training
Level 1: Beginner
3×10 Chair-Assisted Pullups
3×10 Chair Dips
3×10 Hanging Ring Rows(resting butt on ground if needed)
3×10 Kneeling Pushups
3×20 Crunches

Level 2: Intermediate
3×10 Pullups
3×10 Chair-Assisted Ring Dips
3×10 Hanging Ring Rows (no butt)
3×10 Pushups
3×20 Twist Crunches

Level 3: Advanced
5×10 Pullups
5×10 Ring Dips
5×10 Hanging Ring Rows
5×10 Pushups
5×20 Bicycle Crunches

Level 4: Bounty Hunter
5×20 Pullups
5×20 Ring Dips
5×20 Hanging Ring Rows
5×20 Pushups
5×20 Leg-lift Twist Crunches

Cardio Training
Level 1: Beginner
30 Minutes Brisk Walking/Jogging

Level 2: Intermediate
A:
30 Minutes Running
B:
5×10 Burpees(no pushup)

Level 3: Advanced
A:
30 Minutes Running with 20 Second Sprints Every 4 Minutes
B:
5×10 Burpees(with pushup)

Level 4: Bounty Hunter
A:
30 Minutes Running with 30 Second Sprints Every 3 Minutes
5 Minutes Hill Sprints
B:
5×10 Burpees, with Pushup and Tuck Jump at the end.  Do 40 jumping jacks in between each set(this is your rest period, you should have no break between jumping jacks and burpees)

Notes:

First off, remember to always warm up before exercising!  I did a video tutorial on how to warm up properly, so check it out!
If you want to spice up the strength workout, you can try adding some weight to the exercises.  Make sure you don’t cheat on form or number of reps/sets to do so, though(start with a low weight).  Strength training is every other day.  Cardio is every day, but alternate between A/B workouts.  I’d recommend the A workouts on the day you do strength training.  Remember to always have at least one day of full rest between each strength workout, and have at least one day of complete rest(no cardio or strength) at least once a week, maybe twice if your body needs it(especially when first starting the program).  If you get stuck between workout levels, go check out my recent write-up on clearing the workout plateau.

That’s it for now!  We have another post coming tomorrow, on the skills of Samus Aran, so make sure to check back then!  Until then, keep being awesome!

Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace