The Captain Falcon Workout

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As part of the new format, all character workouts will now go up with the share-able image guides when they’re posted!  Skip to the text after the graphic for the full, detailed write-up!

So Captain Falcon is a pretty dynamic dude.  I’m going to be using that word entirely too much during my coverage of him, I’m sure, simply because it’s the PERFECT WORD for him!  He’s fast, he’s agile, he’s acrobatic, he’s powerful, and he’s flamboyant as hell.  As such, we want to build a workout focused on explosive power, and high speed.  There will be lots of strength training, as well as a weekly plyometric workout.  In order to be agile, and acrobatic, you MUST be strong.  In order to be fast, you MUST be explosive.

Of course, exercise is only part of the plan when you’re looking to gain the body of Captain Falcon.  He’s a pretty muscular dude, and you’d have a hard time finding an ounce of fat on him.  If you’re starting from a slim build, you’re going to want to up your protein and overall calorie intake so you can start bulking up a bit.  If not, you probably want to maintain what muscle you have, but cut down your body fat percentage a bit.  For either situation, take a look at Macros and You! to draw up a solid food plan to go with your workout plan.

Now, on to the workout!  As always, exercises are divided up into a set X rep guideline, where the first number is how many sets you do, and the second number is how many repetitions per set (or a range of repetitions.)

Workout type: Station – Perform all sets of a particular exercise with a rest between each set.  Move on to next exercise when all sets are complete.

Equipment needed:

Squat or Power Rack
Bench

Barbell w/weight plates
Dumbbells
Medicine Ball
Pull Up Bar
Dip Station
Weight Belt or Weighted Backpack

Strength A:
3×3-5 Deadlifts
3×5-10 Pull Ups (Start with chair assisted if necessary. Add a weighted belt/backpack when 3×10 at bodyweight gets easy)
3×3-5 Bent-over Barbell Rows
3×3-5 One-Armed Dumbbell Rows
3×5-10 Bicep Curls (Dumbbell or Barbell)
3×5-10 Medicine Ball Trunk Twists (from crunch position, not standing)
3×5-10 Leg Lifts OR Dragon Flags OR Ab Wheel Roll Outs/Ups

Strength B:
3×3-5 Bench Presses
3×5-10 Overhead Presses
3×5-10 Butterfly Curls
3×5-10 Side Lateral Raises
3×5-10 Dips (add weight when these get easy at bodyweight)

Strength C:
3×3-5 Back Squats
3×5-10 Weighted Lunges (barbell or dumbbell)
3×5-10 Straight-leg Deadlifts
3×10-15 Standing Calf Raises
3×10-15 Seated Calf Raises
3×5-10 Medicine Ball Trunk Twists (from crunch position, not standing)
3×5-10 Leg Lifts OR Dragon Flags OR Ab Wheel Roll Outs/Ups

Strength D:
3×4-8 Hang Cleans
3×4-8 Clap Pushups (try to fit in multiple claps on each push up as these get easy)
3×4-8 Medicine Ball Squat-to-Overhead Throws
3×4-8 Box Jumps or Tuck Jumps (if you don’t have boxes)
4 minutes Tabata sprints (sprint for twenty seconds, rest for ten, repeat eight times)

Strength Notes:

When beginning, start with very low weights or just the bar.  If you’re not sure how to perform an exercise, take a look at a few videos on Youtube or ask a more experienced gym member/workout partner to check your form.  When you reach the upper limit for the number of repetitions prescribed for an exercise, up your weight by five pounds (or two and a half pounds on the dumbbells.)

Schedule:
Day 1: Strength A
Day 2: Strength B
Day 3: Strength C
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: Strength D
Day 6: Rest

Now, you may notice this is a six day schedule. This is intentional, you’re going to be rotating your workout schedule as the weeks progress. The reason for this is you want to bookend your D workout with rest days, as it’s very high intensity and you don’t want it to interfere with your performance on other days, BUT, you also don’t want to insert an extra rest day just to turn this into a seven day schedule.

As your body adapts, you may be able to take out the “Day 6” rest day entirely and just start the A-C cycle again, turning this into a five day schedule. Definitely don’t attempt this when you’re first starting out, though.

As with all workout plans…

You must keep a detailed log of your progress, and that means taking ten minutes to write down every workout you do after you’ve finished it!  We have an area over in The Guild Hall specifically for workout logs, where you can post progress and achievements, get advice if you need it, and, most importantly, get tons of positive encouragement from other members!

As with any workout regimen, listen to your body, get plenty of rest, and take it slow if you’re just starting out.  Becoming Captain Falcon is awesome, becoming injured is not!

I’ll see you again on Monday with Captain Falcon: Show Me Your Moves!  We’re going to breakdown Falcon’s signature moves and style, as well as talk about some of the skills he possesses.  Until then, as always, remember to live boldly, change the world, and continue to be awesome!

Dan “DaRatmastah” Wallace