The first female-led superhero film Captain Marvel played by Brie Larson is a tough and disciplined warrior with rough fighting style who has been recruited into the ranks of the Kree.
“That was intentional to have enough strength and confidence,” said Walter Garcia, fight coordinator and assistant stunt coordinator.
The female action characters appear much more valued and are as good as men in recent years, as noticed by film expert and Blerd City Con founder Clairesa Clay. She added, “Superhero films are going in the direction of teaching younger women not to be afraid to be as strong as a man. You can still be feminine, you can still be a girl, but that does not mean you cower to men or you’re not on equal footing.”
Actress Brie Larson began with a daily 90-minute workout for the first six months. Despite not being able to do a push-up or pull-up at the start of her training, the 29-year-old actress achieved her goal of performing most of her own stunts for one of the most awaited movies of the year, out March 8.
Here is a guide of how Brie started with following exercises from beginner to superhero level:
1. Hip Thrusts
Starting from a hold of 10-pound weight at the advanced level, she went up to the superhero level by 400lb hip thrusts. She had to keep her movements slow and controlled, and add more weight gradually.
2. Push-up drills
Walsh helped Larson do her first push-up drill by starting with a pad on the floor beneath her chest. Adding weight to the back and gradually increasing it to a certain level is what was expected in this type of exercise. By the end of her training, Larson could do push-ups with 50lb with weighted chains on her back.
3. Bulgarian split squat
Marvel’s frontwoman eventually executed Bulgarian split squat with 60lb dumbbells in each hand, i.e. 120lb in both hands. Larson, at times, also did these across an open floor with a barbell above the head. One can hold weight by doing that. Once that is comfortable, do one and a half reps, by moving all the way down, halfway up, back down, and finally stand up.
4. Pull-up drills
Pull-up drills were an important exercise from her workouts since upper-body strength was critical for Larson’s stunts like rope swings. While working on the weaker joint angles by jumping to the top and lowering yourself until your arms are at about 90°, one has to hold this for 10-15 seconds and drop down thereafter. At the completion of her training, Larson went doing six consecutive ones from not being able to complete one pull-up drill.
5. Landmine deadlift
“She got to a 225lb deadlift, which is insane,” Walsh said. In this type of exercise, one has to hold a kettlebell or dumbbell that is light enough to allow you to maintain proper form. Once you are master in doing that, you can stagger your legs to target each side, increasing the weight when you are ready.
Ultimately, Larson achieved her goal by pushing almost 5,000lb jeep (with a full tank of gas and Alyssa behind the wheel for safety) for 60 seconds by herself, which was really unrealistic for her before. “She got so strong pushing and pulling the sled that we wanted to do something that was radical, and I knew she’d be safe doing it,” Walsh added. “It’s just something she aspired to try.”
