There are so many different workout plans nowadays that promise quick and easy results. People find inspiration for the various workout plans. Some workout plans come from well-credited experts, others from social influencers and others even from TV shows. That is why you have to be careful when it comes to trying new workouts. With that said, in this read, we shall look at the One Punch Man workout, which is inspired by a fan-favorite anime/manga by the name One Punch Man. We will try to see if this workout is realistic and if it offers the expected results.
What Is One Punch Man?
Not everyone is a manga or anime fan, so not everyone knows what One Punch Man is or where the One Punch Man workout comes from. You can only imagine how famous this anime has to be for people to try this workout as there was a time very many social media influencers were trying the One Punch Man workout challenge.
One Punch Man is an anime based on a 22-year-old who goes by the name Saitama (1). Saitama has always dreamed of being a superhero, and one day an opportunity presents itself. This happens while he is on his way home from an unsuccessful job interview where he meets a villain by the name of Crablante. Crablante is a villain who becomes a monster from eating too many crabs. Saitama saves a young boy from Crablante by defeating him, and this moment acts as a catalyst for him to pursue his dreams of becoming a superhero.
There is, however, one problem standing in the way of Saitama and his superhero dream, and that is his lack of strength. This pushes Saitama into a three-year intense workout routine. He follows his workout program every single day for those 3 years (1). Calling the workout intensity is even an understatement as, by the time Saitama is done with his workout, he loses all his hair and is completely bald. Can you imagine how intense a workout has to be for a person to lose all their hair? The good thing is that the intensity of the workout bears fruits. After the 3-year workout, Saitama becomes so strong that he can defeat all his enemies, villains, and even monsters with just one punch, and the reason the show is called ” One Punch Man”.
Well, before we get into the workout, it would be wise to inform you not to expect such results where you can just punch a person and defeat them just like that. The anime is purely fictional. What the workout promises are increased strength and muscles.
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One Punch Man Workout Routine
The One Punch Man workout routine is very simple. All Saitama had to do was 100 sit-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 squats, and a 10 kilometer run every day for 3 years to gain strength enough to defeat all his opponents by a single blow (1). Let’s face it, not so many people do this workout every day for 1 month let alone 3 years. One month is even pushing it. Doing this workout for the first time if you are not used to working out or not fit enough could feel like torture.
Most people who have attempted the workout say the 10-kilometer run is the hardest part of the workout. The only absurd thing about this workout is the number of repetitions a person has to do every day. Other than that, it comprises normal workouts that you can easily find in normal people’s workout programs. If you are thinking of attempting the One Punch Man workout challenge, it would be great to know how to correctly do the exercises in the workout as this prevents injuries.
How To Do Sit-Ups:
- You start by lying down on your back on a flat surface. This will prevent you from getting injured. While lying flat, bend your legs at your knees and make sure your feet are firmly flat on the ground. You should create a 90-degree angle at the knee area by bringing your feet closer to your behind.
- The next step is to take your hands and place them behind your head. You can choose to put your hands behind your head or cross them on your chest. This is the original starting position.
- Then raise your body until it is no longer on the floor, and your chest is close to your thighs. Exhale as you raise your body upwards.
- Slowly lower yourself back to the initial starting position as you inhale.
- If you are new to the sit-up, you should try to do 10 reps at a time.
How To Do Push-Ups:
- The first step to doing push-ups is to get into a high plank position. While in that high plank position, try to make sure your hands are a bit wider than shoulder-width length. Your palms should be directly under your shoulders. Your body should be able to form a straight line that runs from your neck to your heels.
- While you are in that position, try to engage the muscles of your core and pull your shoulder blades down and back.
- The next thing to do is to lower yourself to the ground. You should be able to do that by bending your elbows and pushing your shoulders forward.
- Make sure to lower yourself down until your chest is almost about to touch the floor. Relax in that position for a couple of seconds, breath out, and push your body back to the starting position.
Read More: How Many Push-Ups Should I Do To Get My Body In Tip Top Shape?
How To Do Squats:
- First, stand with your feet wide apart. Make sure your legs are as straight and parallel to each other as they can be. To make it easier, you can turn your feet slightly outwards, not more than fifteen degrees.
- Then with your arms straight out, lower yourself. While lowering yourself, you should make sure your knees are well bent, your bottom is pointing outwards, and you are leaning forward at your waist. A position is almost similar to the one you make while seated.
- You should lower yourself until your hips are parallel to the floor, then return to the original starting position.
- When doing squats, it is advisable to always look ahead and try as much as possible to align your knees to your ankles.
We assume everyone knows how to run. If you don’t know how to run, the One Punch Man workout routine is going to be difficult for you. The exercises in the One Punch Man workout come with some benefits, which make them ideal for almost everyone.
For instance, all the exercises are cheap because they don’t require any equipment. They are bodyweight exercises, and this means that they use your body as resistance, hence the stronger you get the more difficult they become.
Secondly, these exercises can be done by everyone apart from people who have been advised otherwise by health experts or people with underlying medical conditions. This means people of all ages, gender, and fitness levels can easily do these exercises.
They help build strength and define muscles. The most common reason for people doing the One Punch Man workout challenge is to build strength and, therefore, it makes sense for the exercises in the challenge to help in building muscles and strength. Push-ups help work the triceps, pectoral muscles, and shoulders. Squats help build lower body strength, and sit-ups help build strength in the abdominal and hip muscles. When the three are combined, you can build strength in all parts of your body, and this prevents uneven gains.
Help burn calories. The One Punch Man workout routine aims to increase lean mass while reducing fat mass, and these exercises help in burning the fat off. This is particularly true for the 10 kilometers run as running helps burn so many calories.
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Cons Of Doing The One Punch Man Workout Routine
It goes without saying, but since this workout program is made from a fictional tv show, it means it comes with some disadvantages.
No recovery time (3). Rest and sufficient recovery time is very important in every workout plan. This is one thing the One Punch Man workout routine does not offer. The challenge requires the participant to do 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, 100 push ups, and run 10 kilometers every day without taking some time to rest. This does not give your muscles any time to rest, repair themselves and grow back stronger, which is something very critical when it comes to building strength and muscles.
It lacks elements of progression (3). If you do the same workout every day, it will get to a point where you will feel like the exercise is not challenging you enough. This mostly leads to a plateau where you are not gaining any strength. The One Punch Man workout routine possesses that problem because all you have to do is get used to the 100 sit-ups, 100 push-ups, 100 squats, and the 10-kilometer run, and you are likely to experience a plateau.
One Punch Man Workout Levels
As we’ve been saying it is quite difficult to wake up one day and do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and run for 10 kilometers. That is why there is a One Punch Man level. These levels increase the number of reps you have to do for each exercise as you move up the levels. The levels of the One Punch Man workout come with some advantages. One advantage is that the levels allow you to see into the workout routine.
Easing into the workout helps prevent injuries as you start with what you can handle and move up the levels, as you become more used to the workout program. Another advantage of levels is that they create the aspect of progression and this helps prevent you from going into a plateau where your body undergoes no changes. This means when you get used to level one, you move to level two, and so on until you get to the final level of the challenge. With that said, here are the One Punch Man workout levels (2):
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Level One
In the first level, the participant is required to do 10 push-ups, 10 sit-ups, 10 squats, and run for 1 kilometer until they get used to this level, then move to level 2 (2).
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Level Two
In the second level, the participant is required to do 20 push-ups, 20 sit-ups, 20 squats, and run for 2 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 3 (2).
Read More: 100 Squats A Day For 30 Days: Will This Routine Help You Score A Sculpted Booty?
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Level Three
In the third level, the participant is required to do 30 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, 30 squats, and run for 3 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 4 (2).
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Level Four
In the fourth level, the participant is required to do 40 push-ups, 40 sit-ups, 40 squats, and run for 4 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 5 (2).
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Level Five
In the fifth level, the participant is required to do 50 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, 50 squats, and run for 5 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 6 (2).
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Level Six
In the sixth level, the participant is required to do 60 push-ups, 60 sit-ups, 60 squats, and run for 6 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 7 (2).
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Level Seven
In the seventh level, the participant is required to do 70 push-ups, 70 sit-ups, 70 squats, and run for 7 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 8 (2).
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Level Eight
In the eighth level, the participant is required to do 80 push-ups, 80 sit-ups, 80 squats, and run for 8 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 9 (2).
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Level Nine
In the ninth level, the participant is required to do 90 push-ups, 90 sit-ups, 90 squats, and run for 9 kilometers until they get used to this level, then move to level 10 (2).
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Level Ten
This is the final level of challenge. In this level, the participant is required to do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and run for 10 kilometers (2).
One Punch Man Workout Results
To see if the One Punch Man workout routine really works, we have to look at the results of real people who have done the challenge and not Saitama. Sean Seah is a good example to look at. Sean Seah was 38 years old when he decided to try the challenge. He tried the workout after he saw he had gained some extra weight during the Lunar New Year. So what he did was challenge himself to reduce the excess fat in the shortest period and to build muscles at the same time. Sean avoided anything that could hinder him from attaining his goal, including sugar, fried food, and carbs such as rice. He used the One Punch Man workout to get his desired body. He followed the workout for 30 days (4).
Sean was wise not to start with the most difficult level of the workout and hence started the workout at level 5 (4). This gave him enough time to ease himself into the workout before he had to face the big boss, level 10.
After the One Punch Man workout challenge, Sean was able to lose 5 kilograms, he was also able to decrease his body age to 36 and he was also able to decrease his visceral fat rating to 8.5 (4). This shows that the One Punch Man workout does work if you are smart about it. When trying this workout challenge, you should ease yourself into it. There is no shame in starting in level one and moving up to level 10. When doing the various exercises in the One Punch Man workout routine, make sure you do them correctly. Doing the exercises right allows you to experience the benefits associated with the workout. Opposite to that, doing the exercises in the wrong form can cause injuries.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!
SOURCES:
- I Did the One Punch Man Challenge at Work (2020, medium.com)
- The ‘One Punch Man’ workout works. Just ask this Singaporean who buffed up in 30 days. (2019, sea.mashable.com)
- This Guy Transformed His Body in 30 Days Using a Variation of the One Punch Man Workout (2020, menshealth.com)
- This Man Tried The One Punch Man Workout Challenge for 30 Days & The Results are AMAZING! (2019, worldofbuzz.com)
