Sylvester Stallone reveals ‘dangerous’ diet for ‘Rocky’

Nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.

We now know it was much more than an iconic catchphrase for Sylvester Stallone.

The star of the “Rocky” movie series took his heaviest hit while getting shredded for “Rocky III” with an insane diet and exercise routine.

The 70-year-old action movie star has revealed secret details of his preparation for the third “Rocky” film and just how closely he mirrored his iconic character while filming his bloody rematch against Clubber Lang, played by Mr. T.

View this post on Instagram

And all these years I never saw this one! Looks like me and Clubber were caught in a massive BABY OIL explosion!

A post shared by Sly Stallone (@officialslystallone) on Jan 13, 2017 at 4:20pm PST

Stallone says his diet was so intense, he was forced to do handstands during breaks in filming to get blood flowing back into his head.

Stallone made a number of scary admissions about his physical condition at the time of filming in 1981 in a post on Instagram, including:

• He repeatedly became light-headed during filming.
• He was on an extremely high-protein diet, which left him lacking physical and mental energy.
• His daily diet consisted of small oatmeal cookies, brown rice, tuna and 25 cups of coffee with honey.
• His body fat percentage dropped to a “dangerous” 2.9 percent.

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Just for fun… A flashback from Rocky three. Between rounds I would get lightheaded and quite exhausted. I was on a very high protein diet which did not provide Much physical or mental energy. During the period I only ate very small portions of oatmeal cookies made with brown rice and up to 25 cups of coffee a day with honey and a couple of scoops of tuna fish. Sounds incredible right? At the time my body fat got down to 2.9 which is a really dangerous level. I may have looked pretty good on the outside but inside it was very dangerous thing to do. But I wanted the movie to be about change. How people have to adapt to different challenges because if they don't they will be conquered. I will always believe the adaptation is the key to survival and that's what this story was all about … and while, getting smashed by Superstrong,CLUBBER LANG continuously four months of rehearsal plus the fight, tended to wear a person out so I would literally go to the corner between rounds, when I wasn't directing and try to get some blood back into my head so I could carry-on with the complicated fight choreography … It's funny, I never knew this picture existed!

A post shared by Sly Stallone (@officialslystallone) on Mar 11, 2017 at 11:47am PST

Stallone has previously said his goal for “Rocky III” was to work on muscle definition compared to earlier “Rocky” films, where his exercise program was focused on building more muscle mass.

“I wanted to look like Tarzan — sleek, tight, almost catlike,” he said. “I wanted to forget the bulk and go for well-developed muscles.”

It’s been 35 years since the film was released, and in the intervening years, Stallone has repeatedly pushed his body to the limit to prepare for film productions.

The star of the “Rambo” movie franchise recently revealed his diet and exercise routine when filming “Rambo 4” in 2007 and “The Expendables” in 2009.

Stallone told Borntoworkout.com last year his exercise routine during the 2000s involved four-week training camps before filming that included training twice a day, six days per week.

Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning session

Chest, back and abs training:

• Incline Bench Press (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Dumbbell Flys (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Close-grip Bench Press (5 sets, 6-8 reps)
• Wide-grip Chin Ups (6 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Bent-over One-arm Lateral Raises (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Close-grip Seated Rows (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Raised Leg Crunches (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Seated Extension (3 sets, 8-10 reps)

Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoon session

Shoulders, arms and abs training:

• Military Press (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Side Lateral Raises (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Bent-over Dumbbell-Flys (5 sets, 6-8 reps)
• Barbell Curls (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Seated Incline-dumbbell-curls (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Concentration Curls (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Lying Dumbbell-raises (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Bent-over One-arm Lateral Raises (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Cable Pull Downs (3 sets, 10 reps)
• Alternate Leg Raise (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Decline Bench Sit-ups (3 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Oblique Crunches (3 sets, 6-8 reps)

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday morning session

Calves and thighs training:

• Seated Calf-raises (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Standing Calf-raises (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Standing Barbell Alternate Calf-raises (5 sets, 8-12 reps)
• Incline Leg-press (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Squats (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Seated Leg-extensions (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Leg Curls (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Leg Extensions (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Stiff Leg Deadlift (4 sets, 10-12 reps)

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday afternoon session

Rear deltoids, traps and abs training:

• Bent-over Dumbbell Rear-Delt Raise (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Cable Crossovers (4 sets, 10-12 reps)
• Reverse Pec-deck Flyes (5 sets, 8-12 reps)
• Barbell Shrugs-front (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Barbell Upright-rows (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Flat-bench Cable-rows to Neck (4 sets, 8-10 reps)
• Ab Crunch (4 sets, 8 reps)
• Oblique Crunches (4 sets, 10 reps)
• Cable Crunch (4 sets, 10-12 reps)

The fitness site also reported Stallone’s diet while training for his recent movie roles.

His focus on high levels of protein and carbohydrate is similar to the diets used by bodybuilders.

Pre-breakfast: A glass of liquid amino acids

Breakfast: Three egg whites, half yoke, Irish oatmeal, toasted pumpernickel bread, fresh papaya, few figs

Lunch: Roasted summer squash, broiled skinless chicken, salad, figs or berries

Dinner: Salad, broiled fish, high-fiber toasted bread; occasionally eats veal.