In order to endure the rigours of portraying James Bond at his age in Cary Joji Fukunaga’s No Time To Die, Daniel Craig needed to be smart about his workout, recovery, and nutrition prior to cameras rolling. So how exactly do you gear up to play the most physical iteration of the iconic MI6 intelligence officer in the entire James Bond franchise?
Daniel Craig first teamed up with trainer and ex-British Royal Marine, Simon Waterson, for the seminal reboot directed by Martin Campbell: Casino Royale. For reference, Waterson was also responsible for turning Chris Evans into Marvel supersoldier and Avenger team leader Captain America. And by all accounts, as Craig has aged/evolved with the role of 007 from his debut, to Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and Spectre… so too has the fitness element of his preparation.
“It’s quite a conscious thing to evolve with a mentality and a physicality,” Simon Waterson explains to Men’s Health.
“On Casino Royale, you could see that he comes out of the water and he’s bigger, more imposing — he looks like he could kill people. In Quantum of Solace, he’s faster and more efficient… the same with Skyfall and Spectre.”
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“His physique is there to perform a function.”
“You’ve got to be aware that your body isn’t necessarily as capable of doing as much as you did in your 30s. That doesn’t mean you can’t be just as fit, or look as aesthetically amazing. Normally, it’s very natural to change the way you condition to suit your age.”
In addition to chiselling the torse and jacking up the arms, exercises that focused on agility, stabilising, and of course, conditioning cardio were made a priority.
“We used a lot of resistance bands because we used them for stretching and a lot of cones and hurdles for agility-based exercises. Weaving through cones, jumping over hurdles and onto a plyo box, then onto a Bosu for stability,” adds Waterson.
“It’s the repetition of doing that and then sprinting. He’s trying to get that agility. It’s making sure that we activate and strengthen all the muscle groups and then have the capability to sprint.”
“You’ve got to cover everything. It’s very tough. You have to be able to cover a broad spectrum of different things. You’ve got to be able to run, sprint, be on the ground, get off the ground, you have to be really quick to jump over things. All these things have to be covered.”
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Daniel Craig Workout – No Time To Die [Simon Waterson Military Bootcamp Regimen]
Exercises
Sam Waterson drew upon his military background for Daniel Craig’s workout pre-No Time To Die. Warm up with 10 minutes on a Wattbike or Assault AirBike, then take on 12 to 20 reps of the exercises outlined by Men’s Journal in the first superset. Repeat the superset once or more and rest as needed.
The Daniel Craig No Time To Die workout is recommended twice weekly.
- Low Cable Chest Fly
“Stand with feet staggered, facing away from a cable pulley machine set near the floor. Put the weight resistance at medium (20 to 35 kilos to start). Grab handles, bend knees slightly, and push arms forward to start. Fly arms to the sides, bending elbows slightly, until fists are in line with chest. Return to start for one rep.” - Abdominal Rollouts
“Kneel, holding an ab roller or a barbell on the floor with weight plates on both ends. Maintaining tight abs and glutes, and with back slightly rounded and arms locked out, roll forward until biceps are near ears. Pause, then slowly reverse to start for one rep. If you can’t go all the way down and still get up, make the roll out shallower.” - Bosu Mountain Climbers
“Start in a high plank, shoulder blades retracted, arms locked out, hands on a Bosu trainer -the half rubber ball affixed to a disk – a straight line between head and heels. Quickly draw left knee to left elbow, reverse, and repeat with right knee for one rep. This can also be done with hands on the floor and feet on the Bosu.” - Traditional Pull-ups
“Start in a dead hang on a pullup bar, torso tight, with legs locked out. Maintaining control throughout, pull up until chin is above the bar, then reverse for one rep. Do as many as you can in the first set. In subsequent sets, aim for that number minus two. For a challenge, do them on gymnastic rings, or make it easier by flipping grip and doing chinups.” - Russian Twists
“Sit on the floor, holding a light to medium (5 to 8-kilo) medicine ball, dumbbell, or kettlebell. Tuck chin slightly, engage abs, pull shoulder blades together, keep spine straight, bend knees, and hover feet to start. Rotate torso to move the weight to the left side of the body, and reverse to right side for one rep. If fatigue hits, drop heels to floor.” - Kettlebell Side Oblique Bends
“Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding a light to medium kettlebell (5 to 15 kilos) in left hand, right hand on right hip, to start. With left arm locked, bend to the left so kettlebell travels toward floor until left fist is near bottom of left thigh, then reverse to start for one rep. Switch sides on following set. Dumbbells can also be used.” - TRX Row, Curl, & Pistol Squats
“Do 15 reps of each move on a TRX. For rows, maintain a straight line from head to heels, then row elbows past torso. Start in same position for curls, arms at sides, and pull fists to collarbone. For pistol squats, lift one leg parallel to floor and bend other leg, dropping butt to floor.” - Bodyweight Dips
“At a dip station, or using two stacks of plyo boxes on either side, press up and tuck legs to start. Keeping chest slightly tipped forward, bend elbows to dip as low as you can, aiming for hands to be parallel to pecs. Reverse to start for one rep. To make it easier, place a looped resistance band around handles and put knees on it.” - Hanging Leg Raise & Windshield Wiper
“Do 10 reps of each move. On a pullup bar, start in a dead hang, hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart. For the raises, keep legs together and draw knees toward chest; reverse for one rep. For windshield wipers, tuck knees, then engage core to rotate legs from side to side.” - Reverse Cable Fly
“Stand facing a cable pulley machine set high, so handles are at eye level. Set to medium resistance (around 20 to 35 kilos). Grab right handle in left hand and left handle in right, slight bend in arms, and start with knuckles close to each other. Fly arms to the sides, until fists are in line with chest. Hold for three seconds and reverse to start for one rep.”
Recovery
Before you hit the showers, ensure you undertake the following:
- Relieve sore chest, lats by stretching and releasing a light resistance band, holding it both up and down, side to side
- Release shoulders, lats, legs, and back with a foam roller
- Reduce tightness in IT bands, hips, and glutes with a percussive massager (check out the best massage guns you can buy in Australia here)
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As For Daniel Craig’s Diet…
After workouts, if Daniel Craig isn’t consuming a healthy, well-rounded meal, his diet apparently involves “refuelling” with a plant-based recovery shake comprised of nut milk, plus protein, and greens. He’s also been known to throw back shots of turmeric root juice, which is a natural anti-inflammatory, in addition to the odd probiotic shot to bolster his immunity. Take it easy on the greasy shit and snacking – Daniel Craig’s body fat percentage is obviously low.
Daniel Craig Workout – No Time To Die [Unofficial Daily Breakdown]
For those of you looking for something slightly more conventional to do at the Iron Church across the week, the following regimen has been circulating online. Approach as you see fit.
Monday – Full-Body Power Circuit
Perform three sets of 10 reps:
- Clean & Press
- Weighted Knee
- Weighted Stepups
- Pullups
- Incline Pushups
- Tricep Dips
Tuesday – Chest and Back
Perform four sets of 10 reps:
- Incline Bench Press
- Pullups
- Include Pushups
- Incline Pec Flys
Wednesday – Legs Workout
Perform four sets of 10 reps:
- Squat
- Straight-Leg Deadlift
- Hamstring Curls
- Weighted Lunges
Thursday – Shoulders and Arms
Perform four sets of 10 reps:
- Incline Biceps Curls
- Triceps Dips
- Lateral Raises
- Shoulder Press
Friday – Full-Body Power Circuit
Perform three sets of 10 reps:
- Clean & Press
- Weighted Knee
- Weighted Stepups
- Pullups
- Incline Pushups
- Tricep Dips
