“Not Ideal for Hypertrophy”: Ripped in His 50s, Is Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s Leg Workout Actually Effective?

Dr. Mike Israetel, aka the Exercise Scientist, has earned himself the title of he most harsh critic in the bodybuilding industry. Israetel always grabs the opportunity to express his views on the workout regime of prominent figures, whether it be the rising internet sensation Sam Sulek, Hollywood actors like Hugh Jackman and Zac Effron, or WWE stars like Bautista or John Cena. This time, Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, has made it to the Exercise Scientist’s list. 

The former professor recently uploaded a video on his YouTube channel, Renaissance Periodization, and expressed his views on The Rock’s gruesome and soul-crushing leg workout. But did Johnson impress the exercise scientist?

The Exercise Scientist criticizes the Rock’s range of motion

The former professor is a stickler fan of The Rock and holds massive respect for the wrestler-turned-actor’s journey. Impressing the Exercise Scientist with your workout regime is uncommon, but it seemed like Johnson did it through his insane leg workout routine. “Could have ragged on The Rock and I’m sure I did a little bit, but all mega massive super super over the top respect,” Israetel said. That being said, Israetel did have his issues with The Rock’s routine. 

He criticized Dwayne Johnson for his range of motion, and his belt squats the most. In the video, Johnson did belted squats with a top-end partial range of motion. The former professor passed his verdict on The Rock’s range of motion and said, “This top-end partial sh*t this ain’t it, man. Unfortunately, now does it grow muscle? Yes, does it grow it as efficiently and effectively as possible? No.” The WWE star wrestler ended his set before reaching the brink of failure. The former professor, thus, shed light on the fact that the exercise was “great for moving around (but) not ideal for hypertrophy from a Time efficiency or Effectiveness perspective.“

However, in absolute contrast, Israetel also praised The Rock. “This is not a person that has some bullsh*t Hollywood trainer guide him through 12 weeks of working out while they bi*ch and moan, and the trainer sucks too. This isn’t standard Hollywood. The Rock predates Hollywood,” the Exercise Scientist said. But, unlike his usual style, the bodybuilding critic refrained from rating The Rock’s workout.

However, he did applaud Johnson for his knowledge. “The Rock comes standard with his own knowledge and work effort seemingly insurmountable work effort on training. Yes, we can learn a little bit about how to train by picking apart The Rock’s technique and doing better.” Earlier, after coming across one of Dwayne Johnson’s other workouts, the bodybuilding critic did not seem as impressed as he was this time.

The bodybuilding critic found the WWE star’s bicep workout ineffective

In the previous video on the PhD holder’s YouTube channel, the WWE star was seen working out with dumbbells attached to long chains. The Exercise Scientist mentioned that the chains are not ideal for optimizing the bicep curls. “What chains do is create needless wobbling which destabilizes your body and actually reduces force production by your shoulders; almost every time you destabilize the system, it is unable to produce much force,” said the bodybuilding critic.

He further mentioned that this led to a lack of center of gravity and that no proper force was being exerted on the biceps. The former professor labeled the exercise “Not as effective as just a pair of dumbbells.” In conclusion, he explained that actual workouts are different from workouts performed on social media.

The Rock has made significant improvements since his last feature in the exercise critic’s video. This time, the bodybuilding critic praised the WWE star for his workout regime. Will you add The Rock’s exercise to your routine? Let us know in the comments.