Dave Bautista’s Workout Routine

Dave Bautista, aka Batista, is a mixed martial arts fighter and an actor. A lot of people around the world noticed him when he played ‘Drax the Destroyer’ in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, movies from Marvel Cinematic Universe that many fans love!

His role demanded him to be shirtless most of the time. Moreover, he had to build up a physique that matches the muscularity and athleticism of his other co-actors, including Chris Hemsworth, Chadwick Boseman, Chris Evans, and many others. After all, when you are playing the role of a superhero, who is on a mission to save the world from Thanos, it becomes imperative that you look like one.

Dave Bautista, who was once a bodybuilder and a WWE superstar, is incredibly strong and athletic. He could perform some really amazing moves in the wrestling ring, showcasing his remarkable strength. In the movie Kickboxer Vengeance, we can see his impressive fighting skills, proving his talent in combat scenes. But to transform into a superhero, he knew he needed to fine-tune his already massive muscles.

If you’ve ever wondered about the workout routine Dave Bautista used to transform into ‘Drax the Destroyer’, you’re in the right spot. This celebrity workout guide will explain the program he followed. Let’s dive into it!

An Overview of Dave Bautista’s Training Routine

Dave Bautista‘s workout program targeted to promote lean muscle gains along with working on his athleticism. The set/rep scheme of Batista’s workout routine stayed in the ideal range of promoting hypertrophy.

The role of ‘Drax the Destroyer‘ demanded Batista to look like a superhero. Hence, Dave Bautista’s workout program was targeted to make him look lean and muscular, not just big. The training program he followed for his role provided him with a broader back, more rounded muscles, a tapered waist, and well-developed thighs.

He claimed that his exercise routine followed a real bodybuilding style training, but at the same time, he didn’t use super heavyweights. His trainer Joe Bennett described his workout split as something “in-between” the conventional bodybuilder split and athlete split.

Dave Bautista’s trainer made the use of slow and controlled tempos in exercise movements to make Batista’s workout more challenging. It also provided him with a better mind-muscle connection. To amp up the level of difficulty, directional changes were utilized. All these techniques helped Bautista in achieving muscularity, conditioning, and an overall aesthetic physique.

When it comes to muscle groups like abs and forearms, they were trained indirectly. The high volume nature of it made it needless to include isolation exercises for certain smaller muscle groups. Moreover, it already had a variety of compound movements that trained the smaller muscle groups adequately.

The off days of Batista’s workout routine were aimed towards rest and recovery. If you plan to follow his workout routine, you can perform some low-intensity activities like walking or yoga on your off days. These low-intensity activities will promote recovery by ensuring blood flow to your muscles. Moreover, these activities will also keep you active.

Dave Bautista’s Workout Schedule

To prepare his physique for portraying the role of ‘Drax the Destroyer’ in Guardians of the Galaxy, Dave Bautista followed a PPL split to hit his entire body in 3 days. He made sure to make proper provisions for rest and recovery to maximize his overall gains.

The weight training part of Batista’s workout routine was fast and intense. He performed it for a high number of repetitions.

Dave Bautista’s workout schedule looked like this:-

• Day 1- Push (Chest, Side/Front Deltoids, Triceps, and Calves)
• Day 2- Legs (Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Glutes, Abdominals)
• Day 3- Pull (Latissimus Dorsi, Upper Back, Side/Rear Delts, Biceps, Calves)

Dave Bautista’s Workout Routine

Dave Bautista’s trainer, Joe Bennett, claims that he goes through 5-8 minutes of warm-up/activation period before jumping into the grueling workouts. It aids in preparing his muscles for the intense workouts, along with minimizing probable chances of injury. He further adds that for every single xercise, Bautista prefers performing some warm-up sets.

Bautista’s recovery and energy determine the number of sets he will perform for any given exercise. He takes a rest of 30-120 seconds in between the sets. His rest interval is also dependent on the exercises that he is performing.

Day One – Push

• Incline Dumbbell Chest Press- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Machine Chest Press- 2-4 Sets of 8-10 reps
• Lying Cable Cuff Delt Laterals- 2-4 Sets of 8-10 reps
• Shoulder Press- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Cable Cross Triceps Extensions- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Machine Calf Raises- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps

Day Two – Legs

• Crunch Variations- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Seated Leg Curls- 2-4 Sets of 5-6 reps
• Heel Elevated Safety Squats- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Leg Extensions- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Squat Press- 2-4 Sets of 12-15 reps
• Walking Lunges- 25-30 steps (each leg)

Day Three – Pull

• Single-Arm Machine Rows- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Machine Pull Downs- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Dumbbell Rows- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Single-Arm Dumbbell Preacher Curls- 2-4 Sets of 6-8 reps
• Incline Bench Curls- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Machine Lateral Raises- 2-4 Sets of 10-12 reps
• Machine Rear Delts- 2-4 Sets of 10-15 reps
• Calf Raises- 2-4 Sets of 10-20 reps

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When it comes to Batista’s workouts, he’s careful not to push himself too hard. He doesn’t like lifting extremely heavy weights in his training. This approach gives his muscles the right amount of challenge to grow, and it allows his body enough time to rest and heal.

Along with following a strict workout routine, Dave Bautista consumes a high protein, low carb diet. It helps in keeping his body lean and muscular.

He also recommends that one must train under an experienced trainer to get the desired results and that too, without running the risks of injuries. This also helps an individual to execute any exercise with perfect form and technique.

Final Words

The overall physique of Dave Bautista exudes strength, muscularity, and athleticism. To achieve that kind of physique, consistency and commitment become non-negotiable. You also need to train under an experienced coach to achieve such type of results.

Diet also plays a crucial part in acquiring a physique like that of Dave Bautista. An ideal diet for achieving such a body would be having a greater proportion of proteins to support lean muscle gains.

We hope you now have a good understanding of Batista’s workout plan. If you follow it with dedication and consistency, you can achieve a strong, athletic, and toned body just like his.