Mark Wahlberg Muscles Up for 'Pain And Gain'

It seems like only yesterday when Mark Wahlberg was Marky Mark, pumping iron and showing off his body in his Good Vibrations music video. Muscles and working out are nothing new for the 41-year-old actor and former rapper. But Wahlberg's role as bodybuilder Daniel Lugo in Michael Bay's action comedy Pain and Gain took his gym and diet routines to new levels. Wahlberg looks like he should be competing in Olympic weight-lifting competitions, and is talking about how he accomplished it.

The Diet

Director Michael Bay obviously considered Wahlberg's fitness pedigree when selecting him to play the muscle-bound criminal Lugo. Wahlberg's biceps and shoulders are so large and defined that it has caused people to speculate about him using some sort of performance-enhancing drugs. But representatives for Wahlberg quickly invalidated the accusations, telling Us Weekly their client has never used steroids and did not for this role. Instead, Wahlberg said he ate 10 meals per day, some after waking in the middle of the night, and drank weight-gaining protein shakes.

"A lot of getting up at 2 in the morning to eat another meal and I was still full from the meal at 10 o'clock," Wahlberg told E-online.

He was also undoubtedly motivated by his co-star, former professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who also plays a bodybuilder in the movie.

The Gym Routine

Bay said Pain and Gain was a fun film to make because of the hard work put in by Johnson and Wahlberg. This hard work had to include hours in a gym for Wahlberg, converting all those calories into lean muscle mass. A routine including incline and decline bench presses, military presses and various bicep curls were a major part of Wahlberg's routine, based on the way he currently looks. Tricep extensions and lat pull-downs were mixed in, as these muscles help sturdy the heavy bars involved in military and bench presses. These exercises also give you that "V" shape from the back of your shoulders down to your waist. A cardiovascular routine was likely used, but weight lifting burns calories for hours after the workout concludes, so cardio is not necessary with hard core lifting regimens.

The Role

Pain and Gain is based on a true story about a gang of Miami-area bodybuilders who got involved in several murder and kidnapping plots. Wahlberg's character, Lugo, was sentenced to death in July of 1998 on two counts of first-degree murder and several counts of extortion, kidnapping, burglary and armed robbery. An appeal is currently pending in federal court.

Updated: Here's another Pain and Gain poster:

The film is set to be released on April 26, 2013.