Zac Efron builds two distinctly different physiques for two different film roles, and the programs that produce them are as different from each other as the results. For Baywatch, trainer Patrick Murphy sculpts Efron to 5 percent body fat in 12 weeks. For The Iron Claw, trainer Farren Morgan uses old-school bodybuilding and Olympic lifting over six months to add 15 pounds of muscle.
The contrast between the two physiques is instructive. The Baywatch body is defined by extraordinary leanness and proportionate muscle. The Iron Claw body carries significantly more mass with a deliberately wrestler-appropriate silhouette.
This article covers both preparation programs, the training principles Murphy and Morgan apply respectively, and the key differences in approach that produce such different physical results from the same athlete.
Baywatch: The 12-Week Transformation
"The goal for Baywatch wasn't just to get big. It was to get the most specific physique possible for that specific character and that specific costume." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
Patrick Murphy's Baywatch program uses a three-day lifting split condensed into back-and-biceps, legs, and shoulders-chest-and-arms sessions. Murphy's key insight is that the Baywatch physique requires shoulder and arm development disproportionate to overall body size, because the beach costume places those muscle groups most prominently on display.
Chest and back receive lower overall volume than a conventional bodybuilding program would assign them, maintaining strength and definition without adding bulk that makes the physique look heavy rather than athletic.
Baywatch Weekly Split
"The key to the Zac Efron workout strategy was low volume for the chest and back, which helped build strength and just the right amount of muscle in these areas." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
| Day | Focus | Volume Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Back and Biceps | Standard volume, compound and isolation |
| Tuesday | Legs | Proportionate, functional emphasis |
| Wednesday | Rest or cardio | Fat-burning at moderate intensity |
| Thursday | Shoulders, Chest, Arms | High volume on shoulders and arms |
| Friday | Abs | Daily core work throughout the program |
| Saturday | Active recovery | Light movement |
| Sunday | Rest | Full rest |
Baywatch: Shoulders and Arms (Primary Focus)
"For his arms and shoulders, Zac took a different route, combining heavy lifting with pump training to accelerate muscle growth." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
The shoulder and arm session carries the highest volume in Murphy's program. Murphy combines heavy lifting for shoulder development with pump training for arm size, using the contrast between the two loading styles to accelerate visible arm growth while building the capped, rounded deltoids that make the physique look wider at the top.
- Overhead press: 5 sets x 6-8 reps (heavy, strength focus)
- Arnold press: 4 sets x 10 reps
- Lateral raise: 5 sets x 15 reps (high-volume pump training)
- Rear delt fly: 4 sets x 15 reps
- Barbell curl: 4 sets x 10-12 reps
- Hammer curl: 4 sets x 12 reps (pump training)
- Tricep pushdown: 4 sets x 15 reps
- Overhead tricep extension: 3 sets x 12 reps
Baywatch: Back and Biceps
"The goal was low volume for the chest and back, which helped build strength and just the right amount of muscle in these areas." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
Back and biceps work in the Baywatch program emphasizes pulling strength and lat width at standard volume rather than the high-volume pump approach used for shoulders and arms. Pull-ups and rows develop the V-taper that frames the shoulder width, and bicep work adds the arm detail that completes the beach-appropriate physique.
- Pull-ups: 4 sets x 10 reps
- Bent-over row: 4 sets x 10 reps
- Lat pulldown: 3 sets x 12 reps
- Seated cable row: 3 sets x 12 reps
- Barbell curl: 4 sets x 10-12 reps
- Concentration curl: 3 sets x 12 reps
The Iron Claw: Bulking for Kevin Von Erich
"He was training for six months pretty hard, and the already muscular actor packed on a further 15lb of brawn to play wrestler Kevin Von Erich." - Farren Morgan, trainer
The Iron Claw preparation inverts nearly every priority of the Baywatch program. Where Baywatch requires minimum mass at maximum leanness, Kevin Von Erich is a world-famous professional wrestler whose physique needs to carry the credibility of legitimate wrestling mass.
Trainer Farren Morgan uses a combination of old-school bodybuilding and Olympic lifting to add 15 pounds of muscle. Olympic lifting is incorporated specifically because wrestlers develop a distinctive full-body athletic power that conventional bodybuilding alone does not produce.
The Iron Claw Key Movements
"He worked really hard and did weightlifting, functional training, and high-intensity training." - Farren Morgan, trainer
The explosive hip drive and overhead strength of Olympic lifts develops the thick, functional muscularity that distinguishes a wrestler's physique from a beach physique built on the same amount of tissue. Farmer's carries and heavy compound movements add the total body mass and grip strength that wrestling preparation demands.
- Power clean: 5 sets x 5 reps
- Front squat: 5 sets x 6-8 reps
- Deadlift: 4 sets x 5 reps
- Barbell bench press: 4 sets x 8 reps
- Weighted pull-ups: 4 sets x 8 reps
- Overhead press: 4 sets x 8 reps
- Farmer's carry: 4 rounds x 40 meters
- Dumbbell isolation work: rotated per session
Daily Ab Training
"The goal for Baywatch was to get the most specific physique possible for that specific character." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
Murphy programs daily ab training throughout the Baywatch preparation, treating core development as a constant rather than a session-specific addition. The variety of movements ensures that all components of the abdominal wall receive attention: rectus abdominis through flexion, obliques through rotation, and transverse abdominis through stability work.
- Hanging leg raise: 4 sets x 15 reps
- Cable crunch: 4 sets x 15 reps
- Oblique twist: 3 sets x 20 reps per side
- Plank: 3 x 60 seconds
- Ab wheel rollout: 3 sets x 12 reps
What the Two Physiques Demonstrate
"The goal wasn't just to get big. It was to get the most specific physique possible." - Patrick Murphy, trainer
The contrast between Efron's Baywatch and Iron Claw physiques demonstrates a principle that most training programs obscure: the goal determines the method. Six months of high-volume shoulder and pump training produces maximum definition at low body fat.
Six months of Olympic lifting and progressive compound overload at a caloric surplus produces maximum mass with athletic power. Neither is the correct approach in isolation; both are correct for their specific objective.
Explore Similar Routines
- Ryan Reynolds' Workout Routine. Reynolds' Deadpool program with Don Saladino shares Murphy's emphasis on shoulder and arm development for a superhero aesthetic, using comparable volume and a similar five-day structure.
- Christian Bale's Workout Routine. Bale's bulk-and-cut cycle for Batman Begins parallels Efron's ability to build entirely different physiques for different roles through targeted preparation programs.
- Chris Pratt's Workout Routine. Pratt's 60-pound Guardians transformation shares the approach of building from a physique baseline that diverges significantly from the role's requirements, using Navy SEAL-trained programming to achieve the result.
- Brad Pitt's Fight Club Workout Routine. The Fight Club physique represents the same lean, defined aesthetic goal as Baywatch achieved through a comparable caloric precision and higher-rep training approach.
Efron's two transformations sit at opposite ends of the training spectrum, a low-volume, high-definition beach build versus an Olympic-lifting bulk that added 15 pounds of muscle. The buyable pieces here are the staples that support the mass phase and the equipment tied to the named lifts: protein for the surplus, creatine for strength, and the belt and ab wheel that show up across the compound and core work.