Zac Efron Workout Routine And Diet Plan

Zac Efron is a name that many people know and love.

Efron has made headlines since his beginnings as teen star and heartthrob in Disney’s hit High School Musical to the lean, ripped fitness enthusiast we see today. 

Growing up in the spotlight, we have seen Zac transform over the course of his career. Yet no change was more staggering than his transformation into Matt Brody in the 2017 hit Baywatch. 

So, how did Zac obtain such a cut looking physique?

Keep reading as we discuss the Zac Efron workout routine and diet plan. I’ll go over the insane routines he committed to in creating this incredible physique.

Let’s dive in.

Zac Efron Current Bio and Stats

Zac Efron was born on October 18, 1987 in San Luis Obispo, California.

He first took to the stage around age 11, when his parents noticed his natural singing ability.

Growing up, Efron was always fit and active with a natural ability to perform, while enjoying training and lifting weights.

From his early roles in the Disney hit, High School Musical (2006), it was clear that Efron was lean and athletic, performing all choreography in each of the subsequent films.

As the years went on, Efron managed to separate himself from the singing, dancing Disney heartthrob. He sported an athletic physique in movies such as Neighbors (2014) and Dirty Grandpa (2016).  

This eventually led to him landing the role of Matt Brody in 2017’s Baywatch. 

Here, his physical transformation would begin to turn heads around the globe, with many in complete disbelief at how ripped he had become for his new role.

Since then, Efron has truly revealed himself as a lover of health, fitness, and quality nutrition. 

This also lifted his status in the acting world due to his ability to play incredible physical roles.

None are more exciting than the upcoming The Iron Claw, where he’s portraying famed wrestler Kevin Von Erich. At 35, Efron is set to reveal his biggest and best transformation to date. 

• Age: 35 Years Old
• Height: 5’8” (178 cm)
• Weight: 160-170 lbs
• Birthday: 18t October, 1987
• Occupation: Actor
• Retired/Active: Active

Zac Efron Workout Fundamentals

Read More: Conor McGregor Workout Routine

Zac Efron’s training fundamentals for Baywatch were a mixture of transitional bodybuilding movements and cardio to get lean and cut.

For this, his longtime trainer Patrick Murphy had Zac perform a five-day training split.

His routine was broken up into back and biceps on Monday, legs on Tuesday, and chest, shoulders, and triceps on Wednesday.

This is followed by an upper-lower split for Thursday and Friday. 

During these sessions, Zac would perform supersets of between two and three exercises, with minimal rest in between. 

It’s all combined with a series of sprinting and jogging intervals to get his heart rate up and burn additional calories. 

Zac kept this training up for two months in the lead up to filming Baywatch while adopting a keto diet. On this diet, he ate large amounts of protein and fat while cutting nearly all carbs. 

Unfortunately, this made filming and performing on screen difficult, as he had to be lean for the entire duration of the project.

Outside of Baywatch-specific training, Zac himself is a massive fan of health and fitness, having always trained throughout the course of his life.

He even created his own YouTube channel where he trains with fellow stars, taking them through a variety of different workouts. 

Zac Efron Workout Routine

Read More: Frank Zane Workout Routine

The Zac Efron workout routine is based on a five-day training split built around a hybrid of push, pull, legs, and upper-lower splits workouts.

This allows him to perform his workout for five consecutive days, giving him the ability to rest and recover for the entire weekend.

For his first three days of the week, he performs his exercises in supersets. 

Later in the week is his upper-lower split, which is a combination of high-volume circuit training and traditional bodybuilding movements.

The abovementioned supersets and circuits will be highlighted for easy reference.

The Zac Efron workout routine will be listed below complete with exercises, sets, reps, rest, and a weekly schedule to help you kick start your training to that Baywatch bod. 

Zac Efron Baywatch Workout Routine

Weekly Schedule

Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat	Sun
Back & Biceps	Legs	Chest, Shoulders, Arms	Upper Body	Lower Body	Rest	Rest

Back & Biceps (Duration 40 – 45 Minutes)

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Straight Arm Pulldown	3	8-12	0 secs
Ab Rollout	3	8-12	60 secs
Seated Cable Row	3	8-12	0 secs
Suspended Row	3	8-12	60 secs
Neutral Grip Pull-Up	3	8-12	0 secs
Kneeling Lat Pulldown	3	8-12	60 secs
Chin-Ups	3	8-12	0 secs
Dumbbell Bicep Curl	3	8-12	60 secs

Legs (Duration 45 – 50 Minutes)

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Leg Press	3	8-12	0 secs
Trx Squat Jump	3	20	60 secs
Fitball Hip Extensions	3	8-12	0 secs
Fitball Hamstring Curl	3	20	60 secs
Reverse Walking Lunge	3	8-12	0 secs
Slider Mountain Climbers	3	20	60 secs
Dumbbell Romanian Deadlifts	3	8-12	0 secs
Kick Butts	3	20	60 secs
Dumbbell Single-Leg Calf Raise	3	8-12	0 secs
Trx Single-Leg Hop	3	20	60 secs

Chest, Shoulders, and Arms (Duration 40 – 50 Minutes)

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Dumbbell Front Raises Squat	3	8-12	0 secs
Cross-Body Cable Raise	3	8-12	60 secs
Dumbbell Floor Press	3	8-12	0 secs
Push-Ups	3	8-12	60 secs
Incline Dumbbell Press	3	8-12	0 secs
Dumbbell Overhead Press	3	8-12	60 secs
Cable Chest Fly	3	8-12	0 secs
Bosu Plyo Push-Ups	3	8-12	60 secs
Single-Arm Cable Pushdown	3	8-12	0 secs
Single-Arm Dumbbell Curl	3	8-12	60 secs

Upper Body (Duration 60 – 65 Minutes)

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Treadmill Jog (Gradient 5-7)	1	2 mins	0 secs
Treadmill Run (Gradient 5-7)	1	6 mins	0 secs
Treadmill Jog (Gradient 5-7)	1	2 mins	2-3 mins
Dumbbell Bench Press	2	20	0 secs
Dumbbell Incline Press	2	20	0 secs
Dips	2	20	60 secs
Treadmill Sprint Intervals (Gradient 5-7)	10 mins	30 Secs On/Off	0 secs
Dumbbell Bench Press	2	20	0 secs
Dumbbell Incline Press	2	20	0 secs
Cable Tricep Extensions	2	20	60 secs
Treadmill Jog (Gradient 5-7)	1	2 mins	0 secs
Treadmill Run (Gradient 5-7)	1	6 mins	0 secs
Treadmill Jog (Gradient 5-7)	1	2 mins	2-3 mins
Ab Crunches	2	20	0 secs
Fitball Knee Tucks	2	20	0 secs
Plank	3	30 secs	60 secs

Lower Body (Duration 60 – 65 Minutes)

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Jump Rope	1	10 mins	0 secs
Lunges with Dumbbell Bicep Curl	2	20	0 secs
Squat Thrust	2	20	0 secs
Squat Press	2	20	60 secs
Treadmill Sprint Intervals (Gradient 5-7)	10 mins	30 Secs On/Off	0 secs
Lunges with Dumbbell Bicep Curl	2	20	0 secs
Squat Thrust	2	20	0 secs
Squat Press	2	20	60 secs
Treadmill Jog (Gradient 5-7)	1	2 mins	0 secs
Treadmill Run (Gradient 5-7)	1	5 mins	0 secs
V-Ups	2	20	0 secs
Bicycle Crunches	2	20	0 secs
Plank Twists	2	20	60 secs

Zac Efron Dieting and Food Preferences

Zac Efron’s food preferences have changed over the years due to the various roles and experiences he’s had throughout his career.

During his time filming Down to Earth, Efron became vegan after being inspired by his co-host Darin Olien. 

Efron has since returned back to meat as he felt the vegan diet didn’t sit well with his stomach. 

This being said, Efron still wishes to be vegan for moral reasons.

Since then, at the age of 34, Zac has transitioned to an intermittent fasting diet that consists of just two meals per day.

His first meal is at 11am, consisting of bone broth, lean protein, and vegetables. 

This is followed by his second meal in the evening, which consists of lean meat and high-quality carbohydrates such as sweet potato.

Efron has also stated that he is a fan of bananas and plantain, which he finds excellent for energy. He’s also taken a liking to organ meat, with liver and onions becoming a personal favorite. 

But we know why you are here…

To find out what Zac ate to fuel his body for Baywatch. 

Zac Efron’s diet for Baywatch was intense, consisting of a high-protein, high-fat and lower carbs.

This was spread across five meals, totaling approximately 2,400 calories and massive 261g of protein per day, coming mainly from chicken breast.

During the film, Efron would state that he didn’t eat carbs for more than two months and was taking diuretics, which he believes led to feelings of depression. 

With this in mind, we recommend you seek guidance from a licensed professional should you wish to take your training to this extreme. 

Here are Zac Efron’s dieting and food preferences for both Baywatch and his everyday life to help you understand the lengths he went to to achieve his shredded beach body.  

Zac Efron Intermittent Fasting Diet and Food Preferences

Meal	Food
Meal 1 10:30-11am	Bone Broth, Vegetables, Lean Chicken or Beef
Meal 2 5:00 pm	Lean Meat, Liver, Onion, Sweet Potato, Quinoa

Zac Efron Baywatch Diet and Food Preferences

Meal	Food
Meal 1	6 oz. Grilled Chicken Breast, 4 x Scrambled Eggs, Steam Vegetables, Avocado
Meal 2	6 oz. Grilled Chicken Breast, Steamed Mixed Vegetable
Meal 3	6 oz. Steak, 1 Cup Broccoli.
Meal 4	6 oz. Grilled Chicken Breast, 1 Cup Lettuce, Balsamic Dressing
Meal 5	5 oz Sirloin Steak, 3 x Hard Boiled Eggs

Zac Efron Diet Plan

Now that we understand the types of food and meals Zac was eating to get his Baywatch body, we will take you through a Zac Efron-inspired diet plan to help you safely achieve these amazing results. 

This diet plan includes five meals per day. However, we will include the use of protein shakes to boost your protein intake and to give you some breathing room from all the chicken.

Meal 1

• Grilled Chicken Omelette, Baby Spinach, Capsicum, Cheese
• Steamed Mixed Vegetables

Meal 2

• 2x Scoop Protein Shake, Can of Tuna

Meal 3

• Baked Chicken and Bacon Salad (Tomato, Baby Spinach, Red Onion) 
• Sweet Potato
• 1 x Hard Boiled Egg

Meal 4

• 1 x Hard Boiled Egg
• 2x Scoop Protein Shake
• Grilled Chicken

Meal 5

• Baked Salmon, Chilli and Lime
• Sweet Potato Mash
• 1 Cup Steamed Broccoli

For Zac Efron to obtain his shredded physique he enlisted in a keto style diet plan, high in protein and fat but low in carbs.

To do this, he would have needed to count his calorie and macronutrient intake to help ensure he was consuming enough protein and fat to fuel his body in lieu of carbs.

If you are considering trying the Zac Efron diet plan we recommend you do the same.

This ensures that you are getting enough protein to build muscle and recover, plus enough fat for fuel and absorbing vital nutrients.

It’s all possible with our advanced calorie and macronutrient calculator.

Simply add your age, gender, height, weight, and activity level to get your precise daily intake for incredible results.  

Zac Efron Supplement Preferences

Zac Efron’s workout routine and diet plan are a clear representation of the hard work that is required to achieve a lean, cut physique. 

To boost his training and nutrition, Efron took a few supplements to not only help boost his protein, but to lean down. 

This in the form of a high-quality whey protein shake, and lasix, a powerful diuretic to help get rid of excess fluid, further leaning out his look. 

We do not recommend the use of diuretics for your training, as doing so for recreation with no clinical indication can lead to severe water and electrolyte loss.  

Supplement	Purpose
Whey Protein	Builds Lean Muscle
Multivitamin	Bridge Gaps in Nutrition
Lasix (Diuretic)	Reduces Fluid

Final Thoughts

Zac Efron’s training involves one of the most intense workout routines to date.

His dedication to his high-protein, high-fat meals and rigorous training routine is truly something to be admired.

If you are considering the Zac Efron workout routine and diet plan, track your calorie and macronutrient intake, eat high protein, nutrient dense foods.

And most importantly, do it safely. Skip the diuretics.

So, are you considering trying the Zac Efron workout routine and diet plan? Which part of his training are you looking forward to trying?

Let us know in the comments.