Captain America 4 ,In 2024, Anthony Mackie will take on a new role in the MCU as he plays the lead role of Sam Wilson/Captain America in Captain America: New World Order. Moving on to a bigger role after his time in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Mackie now has a big preparation to offer thanks to his biggest role to date in a Marvel Studios film.
While some plot details of Captain America 4 have been teased through various interviews, the specifics of the new Captain America first solo adventure are still being kept secret. But what is undeniable is that the return of leader Tim Blake Nelson will result in an uphill battle in the hands of Mackie’s protagonist, which means he will have a lot of work to do from a physical point of view.
Now, Mackie talks about her preparations in a new interview, which she already has on her mind is a specific part of the final result.
Mackie’s Training for Marvel Action
Speaking with Men’s Journal, Captain America: New World Order star Anthony Mackie shared some details about his physical preparation for his 2024 solo film.
As for his diet and training, Mackie gives a great list of the foods he focuses his diet on, mostly noting that he “takes out all the bad stuff” a few months before shooting:
“The most important thing is diet. I go on a lean protein and veggie diet of fish, chicken and turkey with mixed vegetables. I don’t really need carbs for energy. I already have high energy. So I kick out all the bad stuff. I’ll do it for three months—eating five to six meals a day so I can get some bulk on my frame. Then I’ll carb-load for about a month.”
On the physical side, Mackie wants to take care of the muscles on her body before “driving all the water and fat out of [her] system” with cardio-focused workouts:
“For me, it’s impossible to burn fat and build muscle at the same time. One of them has to be sacrifices, so I try to put muscle on my frame first, because I have muscle memory. Her After, I strip off all light, cardio-heavy workouts in the morning and then do cardio in the evening to flush out water and fat from my system. So, the first three months, I lift as heavy as I can—literally. I can lift whatever I can. And that last month, when I’ll just run and burn as much fat as I can.”
Touching specifically on the exercises Mackie does to stay fit, he enjoys focusing on his feet by using light weights to keep his upper body still during the rest of his training:
“I love doing legs. I’m into deadlifts, squats, lunges, and burpees. Anything with legs—I’ll do it. When I switch to high-cardio workouts, I’ll do more explosive leg workouts with lighter weights.” — like five or 10 pounds — so I can still get those delts and traps through during my training.”
One specific part of his body that Mackie focused on are his shoulders, noting that he feels good once he’s gone:
“Yeah! You want to make those hats. You can look mediocre, but if your shoulders are looking great, everyone’s like, ‘Oh, he has nice shoulders.’ So that’s my biggest thing when I’m leaning out – to focus on my shoulders. Once you’ve got those caps on, you’re good.”
But in the end, Mackie’s main thing is to take care of her core, which is “always the foundation of [her] workouts.” He jokingly made it clear that it matters to fans “waiting for the scene when you take your shirt off”:
“No, I’ve always been core-strengthening. Doing all the flying stuff, there are times when I need to stay in a plank for long periods of time, pull myself up, or throw my legs beneath me. So core strength is always the foundation of my workouts. That’s what really matters, ya know, because everyone in the audience is looking forward to the scene when you take your shirt off. [Laughs] You’ve got to have your core and your hat ready. Gotta do it!”
Mackie ready for shining shirtless moment
Even though Chris Evans’ Captain America actually only had one shirtless scene throughout his time in the MCU, Mackie understands the responsibility of taking on this major new role. The new Captain America has also had its semi-naked moment in Episode 3 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, showing off some of the work he’s done over the years.
While Mackie is certainly one to joke about this kind of stuff, he’s clearly taking his training seriously as he gets to adopt the character who will handle the star-spangled mantle. . He will have that responsibility for the foreseeable future, possibly as a key figure for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in major shows like Avengers: The Kong Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Even though there’s no guarantee that Mackie will have a moment with his shirt on in Captain America 4, he’s ready for that moment to come.
Captain America: New World Order will debut in theaters on May 3, 2024.
