Chris Hemsworth has shared an intense training session from the set of Netflix sequel Extraction 3.
While holidaying in Costa Rica in July before filming began, Hemsworth shared a 17-exercise full-body workout using just a kettlebell and resistance bands. Now, as he reprises the role of black-ops mercenary Tyler Rake, he’s taken things up a notch with a striking session that looks built for the screen.
In a series of videos posted to Instagram, the Australian actor can be seen practising punches, kicks and combinations with trainer Jack Boonsanong as part of a kickboxing workout that will no doubt feed into his on-screen combat work.
‘Shooting Extraction 3 in Thailand and have been lucky enough to hit pads with my good mate @jack_boonsanong,’ Hemsworth wrote on social media. ‘Thank you, brother.’
Kickboxing offers serious fitness benefits. It delivers a full-body workout, engaging your upper body, core and legs through repeated punching, kicking and footwork, while also challenging your cardiovascular system. In practice, it combines resistance, coordination and interval-style conditioning – a potent mix for building athletic fitness and improving VO2 max.
That kind of conditioning matters for a role like Rake. The fitter you are, the better you can maintain speed, power and accuracy as fatigue builds – whether you’re in the ring or filming take after take of a fight scene.
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Kickboxing also demands mobility through the shoulders, hips and trunk, all of which are needed to punch and kick with power.
One study found that participants who trained in kickboxing for one hour a day, three times a week, for five weeks improved upper-body muscle power, aerobic power, anaerobic fitness, flexibility, speed and agility compared with a control group.
And Hemsworth’s conditioning is clearly in a good place. Across six videos, he continues to strike with the sort of speed and force you’d expect from a 6ft 3in action lead. You certainly wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of one of those kicks.
If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.
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Ryan is a Senior Writer at Men’s Health UK with a passion for storytelling, health and fitness. Having graduated from Cardiff University in 2020, and later obtaining his NCTJ qualification, Ryan started his career as a Trainee News Writer for sports titles Golf Monthly, Cycling Weekly and Rugby World before progressing to Staff Writer and subsequently Senior Writer with football magazine FourFourTwo.
During his two-and-a-half years there he wrote news stories for the website and features for the magazine, while he also interviewed names such as Les Ferdinand, Ally McCoist, Jamie Redknapp and Antonio Rudiger, among many others. His standout memory, though, came when getting the opportunity to speak to then-Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher as the club won League One in 2023.
Having grown up a keen footballer and playing for his boyhood side until the age of 16, Ryan got the opportunity to represent Northern Ireland national futsal team eight times, scoring three goals against England, Scotland and Gibraltar. Now past his peak, Ryan prefers to mix weightlifting with running – he achieved a marathon PB of 3:31:49 at Manchester in April 2025, but credits the heat for failing to get below the coveted 3:30 mark…
You can follow Ryan on Instagram @ryan.dabbs or on X @ryandabbs_
