January 11, 2025, 4:38 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
Tom Holland has to put on weight for most of his movie roles. As always, the right diet for the desired superhero body plays a major role in this. And now the ‘Spiderman’ actor has also revealed what he usually eats to achieve this.
At 1.73 meters tall, Tom Holland is one of the smaller Hollywood actors and looks rather slight. But the 28-year-old is fitter than many of his colleagues. This is because the Brit has found a guiding principle for himself that obviously works. “My diet is much more important than what I do in the gym,” Tom Holland told Men’s Health at the beginning of this year. “I would say that if I want to see results, I have to eat 80 percent and train 20 percent.” FITBOOK reveals exactly what the Hollywood star’s diet typically includes and how he trained for his latest superhero movie.
Overview
Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner: This Is What Tom Holland Focuses on
Naturally, Tom Holland, who hasn’t drunk alcohol since January 2022, lives very healthily during filming or in preparation for a movie – in other words, most of the time. He has a balanced breakfast of porridge with fruit and nuts, and in the morning, he also has a protein shake with important vitamins and minerals. “The carbohydrates from the oatmeal give me energy. I then feel prepared for a great day,” he explains.
His favorite source of carbohydrates, however, is potatoes, and for him, nothing beats fish and poultry as a source of protein. “Cod is very easy to prepare. For example, baked in foil in the oven with chili, lemon, and garlic. You don’t have to season it; it just tastes good. And poultry in many different ways,” says the actor. Sounds like a perfect lunch, which Holland sometimes skips. “If I’m not training, then I skip lunch.”
And what about dinner? That’s where his brother Sam comes in. He is a chef and often tries out the latest recipes. These range from roasts to chicken in red wine sauce. Nearly every evening, the brothers share a meal together.
Incidentally, on a day without training, only one meal is enough for him. The challenge is all the greater during the working day. He admits: “I really have to remember to eat three times a day. For me, having breakfast, lunch, and dinner feels like an overwhelming amount of food.”
Tom Holland Indulges in Cheat Meals
Holland’s meal plan looks relatively simple compared to that of some other superstars from the film industry. Five to six meals a day, a certain number of carbohydrates and fats, plus several protein shakes? Like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, for example? Certainly not.
However, it is a real hurdle for Tom Holland to build up muscles in preparation for a certain role. The reason is that he is just naturally slim and loses weight quickly if he doesn’t eat. That’s why the Marvel hero indulges in sumptuous and unhealthy meals in the form of cheat meals during the mass phase of physical preparation for a movie. And quite frequently at that! “I have cheat meals all the time, so many in fact that I can’t even call them that. They’re just meals,” he shared in a recent Men’s Health interview. He especially swears by burgers with raw onions.
What Role Zendaya Plays in His Diet
His girlfriend, actress and singer Zendaya, makes sure that it’s not just cheat meals that end up on Holland’s menu. “I always try to eat a healthy amount of vegetables. And she’s a vegetarian, which is very helpful,” explains Tom Holland. Unsurprisingly, the two of them usually have vegetarian meals.
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Tom Holland’s Tough Workout for “Spiderman: No Way Home”
After taking a one-year break from acting last year, Tom Holland will continue with his next film projects in 2025. Among other things, he has the lead role in the racing drama American Speed coming up, and filming for Spiderman 4 is also expected to start in August. The latest installment about superhero Peter Parker is set to hit cinemas in 2026.
Holland’s fitness experience from the last spin-off (Spiderman: No Way Home) is likely to help him in the run-up to the movie. The training for this was tough but got him in top condition. The magic formula was daily HIIT workouts. “On a Monday morning, there was a one-hour workout: one pull-up, two dips, three push-ups, four sit-ups, five squats – that was the first round – you go up to 10, so the last round is 10, 20, 30, 40, 50. And then you go back down to 1. This regimen is a rigorous workout,” he revealed to Men’s Health.