Find out what it took to become the youngest heavyweight boxing champion of all time. The Mike Tyson Workout is no joke.
The first fight I remember watching live on Pay Per View was the second Tyson versus Holyfield fight. Yes, the infamous ear bite. It was June 1997. I was five years old. Ironically, I don’t remember Tyson biting Holyfield’s ear or the melee that followed.
Mike was a little before my time, but I was and still am a big fan. Boxing hasn’t had anyone like him since. Between the 30-second brutal knockouts, menacing stare, and jacked physique, no one embodied the “baddest man on the planet” persona more than Mike Tyson in his prime. But how did he go from being a street kid in Brownsville to the youngest heavyweight champion ever? That’s what this article is all about.
Table of Contents:
- The Mike Tyson workout routine
- Did Mike Tyson lift weights?
- Mike’s psychological training
- The Mike Tyson diet
- How you can train like Mike Tyson
- Mike Tyson – A case for or against early specialization?
- What it takes
The Mike Tyson Workout Routine
Mike had a troubled childhood. As a street kid, all he knew was poverty and crime. He was a thug, destined to be just another guy who didn’t make it out of the hood.
Mike’s life took a turn when, at 13, he found himself in a juvenile detention center. Here, he crossed paths with Bobby Stewart, a former fighter known for teaching the young detainees the sport of boxing. Mike’s entry into Stewart’s group was a game-changer. At just 13, he was already 196 pounds and throwing punches like a grown man.
Realizing he could only guide young Mike so far, Stewart reached out to the legendary boxing trainer, Cus D’Amato. Cus was like the real-life version of Mickey from the Rocky movies. He knew that D’Amato had to meet this kid with a mountain of potential. And from that moment, the rest, as they say, is history.
The first time Cus saw 13-year-old Mike Tyson spar, he said, “That is the future heavyweight champion of the world.” D’Amato took Mike into his home in Upstate New York and trained him during his teenage years. From that moment on, boxing became Mike Tyson’s life. He was obsessed, training full-time. It’s how he went from a novice at 13 to the heavyweight champ at 20.
This routine is what he did.
4:00 am: Morning Run and Calisthenics
The day began with an early morning run. At four a.m., Mike would lace up his running shoes and go for a 3-5 mile jog around Catskill, New York. When he returned from the jog, he would do ten hard sprints in the backyard, along with 500 pushups and 500 situps.
- Light stretching
- 3-5 mile jog
- Ten hard sprints
- 500 pushups and 500 situps
Noon: Boxing Session #1
Mike’s first boxing session of the day was around noon. In this workout, he did mitt and pad work, the speed bag, and the slip bag. One unique aspect of Mike’s training was the emphasis on the slip bag. The slip bag, designed to instill the correct head movement in a fighter, was perfectly suited to Mike’s style.
After the skill work, Mike would do a ton of sparring. Cus was old school and felt that sparring was the most important thing a fighter could do. So, he would have Mike spar the equivalent of an entire fight. However, instead of just going with one guy, they would rotate in fresh partners every couple of rounds.
The workout would end with another 500 situps, but he would also add 500 air squats. Getting in calisthenics was an all-day process.
- Mitt and pad work
- Speed bag
- Slip bag
- 10-12 rounds of sparring
- 500 Situps, 500 Air Squats
5:00 pm: Boxing Session #2
After lunch and some relaxation, Mike returns to the gym for the second boxing session. One of the most intense aspects of his training was the volume of the bodyweight exercises. He would do 2,500 situps, 2,000 air squats, 500 pushups, 500 bench dips, 500 barbell shrugs, and ten minutes of bridges six days a week. Since he already did 500 pushups, 500 air squats, and 1000 situps before the 5:00 pm workout, he would use this session to finish up for the day.
Boxing Work:
- Heavy Bag
- Mitt and pad work
- Shadowboxing
20-30 minutes of jump rope before calisthenics.
Ten Rounds of Calisthenics
- 150 Air Squats x 10
- 150 Situps x 10
- 50 Bench Dips x 10
- 50 Barbell Shrugs with ~60 pounds x 10
10 minutes of wrestler bridges to finish the workout.
9:00 pm: Active Recovery
After dinner, Mike would wrap up the day with some light work on an exercise bike. This last cardio session was lower intensity and was a form of active recovery from the day’s training. He would occasionally jump in a hot tub afterward for added relaxation.
Mike also made it a point to wind down before bed. He did this by watching old fights or reading old fighting books. People might not recognize how much of a student of boxing he was.
- 30-60 minutes on an exercise bike
Did Mike Tyson Lift Weights?
You might find this hard to believe, but early in his career, Mike did not lift weights. He built his physique with bodyweight exercises and fighting. Of course, genetics played a significant factor as well.
Remember, it was rare for boxers to lift weights when Tyson was coming up. There was a misconception that lifting weights would make you slow and clumsy. Plus, his trainer, Cus D’Amato, was old school in this regard. He didn’t think Mike needed much physical training outside of sparring.
Mike started lifting weights for the first time in the mid-90s while in prison. By then, strength and conditioning information had become more available. Boxers began to recognize the benefits lifting could have. For example, Evander Holyfield worked with pro bodybuilder Lee Haney during his championship run.
Mike’s Psychological Training
Mike Tyson’s psychological training during his prime was crucial to his success. Unlike his views on strength and conditioning, his trainer, Cus D’Amato, was ahead of his time using sports psychology. Cus understood that controlling the mind was essential to success in the ring. Often, fights come down to the mental side of the game.
He began by teaching Tyson to detach from his feelings and use his mind to bolster his confidence. This detachment allowed Tyson to make fear work for him. He wanted Mike to realize every fighter experiences fear. But fear is like fire. You can use it to warm yourself up or cook with it. However, if it gets out of control, it can also burn down your house.
One critical technique D’Amato used to improve Mike’s confidence was daily affirmations. He had Tyson repeatedly tell himself, “Day by day, in every way, I’m getting better and better,” and “I’m the best fighter in the world; nobody can beat me.” By constantly affirming these positive thoughts, Tyson gradually built an unshakable belief in his abilities. This self-belief was critical in making him feel invincible in the ring.
Alongside affirmations, D’Amato also famously harnessed the power of hypnosis. He would take Mike to see a hypnotherapist, and once he was in a relaxed state, D’Amato would reinforce his identity as a champion, saying things like, “You are a fighting machine, Mike. The best fighter God has ever created.” He did this for years. The goal was to help embed the belief that Tyson was destined to be a champion deep into his subconscious.
The Mike Tyson Diet
Much like his workout routines, Mike’s diet is a testament to the power of consistency. It may seem basic, but it can be incredibly effective.
Before we get into his daily meal plan, there are some things to remember. For one, Mike was a big dude who trained all day long. Although this seems like a lot of food, it’s not when you consider his workload and that he weighed upwards of 220 pounds. He would lose weight following this diet.
I also don’t want you to get the impression that Mike ate like this year round. Most of the time, he didn’t eat clean. This meal plan is what Mike would follow during a fight camp. When Mike wasn’t preparing for a fight, he would have big bowls of cereal for breakfast and ice cream for dessert. Mike was disciplined but loved food. He tended to get fat between fights if he wasn’t careful.
Breakfast
- 1 cup of oats
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 cup of orange juice
- Vitamin and mineral supplements
Lunch
- 12oz Chicken Breast
- 2 cups of white rice
- 1 cup of Orange Juice
Snack
- Two scoops of protein powder
- 2 cups of milk
- 2-3 bananas
Dinner
- 12oz Steak
- 3 cups of pasta
- 1 cup of marinara sauce
This comes out to around 300g of protein, 450g of carbohydrates, 85g of fat, and over 3700 calories.
How You Can Train Like Mike Tyson
Most people do not have time for the entire Mike Tyson workout routine. That’s okay. Most of us are not getting paid millions of dollars to train. That said, we can follow the program’s main principles and still get phenomenal results. Here are a few things to start implementing.
Boxing Training
Let’s start with the obvious. If you want to follow the Mike Tyson workout, you must incorporate boxing. As you would expect, it’s a fundamental part of the program. It can be as simple as joining a boxing class at your gym or hanging up a heavy bag in your basement, but you gotta throw some punches.
Do Morning Cardio
Wake up and do cardio. You don’t have to go for a 4 am run, but crank out 20-30 minutes of low—to moderate-intensity cardio first thing in the morning. Pick the mode you like best—fast walk, rucking, incline treadmill, exercise bike, elliptical, or jump rope. Do this before breakfast.
Crush Bodyweight Training
It’s remarkable, but in the prime of Mike Tyson’s career, his strength training was almost entirely bodyweight exercises. He’s not alone. Other pro athletes have had tremendous success with bodyweight workouts, too. Most notably, Herschel Walker. The beauty of bodyweight exercises is their versatility; they can be performed anywhere without fancy equipment. Moreover, they’re easy on the joints.
But here’s the deal. To be like Mike, you have to do them every day. So, start with something reasonable and go from there. The main exercises to focus on are pushups, situps, and air squats. You can also throw pullups in if you have a doorway pullup bar at home. Do a little throughout the day instead of a huge chunk in one go. Do a few sets in the morning, a few more in the afternoon, and finish up after dinner.
Include Neck and Trap Work
In his prime, Mike Tyson had a massive neck and traps. His neck was measured at 20 inches. This impressive look wasn’t accidental. Mike achieved it by doing hundreds of barbell shrugs and spending a lot of time on bridge work.
In addition to doing shrugs at the gym, invest in a neck harness. You can get one on Amazon for under $30. Weighted neck curls and neck harness extensions are the two best exercises for neck training. They are even better than bridges.
Work on Mental Training
Last but not least is the mental game. Cus D’Amato had Mike do a lot of wild stuff to achieve the Iron Mike persona we eventually saw on Pay Per View. I’m not asking you to seek out a hypnotherapist. However, one thing we can implement is daily affirmations. Sports psychologist Dr. Jason Selk calls this an identity statement—like a personal mantra. Come up with a couple of sentences that describe precisely what and who you want to be, making sure to say it as if it has already occurred. Once you have your identity statement dialed in, say it to yourself multiple times daily.
Mike Tyson – A Case For or Against Early Specialization?
Mike Tyson is an interesting case in early sports specialization. Sports specialization can be defined in several ways, but it is generally intense, year-round training in a single sport. It’s debatable whether early specialization is the best method for long-term athlete development. Much like Mike’s case, there are arguments on both sides.
From the age of 13 on, Mike essentially trained boxing full-time. He didn’t participate in any other sports or have much balance. On one hand, this likely led to his fast-tracked success. It only took him seven years of training to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history. Beyond that, he started his pro career with 37 dominant wins before losing his first fight. During this time, he looked untouchable.
However, in his 38th professional fight, at only 23 years old, Mike lost to a massive underdog, Buster Douglas. Mike Tyson vs. Buster Douglas is still one of the greatest upsets in fighting history. Tyson was a 42-1 favorite.
Mike is unique because his prime was from 20 to 23 years old, which is rare for a heavyweight. Other factors (going to prison and problems with trainers and managers) were present, but he most likely never fulfilled his full potential. Almost all of his best wins came before the Douglas fight.
So, was Mike’s athletic development process a success or failure? It’s hard to say. He reached the pinnacle of his sport, so I wouldn’t call it a failure. However, can you imagine how good Tyson could have eventually become if he had stayed focused, avoided trouble, and trained hard until his late 20s?
What It Takes
The Mike Tyson workout routine is as intense as he is. Success doesn’t happen by accident. Excelling in any sport, especially one as physically demanding as boxing, requires a total commitment to training. You must be willing to train harder and longer than your competition.
The good news is that we can get in great shape by following just a part of Tyson’s routine. It won’t be easy, but we don’t need to make it an all-day affair. By incorporating just a few of Mike’s principles, one can look like a fighter without getting punched—unless you want to. In which case, remember one of Mike’s famous lines, “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.”
Author: Kyle Hunt
Instagram: @huntfitness
YouTube: @HuntFitnessTV
Hire Kyle as your coach: http://www.kylehuntfitness.com/services/
