Playing one of the most famous superheros on TV comes with plenty of pressure for anyone willing to do so.
Slowly developing into that character through several seasons, when there are already several established heroes is only more difficult.
Katie Cassidy was able to become the fan-favorite skilled fighter, Black Canary on the popular TV series Arrow, starring Stephen Amell as the fellow superhero Green Arrow.
You can see from the Katie Cassidy workout and diet routines below that she has put in all the necessary work off the screen to look the part on the screen.
Photo Credit - The CW
The Katie Cassidy Workout
Cassidy shared insight to her workout routine for an interview with InStyle. You can see she fits a variety of different types of training into her routine to prevent the body from adjusting to her workouts. This way she can continue to make progress.
- Spinning
- Lifting weights
- Yoga
- Boxing
While staying lean and fit is important for a superhero, both to look the part on screen and to go through all the rigorous shooting on set, it's also important for her workouts to be functional, to grow both muscle size and strength to be a strong fighter.
The boxing training is important, especially when portraying a character like Black Canary. The Canary is known as one of the best fighters in the DC Comics universe and doing different fight training, like boxing both makes her a more convincing actor and gives her a great calorie burn.
Katie Cassidy
Workout wise, I think it's always good to keep your body guessing. I do spin - love it. I do yoga - love it. And I'm also into old-school weightlifting. At my peak, I want to say I was lifting about 25 pounds for bicep curls. I'm also in training for the show, so playing a superhero requires big muscles.
It is important to mix up training so that your body can continue to make progress. Cassidy incorporates many different types of workouts to hit her muscles in different ways and to keep her metabolism running high.
You can see in the image below, that she isn't wasting her time in the gym. The toughest exercises - squats, deadlifts, bench press, and pull ups - are the ones that will give you the most benefit, both in terms of strength and a little bit of muscle mass gain with toning.
Photo Credit - Katie Cassidy on Facebook
Doing compound lifts and bodyweight exercises helps her to both look and perform the role of a hero. On set, she could be fighting, jumping. rolling, or any other type of different movements. This training helps to prepare her for that.
The Katie Cassidy Diet
While Cassidy picked up her workout intensity to prepare for the role of Black Canary, she has been lean and fit her entire acting career. This is no accident, as she has always used a clean diet that focused on foods with good nutritional value. She mainly focused on the following:
- High protein meals
- Lots of vegetables
- No red meat
- Only healthy snacking
She likes to stick to a routine and often eats the same meals every day. Her lean protein sources come from things like salmon, eggs, and chicken. She tries to incorporate green veggies at every meal along with only healthier carb options. Her healthy snacks consists of things like almonds and fruit.
This diet allows her to fuel her grueling training sessions as well as her hours on the set playing a physical role, without taking in a ton of extra calories. By eating quality foods she is able to stay lean and toned while maintaining muscle mass.
Cassidy also looks and training and diet as essential not only for her work and physical health, but also her mental health. She believes they all work together to create a balanced, healthy life:
Katie CassidyOn the importance of exercise and nutrition
It's important for me to also live a happy, healthy, and full life. Your energy, mind, and body totally connect.
Recap
Playing an iconic female superhero, one who is often a member of the Justice League, certainly comes with a ton of pressure. The Katie Cassidy workout and diet plan above, along with a dedication to the role, has helped her stand out as the Black Canary.
