Are you an Orange is the New Black fan? Then you must know a thing or two about Matt McGorry. He plays the super hunky but adorable prison guard Officer Bennett on Netflix’s hit show. Though we have had the privilege of seeing a bit of McGorry’s body on the show, many of you are probably unaware that he was actually a personal trainer before he got into acting. And according to Buzzfeed, very good at his job.
Not only that, but McGorry wrote for Men’s Fitness and participated as a bodybuilder. Who knew! No wonder Bennett looks too good to be true under that CO uniform.
As told to Men’s Fitness, McGorry got into athletics and training when he won a session of personal training classes in the eighth grade. Once he started to see results after working with his trainer, he became more interested in sculpting his body. In college, McGorry began to power lift, focusing on his personal goals and allowing himself to meet and exceed them. From there, he became a personal trainer, working at Peak Performance NYC for a few years.
One of the highlights of McGorry’s lifting career was winning the record for the New York State Raw Deadlift with a lift of 550 pounds in the 198-pound weight class.
Yes, that’s Matt!
McGorry explains that once he decided to quit training and start acting, he went cold turkey.
“I didn’t even ease off of it. I didn’t do a bench press, squat, or deadlift for a couple years after that. And I basically haven’t cooked since. I am a very black and white person like that. Because I was so attached to my numbers from powerlifting, it was easier to take a big step away, so that as I was getting weaker I didn’t have to judge myself based on these same standards.”
Today, McGorry still works out, of course, though his focus is acting rather than personal training. Lifting is his main form of fitness today, paired with a bit of cardio.
Whatever it is, it’s working for him. Bennett, we mean Matt, looks amazing, of course.
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images via Via thesuperheroworkout.org, Twitter @mattmcgorry, Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com