We’ve all had that moment haven’t we, when you’re at the gym or halfway through a run and you start to flag. Your energy dips and takes your motivation with it. But instead of giving up and heading home, you hear the opening beats of ‘eye of the tiger’ in your head and suddenly you’re in an epic 80s movie montage, full of motivation again. Right?
I’m pretty certain, if we’re honest, that we’ve all got a favourite workout scene from a film that inspires us to push on and keep going at those times that we just want to stop.
The 7 Best Movie Workout Scenes Of All Time
If you don’t, then you need to go and watch these films that feature what we think are the best movie workout scenes of all time and pick your favourite to give you a push next time you’re flagging:
Rocky
Of course, we had to kick off this list with Rocky!
The 1976 Sylvester Stallone classic features one of the best-known workout scenes of all time. I mean, who hasn’t got to the top of a big set of stairs and wanted to throw their fists up in the air and celebrate like Rocky!
It might only be a couple of minutes long but this montage has everything you could want from a movie workout scene, including an instantly recognisable bit of motivational music.
Rocky 4
All of the Rocky movies have great workout scenes, but the one that really rivals the original Rocky montage came along in 1985 in Rocky 4.
The beauty of this scene is that it’s a two for the price of one situation. You get to see Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky training in Siberia, running through the snow and icy streams, sawing and chopping wood, and pulling a sledge full of huge, heavy rocks.
That in itself is a pretty epic workout montage, but the scene is taken to another level because it’s mixed in with shots of Dolph Lundgren training in a high-tech facility. He’s hooked up to machines monitoring his progress as he runs, lifts weights, and uses all sorts of different pieces of gym equipment.
It’s the contrast between the two men and the way they’re training that makes this scene another all-time classic.
Bloodsport
The 1988 movie that really launched Jean-Claude Van Damme’s career, Bloodsport has a brilliant training montage that takes the idea from Rocky and puts a different spin on it.
Along with the usual sparring, there are parts of the scene where Van Damme is blindfolded and serving tea, before blocking a blow to the face.
Maybe not what you’d expect in a Van Damme movie, but a brilliant way of showing that training for a fight isn’t all about physical strength, you need to build your awareness and learn to predict your opponent’s moves too.
GI Jane
Awesome workout montages aren’t just for men. And GI Jane makes that point perfectly.
The 1997 movie features Demi Moore at her kick-ass best, playing the first woman to join the elite Navy SEAL team.
Knowing that Moore trained with a special forces instructor for the role and did all the moves herself in the film makes the workout scenes even more inspiring to watch.
You know someone’s been training hard when they can make one-handed pushups look easy.
Enough
Most films with awesome workout routines in them are based on athletes or fighters, building their strength for a big match. Enough, released in 2002, is a bit different.
The main character Slim (played by Jennifer Lopez) is training to fight and finally be free of her abusive partner.
In the main workout montage, she learns Krav Maga, ducks and weaves under ropes, and builds her mental resilience as much as her physical strength.
The Fighter
The most recent movie on our list is The Fighter, released in 2010 and starring Mark Wahlberg.
The main workout montage in this film will resonate with anyone out there who’s tried to cut weight while training, as Wahlberg runs, skips, and boxes in his grey sweatsuit to prepare for his big fight.
It might not be as epic as the scenes in Rocky, but this workout montage is still a big favourite here with the more realistic edge it has, making us want to pick up our skipping ropes and see if we can skip as high as Wahlberg.
No retreat, no surrender
No Retreat, No Surrender was released in 1986 and features Jean-Claude Van Damme as the villain, rather than the main hero.
So the brilliantly 80s training montage from this film is all about the progress made by Jason Stillwell (played by Kurt McKinney) as he trains to take on Van Damme in the ring.
It has everything you’d expect from a workout montage – cheesy music, one-handed pushups, and some pretty epic homemade workout equipment.
What you might not expect though is that at one point in the film Jason is trained by the ghost of Bruce Lee. Yeah. It’s as strange as it sounds, and makes the whole thing well worth a watch if you’ve not already seen it!
