‘Spider-Man’ Actor Jacob Batalon Opens Up About 100-Pound Weight Loss
Jacob Batalon may be best known for his Marvel Cinematic Universe role as Ned Leeds, best friend to Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. However, throughout the years, Jacob Batalon’s weight loss journey has also been notable. Now, he’s opening up about the changes. Batalon revealed what led to his 100-pound weight loss and how it has changed his life.
Jacob Batalon is the actor behind behind Ned Leeds
Jacob Batalon was first introduced in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) as Peter Parker’s best friend, Ned Leeds. Since then, he has appeared in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Spider-Man: No Way Home in the MCU.
Over the years, some fans have noticed that Batalon looked much slimmer than he did in the first movie. Indeed, there has been quite a transformation — more than 100-pounds, actually, according to E! Online.
What inspired Jacob Batalon’s weight loss journey
In a recent interview with Men’s Health, Jacob Batalon said he decided to lose weight and improve his fitness around the end of 2019. He explained what spurred his personal journey. “Even when I wasn’t doing anything physical, I found myself getting sleepy at work,” he said.
He continued: “I felt like I could barely walk upstairs without being out of breath, and this one day, I kind of just saw myself without a shirt on and it was just ridiculous. I could not believe I let myself get this far.”
In 2020, he set the wheels in motion by transforming his health and getting a trainer to help him set up a very intense exercise schedule of 90-minute workouts, six days a week. Healthier meal choices also helped with Jacob Batalon’s weight loss.
The ‘Spider-Man’ actor’s workout routine
As part of Jacob Batalon’s workout routine, he devotes the first hour specifically to weights. The last 30 minutes of it are devoted to cardio.
One exercise with which he has a love/hate relationship is the burpee. He said it is his trainer’s “way of torturing [him], but in a good way.” He does 20 reps, going from standing to push-up position and then back to standing.
He also does an exercise called the “renegade row,” which he says is “crazily dynamic.” It begins with your body planking, and then you lift your arms straight back with a weight in your hand.
One of Batalon’s favorite moves is the medicine ball slam. It is “more dynamic than lifting a few weights. It also helps release a lot of anger.” To do this anger-releasing exercise, lift a weighted ball from the floor to over your head. Then, slam it to the floor.
Another huge part of Jacob Batalon’s weight loss has focused on diet. He told Men’s Health he cut out a lot of meat because he feels better when he eats a more plant-based diet.
Since he began his new diet and exercise routine at the end of 2019, Jacob Batalon has lost 112 pounds — and it seems he’s still finding the benefits in his healthy habits.
