When the comedy-drama series Boots hit Netflix in October, many people got their first look at Angus O’Brien, the 29-year-old actor with the shaved head and impressive physique. What viewers maybe didn’t know is that, rather than gaining muscle by adding intense workouts or heavy protein shakes to his daily routine, O’Brien started to see results after eliminating things. Mainly: drugs and alcohol. The positive mental and physical effects followed shortly thereafter, and now O’Brien’s guiding mantra is to find whatever works for you.
In Boots, O’Brien plays Thaddeus Hicks, a young Marine in basic training with a sharp David Bowie impression and an innovative mind. Despite the show being set in the ’90s, O’Brien says he didn’t go full method (meaning, he kept his smartphone on him) or feel the need to train like an actual Marine. While his approach to health and wellness can be simplistic, that doesn’t mean he’s flying by the seat of his pants. O’Brien is a seasoned workout professional, and he prides himself on his gym acumen. He also likes to stick to what works at the breakfast table, where he’s developed a ritual he both enjoys and gets plenty of nutrition from. When breaking down his fitness-oriented lifestyle, O’Brien shared some details on the best time to hit the weights, the reason for all of his shirtless Instagram pics, and how he got his legendary backside.
GQ: Can you tell me how you got jacked?
Angus O’Brien: Yeah, sure. I’ve been working out for a long time, but I think I started to really get results after I got sober. I very much needed to get sober. The weight came on pretty quickly with that, because I had always been really good with the gym. I was 20 pounds lighter before I got sober. I used to be a personal trainer, I know how to progressively overload and track my stuff. So, I’ve always been pretty good about that side of it. It was just once I was sleeping and eating properly, the weight started packing on pretty quickly, and I think [I’m] like 20 pounds up in three years or something like that. I would say just the consistency of high-intensity weightlifting really is the simple answer.
Even when you were partying, you were pretty diligent about the gym, and then when you cut the partying out, you just started seeing results?
Exactly. It was always something that was built into my routine, but I just think once I actually started having the fuel to make a physical change, it started translating pretty quickly. My workouts were obviously so much better and all that good stuff too.
For Boots, did you have to get specifically military jacked? Did they have notes about what your body needed to look like?
They didn’t really tell us one way or another. I think they sort of knew that they were casting a group of guys that were pretty on top of it in terms of their gym routine and stuff. I think everyone just kind of took it on their own to do what they thought needed to be done. Compared to some of the rest of the guys, I’m pretty lax when it comes to my diet and supplements. I take creatine, and Huel is the brand of protein powder that I do. That, and then my CBD gummies at night. It all boils down to keeping it pretty simple.
I know people who are natural, who are not natural. I’ve always been natural, and a part of that is just because my brain doesn’t work in the way of like…if I have to do extensive research on something, I’ll go crazy. I find a more relaxed approach is actually more helpful for me to maintain what I want to maintain.
Got it. So they weren’t like, “We need to get your biceps bigger, we need you to have 12-pack abs?”
No. I mean, I would love to be a part of a show or a movie where they’re like, “You have to get jacked,” and I’m like, “I got you.” But no, it was just, come as you are.
Are you the type of guy that has specific rules for yourself? I refuse to do this, or, I will never eat that?
My brain does not respond well to being like, “I can’t do this,” or, “This is not allowed,” because I know myself. I’ll start to go crazy if I make things super rigid like that. I’m lucky because I tend to prefer—instead of something sweet—I would almost just rather have a whole another meal. I just love eating, and I love eating savory things. Over the years I’ve gotten good at listening to my body’s cravings. Generally, I am lucky that I tend to just crave high-protein meals, carbs, good fat, stuff like that.
What do those meals typically look like? Are you cooking them yourself?
Yeah, a little bit. I just love breakfast food. I’m looking forward to my breakfast and my coffee the night before. When I go to bed, I’m like, “I cannot wait to have my coffee and breakfast.” I always start the day with a huge breakfast. I have the same breakfast every day, which is whole-wheat sourdough avocado toast. I’ll do four eggs with some egg whites poured into that, and then some turkey bacon as well.
I usually lift right afterwards. I just feel like I need that to start my day. Then I usually will just graze throughout the day, but I’ll supplement that with a couple of those meal plan services; I pick the high-protein option. That way I just know, regardless of what else I’m eating throughout the day, that I’m on the guardrails of having high-protein, high-fiber meals that are checking those boxes as well.
So you have the foundation in place, and then you can be like, “Oh, if I have ice cream I’ll be fine.”
Yeah, exactly. I know I’m getting what I need, and anything else is just for my own pleasure.
Besides the food, are there other parts of a morning routine that you try to stick to?
After I sit and have my breakfast, I usually will try to go to the gym pretty soon after that. I used to be a go-to-the-gym-whenever type of guy, but my boyfriend got me onto the morning gym lifestyle. Once I got over that initial hump, it is so much better. Like I said, one thing I’m proud of is I feel like I really know what I’m doing in the gym, and I push myself really hard. It feels good to start the day knowing, damn, I just pushed myself so fucking hard.
Isn’t it annoying, though, that all the stuff they tell you you’re supposed to do actually works? Getting a task done early in the day is always the move, and I always look for an excuse to not do it.
I know, and I used to be so much more of a night owl. Again, my boyfriend wakes up at 5 a.m. every day. I kept being like, well, I love being cozy late at night, watching my show, whatever. He was like, “But you can do all that stuff. You can wake up and have all that cozy time.” As soon as he said that, I was like, “Wait. That’s so true. It can be just in the morning instead.” You can watch three episodes in the morning, which is such a huge revelation for me.