'Twilight' Pumped Up: Taylor Lautner's Teen Wolf Transformation for 'New Moon'

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TRAILERS FOR "NEW MOON" have teen girls in a tizzy, and that's in no small part due to a shirtless shot of Taylor Lautner. But while movie magic may be responsible for turning his character, Jacob, into a werewolf, it was the 17-year-old actor's hard work that transformed him into a total fox. The plot calls for Jacob to undergo a huge growth spurt, so in order to secure the part, Lautner promised to pack on weight. He delivered with a whopping 30 pounds of extra muscle in mere months, a feat that's made him a weight room hero. His new bod landed him on the front of the December issue of Men's Health (on newsstands today) as the youngest cover model ever.

So, could anybody do that? We asked Mark Crick, co-owner of D.C.'s Balance Gym. The answer is no, even if you were to follow Lautner's reported regimen of daily two-hour workouts and constant chowing down. "Gaining muscle is probably the hardest thing to do at the gym," Crick says. "It's easy to put on size. But size isn't lean muscle."

Lautner must have turned the basic formula of "lift heavy, lift often and eat" into a full-time job. Crick explains that the most exhausting and effective workouts focus on compound movements, such as dead lifts, bench presses, pull-ups and squats, to activate multiple muscles simultaneously. Nutrition must be planned out in detail, especially during the 30-minute window after a lifting session. And though Lautner's alleged dating life has gotten recent press — Taylor squared! — he's probably been spending more time in bed than on the town. "You need rest to grow," Crick adds.

Crick thinks Lautner's age may have helped — it's only natural that a 16-year-old raging with hormones would continue to grow. "Hopefully, he's not getting anyone to jab him with something extra," Crick adds.

The real test is going to come as he prepares for future films; he's promised to bulk up more for each one as the series continues. "That is going to be twice as hard," Crick says. "I suggest he start eating now and bring a bench press into his bedroom."

» The Twilight Workout: Stay safe while exercising after work -- and after nightfall.

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