Get as fit as Brad Pitt

The British version of smash-hit US TV show Queer Eye For The Straight Guy starts this week. For those who don't know, it sees five gay grooming, style and fashion experts turn a male no-hoper into a love god in the space of a telly hour.

We can't make you over in that time but we can help you get a bod like Brad Pitt's if you're willing to put in the work. Here's how.

The Pitt shape...

In technical terms, Brad's body shape is a cross between ectomorph (skinny with narrow chest and shoulders and little body fat, like Thierry Henry) and mesomorph (large chest, long torso and solid muscle structure, like Linford Christie). He is naturally lean and wiry but obviously works hard to keep his body fat down. That's the key to those abdominals - any layers of blubber near the belly and that six-pack would never show.

...And how to get it

Biceps: These are the top of your upper arm muscles. Try doing drop sets, a routine that starts with a heavy weight that gets reduced as the muscles fail. Do heavy, straight, bar-bell curls (hold the bar palms-up with wrists by your hips, lift slowly to the chest then lower it, equally slowly) for six repetitions, then move to a lighter weight and do eight reps straight after.

That's one set. Do a total of four, allowing up to a minute for recovery between sets.

Triceps: These are the bottom of your upper arm muscles. On a push-down machine, do a set of overhand push-downs (hold the bar by your chest with elbows tight to you side, lower until your arms are nearly straight, then raise it slowly back up to the starting position) for eight reps. Then do the same motion using an underhand grip for eight reps. Finally, do a set of overhead presses (hold a heavy dumbbell in each hand at shoulder level, slowly straighten your arms over your head, then lower them) for eight reps. That's one set. Do a total of four.

Upper pecs: For toned and bulging chest muscles, set a bench on an incline of 45 degrees, lie on it with your head above your feet and perform bench presses (a forward movement lifting the weight until your arms are perpendicular to your chest to a nearly-straight position) with a heavy weight. Do five sets of eight reps.

Lower pecs: Turn yourself around on the bench so your feet are above your head. Do eight to 12 bench presses in this position, repeating them five times.

Obliques: It is these muscles that give Brad's gut that well-honed V-shape. The key here is definition, not bulk. Do leg raises to your left and right sides while holding yourself off the ground with hands by hips and your back perpendicular to the ground. Do sets of 15 reps.

Abs: The secret to great abdominal muscles (best known as 'the six-pack') is weight. Train them heavily and they'll grow like any other muscles. Do six to eight sit-ups while holding a weight (such as a heavy ball) above your head for four sets. Keep your back straight for optimum effect.

Traps: These muscles make bumps protrude from Brad's neck. You can get them by using a Smith machine. It holds a straight bar in place for vertical lifting to keep it balanced. Load it with light weights. Stand with the bar in front of you, holding it with a narrow grip. Pull it up as high as you can from your waist for four sets of eight reps.