How to look like James Bond as the mirror man endures training with 007’s personal trainer

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We sent journalist Jeremy Armstrong to meet Daniel Craig’s personal trainer, Simon Waterson, who put him through his paces in a workout worthy of James Bond himself.

There was no time to die though we felt like it when the Mirror joined Daniel Craig’s trainer for a 007 workout.

Craig, 53, achieved his enviable physique with high-paced Russian twists, bodyweight pull-ups and dips, abdominal rollouts and hanging leg raises.

For many of us, that might as well be spy code for, “How much physical torture can you endure?”

Trainer Simon Waterson went from Hull to Hollywood to become a fitness guru. Not only did the former Navy Special Forces commando make sure Craig was the man with the golden guns for all five Bond films.

He has also worked with stars such as Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, Captain America superhero Chris Evans and Halle Berry.

British stars Cumberbatch and Hiddleston – tipped to be the new Bond – rose at dawn for strenuous training sessions at Parliament Hill Fields in London.

When I joined Simon, arriving by bus – eat your heart out, Craig – the mantra was the same as for his superstar clientele: there’s no substitute for hard work.

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We started with what I can only describe as the physical purgatory of bodyweight pull-ups. At the sit-up station, he explained that with 007, “We usually do five sets of 25…”

Simon honed his cadre with 845 Naval Air Squadron, which he joined when he was 16. This included stints in Bosnia, before the film industry called in 1997.

From the iconic scene in Casino Royale, when Bond emerged from the sea in blue trunks – to the cry of “Oh my God!” from producer Barbara Broccoli – he said, “It was one of those moments.”

He added: “At the end of the day, you get what you put in. It’s hard work to get to that peak of fitness. My job is to try to find the easiest way to do it.

“With Daniel we became buddies – sometimes it was hard to know who was coaching whom.”

In his new book, Intelligent Fitness, he offers advice on everything from sleep to diet for all ages. Customers get the same attention whether they are from Hull or Hollywood. “You do your job well, you get the results,” he says.

Simon Waterson’s Intelligent Fitness – published by Michael O’Mara Books – is available now. It is priced at £18.99.

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