When Josh Strickland makes his way across the stage in the title role of this season’s Tuacahn production of Tarzan, audiences will undoubtedly be struck by his grace as he mimics the animals by which his character was raised.

Whether ambling beneath the red rocks on his knuckles in a crouched position, or swinging through the jungle trees, there are plenty of opportunities to appreciate Strickland’s healthy, muscular physique. But no one in the crowd is more acutely attuned to his physical appearance than his personal trainer, Cade Cowdin. After all, helping mold Strickland’s body into the lean, smooth frame of an ape-man is his job.

With more than a decade in the personal training industry, Cowdin is used to training all kinds of athletes. His experience runs the gamut, but he prefers more of a “warehouse-style” gym, nothing corporate, where a personal trainer can really hone the program to meet the client’s needs.

“I want my clients to feel good enough to live their lives, whether that is training for a particular sport, or having enough energy to play with grandkids or go on a hike,” Cowdin says.

During the last few years, while training several actors at Tuacahn, Cowdin has come to appreciate more fully just how hard these artists work to execute their craft.

“It reminds me of a college football camp, the amount of time they are on stage rehearsing and all the hours they put in on and off stage,” Cowdin says. “It’s given me a different perspective on their daily grind, and it’s given me a better way to build a training program for them.”

Even though a character like Tarzan requires great acting and strong vocal skills, there is certainly a physical component to the role; a look that can’t be ignored. So how does one achieve or maintain such a look? It takes discipline and hard work on the part of the actor, as well as careful attention to diet, exercise, and details by someone like Cowdin.

Determining the Goal

After discussing Tarzan’s “look” with Strickland, as well as others on the Tuacahn creative team, Cowdin says they determined to base Tarzan’s appearance more closely to the long, lean muscular frame described in the original book.

“That’s how Tarzan would have looked in real life based on his movements, so that’s been our game plan,” Cowdin says. “We want to achieve a chiseled, lean appearance, with good muscle tone; but less body builder, more of a swimmer’s physique.”

Strickland also needs to be able to sing and act while moving around like an ape. “He’s a hybrid athlete,” Cowdin says. “There are a lot of moving parts that go into his performance.”

Now the Work Begins

With a lot of Cowdin’s clients, he focuses on a lower body, upper body rotation in their daily workouts. However, with actors like Strickland whose schedule changes regularly — alternating between rehearsals and performances for two or three different musicals on any given day — there are times when they can’t train two days in a row.

“A full body, dynamic workout has worked the best for him,” Cowdin says, adding that his No. 1 priority is to ensure Strickland doesn’t get burned out, or overly sore.

“Josh is really invested and really focused, which makes it easier and more fun for me,” Cowdin says. “I can throw anything at him, and he catches on so fast with the technique.”

A typical workout lasts for about an hour. On the days that are not Tarzan performances Cowdin likes to add some heavier weights to keep Strickland’s muscle tone looking good.

“I don’t want him to look stiff on stage,” Cowdin says. “I watch the show and I see how he’s walking to see what part of his muscle structure is popping more, and that gives me an idea of what he needs.”

Some people have laughed at his attention to these details — like when Cowdin points out certain muscles groups that show well during certain parts of the production — but Cowdin says “if he’s not looking good on stage, what are we doing?”

More Than Movement

In addition to mixing up Strickland’s workouts, Cowdin says a vital component to keeping Tarzan healthy is nutrition.

“Often with clients I have them send pictures of their food to me,” he says. “I know what he likes and what he doesn’t like. There are some things I want to take out of his diet, but those are things that keep him happy and keep him going, so we have to find a happy medium.”

Strickland also enjoys running as a means of keeping his mind and body feeling good, so Cowdin has to account for the extra cardio in his day and compensate for that when he considers his diet plan.

The main goal is a high protein, high fat, low carb plan. But since life often has a way of making the perfect meal plan difficult, Cowdin is relatively realistic in his expectations.

“I’m a huge fan of lean red meat, and Josh loves burgers too,” Cowdin says. “I also encourage a lot of chicken and salmon. Plus, I want him to have a heavy carb in the middle of the day, like rice or a potato.”

In addition, Cowdin suggests Strickland make his nighttime meal, which usually takes place after the show around 1 a.m., be some kind of protein and fat, like avocado or olive oil, along with any kind of nut, and a green vegetable.

“I actually want him to eat more, but it’s still early in the season and he’s having three good meals a day and a lot of water, which is great,” Cowdin says. “As the season progresses, I’d like to see him adding a bigger snack or post-workout meal.”

Maintaining Momentum

As with any diet and exercise plan, the key is to keep it interesting so the person wants to stick with it.

“If the client is not having fun and seeing results at the same time, they’re going to fall off,” he says. “Josh is so good, and he’s fun too. He’s always there, always on time, and never negative during our sessions. It’s not a dread for him and he believes in the program, which is a big help. I believe if you buy into whatever you’re doing, you’re going to get better results.”

Come enjoy the results of Strickland’s hard work in Tarzan continuing at Tuacahn through Oct. 21 along with Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame in Tuacahn’s Outdoor Amphitheatre, and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas inside the Indoor Hafen Theatre. For tickets and showtimes check out www.tuacahn.org or call 435-652-3300.