This is one brutal exercise Rio Ferdinand says you should stay away from

If Rio Ferdinand finds this workout difficult, what chance do we stand?

Ferdinand has famously bulked up since calling time on his playing career and looks significantly more muscular than he did when he was making opposition attackers' lives a nightmare at Old Trafford. The legendary Manchester United defender understandably didn't want to get too big during his football career because there comes a point when size only stands to slow one down. But he's more than making up for it since retiring in 2015 and regularly posts clips of arduous workouts on his various social media channels. Plenty of footballers let themselves go after hanging up their boots but Ferdinand cannot be accused of resting on his laurels over the past two years. This week, the 38-year-old showed off one of the more difficult exercises he goes through and kindly advised his followers not to try it at home. https://www.instagram.com/p/BWHnf0sl0ud/?taken-by=rioferdy5&hl=en "Piece of piss," Ferdinand gasped jokingly as he finished his set. The former England international has made no secret of the fact that he sees training as therapeutic and has recently revealed that working out regularly helped him cope with the tragic death of his wife, Rebecca Ellison. "Without the gym, I don’t know where I would’ve had that release time," Ferdinand told Men's Health. "That time just to think about nothing, or to think about something other than what was going on in my life." He added: "I’m simply happier when I’m in the gym and working out, and I think everything else flows better when I’m doing that. It invigorates me and calms me at the same time."