The 300 Workout Transformation

BEFORE

AFTER

I've been getting a lot of questions about the movie "300"(Starring Gerard Butler, and directed by Frank Miller). Specifically the questions that I've been getting have been as regards the spartan workouts that the actors performed to get in shape and what I think of them, how they compare to fat loss workouts I'd use etc.

In short- I think the trainers did a great job with the 300 workout program.

Mark Twight of Gym Jones was the trainer responsible for the "300 workout" and the 300 "look". The first misconception of the workout was that Mark used a traditional bodybuilding approach to try to "bulk" the actors up -- instead they used a combination of caloric restriction and total body training to develop the "chiseled" 300 look.

The mantra that guided the training philosophy which really resonated with me was "appearance is a consequence of fitness".

In other words their goal was to create a look that epitomized the 300 Spartan warriors -- a "Functional" physique that looks like it can perform and fight, is devoid of fat, and a metabolism that strips fat from your body. And the best way to do that was to use a more functional, athletic program - to actually seek performance - as opposed to an aesthetically driven only program.

From Mark Twight:

"The second misconception surrounds the idea of the Spartan workout, aka “300” [or the 300 workout], how frequently it was done or who actually finished it. “300” is a one-time test, an invitation-only challenge undertaken by those deemed ready for it. By the end of our four-month project 17 people had done the workout (Logan and I were two of them). This constitutes about 50% of the cast and stunt crew. We supervised every test, evaluated each rep for quality and only counted those that achieved our standards for form and range of motion. Like many workouts “300” is not hard once you’ve done it but the apprehension built up ahead of it – something we encouraged – was enough to make some guys fear it to the degree that performance was compromised. This workout was a crucible that some passed through and others still have hanging over them.

“300 Spartan Workout”

25x Pull-up +
50x Deadlift @ 135lbs +
50x Push-up +
50x Box Jump @ 24” box +
50x Floor Wiper @ 135lbs (one-count) +
50x KB Clean and Press @ 36lbs (KB must touch floor between reps) +
25x Pull-up
300 reps total"

(The actors and stunt men performed the workout against the clock).

Hard dieting. High reps. Heavy loads. Intense total body training. Great results. Train for performance and appearance follows. Nothing "magical" or "Hollywood" about it. And it's the type of training anyone looking to improve their physique should be aiming towards - total body metabolic work.

--
AC
PS - The theory of total body training for fat loss is one I strongly believe in. I think it outperforms any other method for fat loss. Check out Afterburn 2 for details.