The “300″ Workout

If you want to look like a greek god, read on.

Some background:  In case you do not know the story of King Leonides and his last stand at Thermopylae here it is…

In 480 BC Xerxes, the leader of the Persians, had sailed into the Port of Malia which provided them the only access to Central Greece. By capturing the port and gaining access to central Greece, they would undoubtedly take over all of Greece. However the city of Sparta was the one thing standing in there way. The only way in and out of the port was the Pass of Thermopylae which was the only access point along the mountains of Themopylae.

So King Leonides led 300 of his elite Spartans to defend the pass of Thermoplyae so they could try and hold off the Persian horde until help arrived or until the Persians ran out of food and had to sail away. Even against all odds, his men stood beside him. Xerxes had brought a Persian army of over “10,000 immortals” and had crushed everything in has path. Leonides, the spartan general and king, led his loyal troops and they fought to their deaths and took a disproportionately high number of the immortals’ lives during their final stand at Thermopylae. This would become one of the greatest last stands in history. They were able to hold their position for 3 days against the unstoppable Persian army. However, on the third day, the Greeks were betrayed by one of their own country men who had showed the Persians a pass that ran behind the Spartan Army. Due to the betrayal, King Leonides and his men were slaughtered…..

For all of those who are familiar with the movie “300″ this is pretty much the story of the Spartans and how they faced insurmountable odds. These men were of the highest caliber when it came to honor, dedication and mental strength. If you have watched the movie, you will also notice that the actors all possessed insane physiques that are normally not seen in the typical gym. These guys looked like warriors and not just the typical meat head.

For the movie, in order to look like a spartan warrior, they needed train like spartan warriors. The sinewy muscle development that they were able to develop was a product of their dedication to a extreme workout using compound exercises as well as proper nutrition and rest. So I decided to see what this workout was about and try it out for myself. Below is the workout. You are supposed to do it with little to no rest between each exercise and ideally do it in 20 minutes… haha… yeah… if you are a greek god.

THE “300″ WORKOUT

• 25 pull-ups
• 50 dead lifts with 135 pounds
• 50 push-ups
• 50 jumps on a 24-inch box
• 50 “floor wipers” (Removed mainly for safety reasons.. until we get up to it)
• 50 1-arm clean and presses with 36-kettlebell (Replaced Kettle bell with 35lb dumbell)
• 25 pull-ups

So this past Saturday, I went to the gym with the workout and tried to kick some ass. It looked pretty simple and straight forward. My workout out buddy, Matt, joined in on the fun.

HOLY GOD ALL MIGHTY!!!! What a test in mental will power! By the end of the 50 dead lifts, I was not thinking positive thoughts. Luckily I had the 50 push ups to give me some rest. haha… But then the box jumps came…. if there is one exercise you never want to do again, this would be it. After about 15, I felt all the lactic acid build up and could barely muster up the explosion to do anymore jumps. Failure seemed imminent, but I just kept pushing and grinding away one jump at a time. Slowly but surely I passed 30, then 40, then 45, 47…. finally 50! Afterwards, the clean and presses were a test in mental discipline and not giving up. My legs were burning, my lower back spasming uncontrollably and my shoulders beyond the point of destruction. I was only operating on fumes, but I knew I couldn’t give up.

Finally! I made it to the final 25 pull ups… my strength was sapped and I could barely do 5 at a time…. but when I hit that magic number of 25 and I had finished the 300 workout, a feeling of accomplishment came over me that I had never felt at the gym before. My muscles no longer burned and for an instant, I knew I had conquered the insurmountable odds and made my own stand at Thermopylae. Then I collapsed like a rag doll onto the bench and laid there for a few minutes waiting for my body to recover from the ultimate destruction it had just endured… I plan to do it again next week but in less time!

So if you get a chance, try this workout for yourself. Prove to yourself that you have the mental toughness to not give up even when your body screaming for you to stop. This workout will make tough guys cry like babies and gym newbies wish they had never even tried. It is not for the faint of heart, so only attempt it if you are physically and mentally ready for it. Success in this program comes from having developed mental toughness and physical endurance. However, if you choose to do this now, there will be times you will want to quit, but those are the most important times! Those are the moments that will decide your destiny!

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