Routines to prepare for the 300 test

[Zima]

I'm sure many of you have heard of the 300 workout, which was a test the actors went through after their training.

25 pull-ups

50 deadlifts at 135 pounds

50 push-ups

50 box jumps with a 24-inch box

50 "floor wipers" (a core and shoulders exercise at 135 pounds)

50 "clean and press" at 36 pounds (a weight-lifting exercise)

25 more pull-ups -- for a total of 300 reps

My goal is to simply do this test. I'm in excellent shape, but my training is basically a standard 4 day lifting split and 2 6-8 mile runs on weekends. I'd imagine I'll have to incorporate some crossfit style training for endurance, and also gain strength for the pullups and deadlifts. Gaining a few lbs of muscle and/or getting more shredded would be nice but the goal is doing this workout. Don't ask me why, I don't know. Just a goal. I'll be happier as a person from doing it

I intend to do a half marathon in late Fall, and it is then that I would like to begin training specifically for this. Taking out running in favor of other training is an option, as it gets cold out in Winter. I like to have 5-6 training sessions total every week.

Any recommendations or suggestions as far as training goes would be most welcome

[Guest Carjack]

Lift heavy weights.

[Knightwatch]

They trained with Mark Twight for a few months, and he essentially does Crossfit style training (but don't tell him that; he's rather it that Crossfit does Mark Twight-style training), with sports/performance-specific stuff mixed in, more tailored to the individual client.

Basically do a heavy lift, and follow it with a high intensity session of "strength-cardio" with moderate weight, and do a bunch of calisthenics and occasionally stretch out with some longer traditional cardio. Mix it up a lot. Use barbells, rings, tires, sledgehammers, ropes, kettlebells, sandbags, and anything else heavy.

And I could be mistaken, but I think the 36 pound clean and press would be dual kettlebells, 1 pood each.

Good luck!

[Zima]

Lift heavy weights.

You forgot "calories in - calories out"...

But on a serious note - Knightwatch, that basically sounds about right. Strength training + crossfit. I just like to have a set routine for when I go into the gym, and don't trust myself to make my own routines just yet. So I figured I'd see if anyone knows of good routines/training schedules for achieving this kind of goal.

[spezzy]

You forgot "calories in - calories out"...

But on a serious note - Knightwatch, that basically sounds about right. Strength training + crossfit. I just like to have a set routine for when I go into the gym, and don't trust myself to make my own routines just yet. So I figured I'd see if anyone knows of good routines/training schedules for achieving this kind of goal.

haha i don't think he did - he's right, as is KW.

completing this routine has nothing to do with calories, at all

why that workout as your goal?

[Zima]

why that workout as your goal?

Don't ask me why, I don't know. Just a goal. I'll be happier as a person from doing it

Come on...Why long distance running? Some say it's not just not benefitial, but can even be detrimental to your health. But I enjoy it and I like reaching new milestones.

And while he's right to an extent, what my comment was referring to was the fact that his answer resembles one of the two most common answers people give on bodybuilding.com forums when they assume you don't know anything and needs to stick to the basics. Calories in - calories out is the other of the two.

In all seriousness, I've been lifting (relatively) heavy weights since I was 17. A goal like this has less to do with that than you might think...

For example, I went from 50 to 100 pushups in just a couple weeks on a routine focusing specifically on pushups. My max bench didn't change that much during that timeframe. Similarly, deadlifting heavy weights alone won't get me there. I can deadlift 135 30+ times, sure. Doubt I can do 50 without though. If I focus on lifting heavy and increase my max deadlift by 20lbs, I won't suddenly be able to do 50 deadlifts, especially not right after doing 25 pullups. A mix of strength and endurance training is necessary for something like this.

[spezzy]

Come on...Why long distance running? Some say it's not just not benefitial, but can even be detrimental to your health. But I enjoy it and I like reaching new milestones.

And while he's right to an extent, what my comment was referring to was the fact that his answer resembles one of the two most common answers people give on bodybuilding.com forums when they assume you don't know anything and needs to stick to the basics. Calories in - calories out is the other of the two.

In all seriousness, I've been lifting (relatively) heavy weights since I was 17. A goal like this has less to do with that than you might think...

For example, I went from 50 to 100 pushups in just a couple weeks on a routine focusing specifically on pushups. My max bench didn't change that much during that timeframe. Similarly, deadlifting heavy weights alone won't get me there. I can deadlift 135 30+ times, sure. Doubt I can do 50 without though. If I focus on lifting heavy and increase my max deadlift by 20lbs, I won't suddenly be able to do 50 deadlifts, especially not right after doing 25 pullups. A mix of strength and endurance training is necessary for something like this.

haha no, not why long distance running, why the 300 workout!

and yeah, this is both heavy lifting and muscular endurance.

do crossfit style training, AND heavy lifting and you'll be good.

if i was allowed to kip the pullups a little bit i could do this workout tomorrow, without scaling the weight - I do a combination of lifting as heavy as I can and crossfit.

[Zima]

Same reason as long distance running. I feel like it. I specifically said not to ask why!

Can you elaborate on your training a bit. Naturally I figured I'd keep lifting as I do but incorporate crossfit, as I already said. Doing so in the most optimal fashion is the question.

[Guest Carjack]

Does anyone actually do that 300 thing straight and with good form? Everyone seems to divide the hard parts into sets or do breathers.

Also, screw light lifts. Light versions of deadlift are gay. You'll get more endurance from strength training than that nonsense.

[Zima]

As I just said, I got plenty more endurance from multiple sets of high rep pushups for several weeks than from years heavy benching. If doing "gay nonsense" helps me achieve a specific goal better than gay nonsense is what needs to be done.

And besides, I'm not suggesting removing heavy lifting from my routine. Once I found a gym while traveling through CAMBODIA just so that I could do some heavy lifting because I missed the hell out of it while I was on the road. Do you really think I'm trying to imply something bad about lifting? Just because heavy weights alone won't prepare you for endurance workouts, running, martial arts, football, or any other sport outside of bodybuilding and powerlifting...doesn't mean I'm saying it's bad. It's just not enough, or every athlete would simply lift heavy weights 3-5 times a week.

[Knightwatch]

As I just said, I got plenty more endurance from multiple sets of high rep pushups for several weeks than from years heavy benching. If doing "gay nonsense" helps me achieve a specific goal better than gay nonsense is what needs to be done.

+1.

It's so weird how all that gay nonsense has ended up improving both my endurance, and, despite years of pure heavy lifting only, already respectable strength. Funny how that works.

[Guest Carjack]

Actually, adding weight to just any any lift or calisthenic will get a greater endurance benefit than the event along.

Examples:

If you do pull ups, you'll eventually plateau on pull ups. Do do more reps unweighted, your choices are:

1. Cheat on your form as in kipping pseudo-pull ups.

2. Add a little weight to the pull up. Not heavy enough to change the neural pathways. Heavy enough to add a new challenge and still do decent reps.

Same goes with push ups, deadlifts, floor wipers, sit ups, clean and presses, etc. If I move a deadlift 1RM up from 400 to 500 and then do high reps with 225 instead of 135, 50 reps with 135 will feel like pink dumbbell cardio. Using light weight alone, I will plateau somewhere.

I did sit ups and other conventional ab exercises for years and the reps mostly stayed the same. Then I stopped doing sit ups ages ago, started doing planks until almost a year ago, when I started lifting weights instead. Now I can do endless sit ups. Sit ups are so light, they're not even useful to train for a sit up event.

So lets say a strength worshiper like me is training for the 300 workout:

This is a density routine. Nobody does everything in straight sets, they do it for time, although doing straight sets is a good way to humiliate them.

I can do 20 pull ups and over 50 push ups in one set easy, if I'm fresh.

Abs are already strong.

Holding weight overhead is easy from months of bent pressing and benching.

So for prep:

20 rep breather deadlift.

Try out those floor wiper things.

Jump on a 24 inch box just enough to get used to the movement.

First round of pull ups: Can be completed in two quick sets.

Push ups: One set.

50 deadlifts: Cheat it by doing breather reps. Deadlift 20 times, then take a deep breath as rest between reps, take two breaths, then three to five. Touch and go.

Box jumps, floor wipers and clean and press: Same trick.

Next round of pull ups: 15 and 10

[thescrawnycaveman]

In my strength training class that I took for two years in high school, we would do the 300 work out about 2 or 3 times a year. We didn't do a whole lot of cardio stuff or anything above 15 reps throughout the year. So in some sense I'd say Carjack is right. Lifting heavy, but at varying reps will help greatly with your goal. I think the most important thing to do is to familiarize yourself with every exercise individually. And like Carjack suggested, you are going to want to break up your reps (like doing 15 pullups, breathe for a second then crank out 10 more). The 300 workout, if fit, is more a time test than anything. If you can do 15 pull ups straight, you can do 25 broken up. You can finish it, I'm sure, its just a matter of how long it takes you.

Btw, I totally get the just doing it to do it thing. Its a sense of accomplishment and a milestone (maybe it helps that I used to be a long distance runner too)