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300 Spartan workout review

Posted on 04. Jan, 2010 by Tom Greenwald in Product reviews

The 300 Spartan workout is a full body bodyweight training program developed by Steve Maxwell.

Who is Steve Maxwell?

Steve is a fitness trainer and conditioning coach, with more than 35 year experience in this field. He holds a Master’s degree in exercise science and is recognized as one of the most creative and innovative conditioning coaches in the fitness industry. Steve also has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

What you get in the DVD

Steve will show and explain every single exercise – the correct form and most common mistakes. The one thing that I really like is that you get a full length, real time video of Steve performing the advanced version of this workout. It really helps to understand how these workout routines are supposed to be performed.

My impressions

Although I knew that Steve is recognized as a very good conditioning coach and that he has been training many successful mixed martial artists I was a bit skeptical about this training program. I wasn’t sure I wanted to spend 50 bucks for a training program called “300 Spartan Workout”.

This training program was released just after the film “300” so I thought maybe Steve just wanted to “steal” some of the hype. I was concerned that the quality of the product wouldn’t keep up with its title. In the end I was pleasantly surprised.

But let’s get to the actual workout. This is a full body training program and it is divided in three difficulty levels – beginner, intermediate and advanced. When I was watching Steve perform all the exercises separately, I was sure that I could perform all of them, even the ones from the advanced level. However, I decided to go easy and start with the intermediate level. Let’s just say that it didn’t go as easy as I had planned.

Every workout consists of ten different bodyweight exercises. The aim is to finish the workout in a set amount of time. Throughout the workout you perform 300 repetitions of different exercises thus the title – “300 Spartan Workout”. You have to think strategically and evaluate your strength and endurance to be able to go through this routine.

This workout uses a nonstop principle. It means that you will get a very little time to rest between each set and superset of exercises. It’s great for cardiovascular conditioning and fat loss. You have to really push yourself to finish under the time limit. I finished the workout few minutes early and was really exhausted.

Me after performing the 300 Spartans workout intermediate level for the first time. Not so energetic as you can see .

I followed this routine carefully for one month. The biggest gain from this training routine was improved endurance. Already after the third workout the intensity didn’t feel as high as in the first one. I also noticed some improvements in my strength although the changes in muscle mass were minimal. In this routine Steve doesn’t use traditional bodyweight exercises. Most exercises are functional and work the whole body. After following this routine for a while I noticed that not only the actual exercises in this routine had become easier for me but I also could perform other advanced and complex exercises that I couldn’t before. The exercises in the 300 Spartan Workout helped me to build strength for very sophisticated exercises that consist of many movements, for example – dive bomber push-ups, muscle-ups etc…

I gave this workout to one of my friends. He also did the intermediate level and finished just over the time limit. After a while when the initial exhaustion was over he said that the exercises for abs might have been a bit harder. However, in the next day he felt like he had been put through a grinding machine and changed his mind. The next time he performed this routine ha finished it just under the time limit. Both his endurance and strength was increased a bit already.

I really enjoyed this workout. At some point I’ll probably implement it in my own training schedule. I might do it once every week because I have also other training routines I currently follow and I don’t want to overtrain because this workout is pretty intense. If you’re not following any other training routine you can perform the 300 Spartan Workout two or three times a week.

Conclusion

This exercise routine has nothing to do with the real Spartans and the way they trained apart from the fact that they probably performed bodyweight exercises too. However, that doesn’t change the fact that Steve has done a great job by creating this workout. If you like to work out at home like I do, this routine is perfect for you.

You get a full body workout with practically no equipment. The only thing you need is a pull-up bar or at least an edge to grab on. This is a fat loss, muscle building and conditioning workout the old school style. Be prepared to break a sweat and lose your breath. Don’t overestimate your abilities. It’s better to start with the beginner level because for the majority of people it will be challenging enough. If you’re interested you can take a look or buy the 300 Spartan workout routine and many other workout routines at Steve Maxwell’s website.