Bodyweight training. Gerard Butler, biography and training for the film “300 Spartans Exercise 300 Spartans with a kettlebell print

15.07.202027.05.2017

Date of birth: November 13, 1969
Height: 188 cm.
Weight: 86 kg.
Best films: “Bounty Hunter”, “Law Abiding Citizen”, “Rock and Rolla”, “300”, “Lara Croft 2”.

Athletic Butler

Gerard Butler can be called a truly athletic person - he enjoys football, horse riding, skiing and water skiing. In addition, he is the owner of a medal for bravery, received for saving a drowning boy.

Despite the fact that the actor is actively involved in sports, it is difficult to call him a follower healthy image life - only recently he quit smoking and limited his alcohol consumption. In an interview, he admits that he loves hamburgers, cola, and other fast food.

Why did the actor lose shape?

Comparing photos of Butler before 300, during filming, and several months after, it's hard to believe how quickly he transformed from a fit and muscular warrior to an overweight office worker.

According to rumors, the actor was so embarrassed by how quickly he gained weight and lost his shape that when visiting the gym he carefully disguised himself, wearing a baseball cap and dark glasses (1). Apparently, the secret to his form in the film was not only in the training program.

How does Gerard Butler train?

Gerard says that for the filming of the film "300" he trained for four months. special program, compiled for him by Michael Twight (2). The program consists of 300 repetitions, and is a variation.

The exercises of the program are performed in a row without any break, and include 1-3 cycles. It took an actor about 19 minutes to complete one cycle, and after the program became publicly known, there were those who performed it in only 12 minutes (3).

"Program 300"

wide grip- 25 repetitions
(50 kg.) - 50 repetitions
- 50 repetitions
Jumping onto a platform 60 cm high - 50 repetitions
- 50 repetitions
Kettlebell lift (16 kg) with upward push - 25 repetitions per arm
Wide grip pull-ups - 25 reps

Does this program work?

According to Michael Twight, who developed this program, it is aimed at increasing muscle strength and simultaneous development of the terrain due to high activity. It is not so easy to complete even one cycle, let alone repeat it again.

But while Program 300 does work, and many people love it, Gerard's sudden loss of form after filming the film gives rise to certain thoughts. It is likely that the secret to his form lies not only in training.

Diet for photo shoots

One of the most common ways to dramatically improve shape for a photo shoot is to eat a low-carb, salt-free, water-restricted diet four days before the shoot, followed by a simple carbohydrate crash just before the shoot.

Refusal of salt and restriction of water literally dries out the body, and special gels that remove water make the relief even stronger. Carbohydrate loading and pump training sends all the sugar into the muscles, making them significantly larger.

The secret of actors' perfect figure

Obviously, this method is only suitable for a short-term solution. Add to it preliminary body hair removal, which makes the muscles look even more prominent, the right light and even make-up on the body (the relief of the muscles can be trivially painted on).

After this, the photo and video material undergo computer processing, and at the output you get perfect body. Naturally, it is impossible to make an Apollo out of an extremely thin or overweight man, but an ordinary person can be significantly “improved.”

***

It is likely that the secret to Gerard Butler's shape in the movie "300" is not the training program, although it does work, but the special training before filming, as well as in the use of computer processing.

Sources:

Gerard Butler Cleanses, Works Out In Secret To Get Back In Shape,
Sequel to “300″ in the Works,
300 Workout

Good afternoon friends!

Some time ago the thought struck me, how do actors train for filming? One of the films that interested me was the film “300 Spartans”, because... involved there a large number of trained actors. About this in our article.

I want to say right away that the training regime that was used to develop the physical fitness of actors is not suitable for beginners, because it requires sufficient physical training. I think that the actors were gradually prepared for this training. What is the training program for the 300 Spartans?

Training system

An interesting fact is that the place where the training took place had nothing in common with training in a classical gym. This is an ordinary room with no frills. Only the floor, walls and hardware. There weren't even mirrors. Tires, weights, boxes, barbells and own weight were used as loads. The coach was a certain Mark Twight, a mountaineer and the author of a non-standard training system. It was under his strict leadership that the Spartans carried out the lethal, grueling training for 3 months. Not only physical, but also psychological.

Training program

Why we're talking about about the number 300? This is due to the number of repetitions performed by actors with different weights. Of course, this amount was not used daily, but at the end of the final month of training, as an exam, which, by the way, not everyone passed.

1. 7 consecutive exercises without pause

2. Pull-ups on the horizontal bar (25 reps)

3. Deadlift barbells weighing 65 kg (50 reps)

4. Push-ups (50 reps)

6. Cargo tire flip (50 reps, weight 60 kg)

7. Press 16 kg kettlebell (25 reps for each arm)

8. Pull-ups (25 reps)

Total: 300 repetitions

At the very beginning, the physical fitness of the actors was so different that some had to lose up to 20 kg of excess weight.

How do the Spartans train?

The intensity of training could vary and depended on the level of preparedness of the person. But the main regime (5 days a week for 2 hours) looked like this:

High intensity days
Days with strength (anaerobic) load
Low intensity days (general exercise)
Interval Cardio Training

In addition, a significant part of the time was devoted to combat and wrestling techniques (5 days a week for 2 hours).

Warnings for Beginners

Without prior physical preparation, do not even think about using this type of training. Your body should gradually gain physical fitness to withstand such loads. First of all, the muscles, heart and kidneys experience enormous stress. From this we can conclude that this is not for beginners.

Before starting classes, seek advice from a professional trainer. It is very important to understand the technique of performing strength and aerobic exercises at the initial stage.

Prospects for 300 Spartans

Currently, it has become fashionable to use non-standard or forgotten methods as training. For example, weights or car tires. I think the slightly adjusted “300 Spartans” system will also find its place in modern fitness programs.

At the age of 35 I would have done it 300 times... and even now I can do something... A.S.

Gerard Butler: Photo shoot? Noooo. This is training!

- It was simply necessary. Every drop of sweat falling from your forehead, every kilogram lifted and repetition squeezed through your teeth will still be counted later,- Gerard Butler tells us about the fitness nightmare he experienced. - Putting on a combat helmet with a cloak and not thinking: “Damn it, I should have trained more!” - it was incredibly cool. I stood in front of the line of Spartans and felt like a real lion.

At the moment when Gerard Butler received an offer from the producers to play the role of King Leonidas, he, in his own words, was almost in perfect shape.

- According to the original plan, Leonid should have looked much frailer, but I said: “Let me figure out my character myself!”

The military readiness to give his life for victory and the indomitable fighting spirit, cultivated during four months of hellishly intense training, immediately made adjustments to the actor’s life and almost finished him off.

WHO'S IN BOSS?

To achieve his goals, Gerard Butler enlisted the help of Mark Twight, a world-renowned trainer and former climber known for his fierce obsession with training. Mark always worked out as if his life depended on it. It’s quite difficult to blame a coach for such a thoughtless approach to one’s own health. Twight always countered that it was much better to vomit out the entire contents of your stomach during training than to feel your back fall from a kilometer high onto sharp stones or simply lose to a more determined opponent.

To get Gerard Butler's body into shape, Mark Twight created what he called the spartan "300 reps" routine, although in reality this miracle of fitness technique should have a more satanic name, something like "Beelzebub's Three Hundred"! In addition to this circuit training from the underworld, the future Leonid was daily subjected to a number of other, no less sadistic types of stress: he turned over truck tires, tortured himself gymnastic rings, ran cross-country and so on. A similar regime was expected by most of Gerard Butler's partners in the film. One of them described his feelings during preparation for filming: “I felt like someone had just killed my beloved dog!” Whatever it means, the guy experienced powerful emotions.

Exactly five weeks before the first scenes, the noticeably stronger and leaner Butler hired another specialist in the field of physical torture in the name of beauty. Mine invaluable contribution The actor's form was modified by a bodybuilder from Venezuela named Franco Licastro, who added the final details to the masterpiece named Leonid. Of course, Licastro also did not want to fall on his face and tried his best - Gerard received another deadly portion of the load. “I wanted to look very strong on screen, - Butler justified himself. - How many times in similar roles have we seen actors whipping up pathos with a bulging belly or skinny arms, it’s unclear how they were holding a heavy sword! The Spartans enjoyed the feeling of belonging to an elite military class; no one was as strong and brave as them. If no one trains as hard as you, what's the point of being embarrassed about being the best. Enjoy! Go and take what is yours!”

Well, all this work of body and spirit was not in vain. On screen, Gerard Butler looked like a testosterone-fuelled discus thrower with model abs, enormous shoulders, columnar legs and the terrifying gaze of an angry king, growling furiously through the slits of his combat helmet. Undoubtedly, he was scary and cool, but for these seconds of glory he soon had to pay a serious price.

In his free time from training, Gerard Butler worked part-time in a car repair shop.

THE WAY OF THE BODY

Over the course of filming, training with Twight, pumping iron with Licastro and spending hours practicing sword, shield and spear techniques, Gerard Butler pushed beyond the imaginable adaptive limits of his 37-year-old body.

As a result, every joint and muscle in his body ached unbearably throughout the days and nights of filming. In short, Butler was overtaken by overtraining - a condition in which physical stress exceeds the body's ability to adapt and prevents its recovery resources from working. Gerard's health deteriorated so much that after filming ended, he had to give up training as hard as he started it. Butler postponed any physical exercise for exactly eight months.

Losing muscle mass and inevitably becoming fat, the reflective Gerard blamed his own temperament and personality type. People of his type are incredibly addicted in nature, they are capable of getting stuck in any difficult situation for many years, be it work, collecting wooden elephants, sports or drugs. It was in the latter that Butler was by no means an angel. Of course, he didn’t bring syringes with prohibited contents to filming, but he still couldn’t get rid of his long-standing habit of smoking a pack a day. Concerned about his health after filming and clearly understanding that these cancer-carrying smoking sticks are no less deadly than the swords of Xerxes’ elite guard, Butler even underwent psychotherapeutic treatment to help reduce stress. As a result, he quit smoking, and this was the first step towards his former form.

LESSONS

“The obsessive, blind, maximalist approach that I followed before filming was good only for Leonid himself - he knew that he had no future. But this method only works for very short periods. life path» , says Butler.

Today Gerard clearly controls his lifestyle. After eight months of rest, he returned to Gym. Now he works out four times a week and has a more balanced approach to fitness. He acts a lot and often in action, with virtually no stunt doubles - for which he received an award from the World Stunt Organization. And the experience gained in “300 Spartans” helps him now, in particular, with regard to proper nutrition. He eats a lot of vegetables and chicken, and has forgotten about hamburgers and other nonsense.

What is the result? Butler regained his eight-pack abs and a peaceful state of mind. What more could a real king wish for?

TRAINING “KING LEONID”

Start with the number 100 - do 4-6 different exercises for 10-25 repetitions. Gradually, from week to week, bring total repetitions up to 300. Perform exercises without rest, in a circle. 1-2 laps per workout is more than enough.

(25 reps)

Pull yourself up without allowing your body to sway.

Good afternoon friends!

Some time ago the thought struck me, how do actors train for filming? One of the films that interested me was the film “300 Spartans”, because... there are a large number of trained actors involved. About this in our article.

I want to say right away that the training regime that was used to develop the physical fitness of actors is not suitable for beginners, because it requires sufficient physical preparation. I think that the actors were gradually prepared for this training. What is the training program for the 300 Spartans?