Zack Snyder Workout and DIET 

Filmmaker
Born: 1966

Zachary Snyder was born in Wisconsin and grew up in Connecticut. Dyslexia made school a struggle, but he always excelled in sports. Snyder started making his own films around age 11.He spent a year studying painting at the Heatherley School of Fine Art in England, then went to the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA where he earned a BFA in 1989.Initially, Snydermade a decent living shooting commercial footage for brands like Budweiser and Nike. His film debut came in 2004 with a remake of Dawn of the Dead. His 2009 movie 300 was a huge box office hit, which he quickly followed with another winner, Watchmen. Snyder has done several films for Warner Bros., including a Superman reboot and several in the DC Extended Universe. In July 2021, he began developing a Star Wars-inspired film for Netflix called Rebel Moon. Following the tragic death of his daughter, he works with the charity the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Snyder has millions of followers on social media. He is 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs around 150 lbs.

Known For:

Zack Snyder’s Diet

Summary

While many or most Hollywood producers are more of the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do variety, Snyder is the exception. While filming 300, a movie about a band of ancient Greek warriors, Snyder did the same workout and ate the same diet as everyone else on the cast. The 300 diet is strict, limited, and low in calories. Staples include fish, olive oil, poultry, green veggies, and wild rice. Not only did he not eat until he was full, he felt hungry between each meal. The basic idea is to eat the minimum amount that will allow the body to get through a grueling workout every day.

Estimated Macros

  • Low Carb 20% 20%
  • Medium Fat 35% 35%
  • High Protein 60% 60%

Diet Details

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Minimal Eating

The 300 diet which Snyder followed was incredibly strict, but the results spoke for themselves. Everyone on the cast and Snyder got completely ripped.

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Scientific Approach

Collins has had a complicated relationship with food, so now her rules are simple: eat fresh, whole, natural foods and skip the guilt.

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Sweet Treat

Since moving on from 300, Snyder has backed off from his Spartan diet. One of his daily treats is a unique coffee drink: an eggnog latte with an extra shot of espresso which he enjoys in the late afternoon.

What to Eat

R

Olives

R

Eggs

R

Avocados

R

Vegetables

R

Poultry

R

Olive oil

R

Chicken

R

Fish

R

Figs

R

Grapes

R

Apples

R

Wild rice

R

Whole Grain Bread

R

Water

What to Avoid

Q

Overeating

Q

Processed Foods

Q

Junk Food

Q

Refined Sugars

Q

Chemical Ingredients

Q

Artificial Additives

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Snyder on the Bonding Power of Working Out With Others

‘When you look at someone trying their best and doing their hardest, you can ask for nothing more.’

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Snyder on His Fitness Philosophy

‘The clay has no opinion. The marble does not get to decide in what sculpture it will be made into. It’s simply the will of the creator’s.

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Snyder on Choosing Mark Twight as Primary Trainer for 300

‘I want to hire this guy to make all of the Spartans look a certain way.’

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Snyder’s Trainer Mark Twight on Fitness

‘The objective is genuine fitness, not the appearance of fitness…Appearance is a consequence of fitness.’

Zack Snyder’s Workout Routine

Weekly Routine

All Part of the Process

Despite his insane work schedule, Snyder prioritizes his workout because he considers it to be integral to his work process.

Zack Snyder 300 Workout

Snyder is famous for doing the same grueling Spartan workout as the cast of the film 300. He continues to work out rigorously, if not quite as intensely as he did with that film.

Helping Hand

Snyder is used to being the one giving the orders, but he isn’t opposed to taking them either. He truststrainer Mark Twight and Olympic weightlifter Alessandro Komandina to tell him what to do.

Daily Dose

When filming, Snyder shows up before the rest of the cast and crew to get his 1-hour routine in for the day. When he’s not filming, he’ll work out at least 4 days a week.

Spartan Workout

Snyder and the cast of 300 did a varied daily routine dreamed up by the trainers, but a basic Spartan workout is as follows: 25 pull-ups, 50 push-ups, 50 deadlifts with a 135-lb. barbell, 50 24-inch box jumps, 50 single-arm clean and presses with a 36-lb kettlebell, and 50 floor-wipers (abs exercise).

Pyramid Workouts

Snyder’s upper body routine is a pyramid, and an inverted pyramid scheme. Sometimes he starts with max weight and decreases while increasing reps, other times he starts with low weight, high reps and increases weight while decreasing reps.

Exercise Style

Z

A Zack Snyder Upper Body Routine

Chest

  • Bench press: 4, 6, 8, 8 reps with descending weight x 4 sets
  • Dumbbell incline press: 8, 10, 12, 12 reps with descending weight x 4 sets
  • Machine flys: 8, 10,12 reps with descending weight x 3 sets

Shoulders

  • Vertical press: 8, 10, 12 reps with descending weight x 3 sets
  • Lat raises: 8, 10, 12 reps with descending weight x 3 sets

Arms

  • Curl w/ bar: 6-8 reps with increasing weight x 4 sets
  • Curl w/ dumbbells: 6-8 reps with increasing weight x 4 sets

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Snyder on Making Fitness an Integral Part of His Day

‘Starting on Watchman, we started training also with the whole crew, so we had a gym and anyone who wanted to come work out in the gym, they could come.’

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Snyder on The Importance of Having a Gym on Set

‘The gym really evolved into this place of camaraderie, where we all had the same struggle.’

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Snyder on The Gym, Take II

‘The gym was an opportunity for everyone not only to get in shape for the movie, but also to come together. It really turned into this family thing.’

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Snyder on His 300 Workout

‘I would come in before everyone else, I would do the workout.’

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Snyder on How He Measured up Against the 300 Cast

‘[Trainer] Mark would put my times and my PRs on the board and all the actors would have to beat it. Few did.’

Zack Snyder’s Supplements

Ancient Spartans didn’t have access to vitamin supplements, and Snyder isn’t dishing about any he might take, but the following supplements may be beneficial for anyone following a diet and workout routine similar to Zack Snyder.

Multivitamin

multivitamin

Anyone following a restricted diet would do well to add in a multivitamin to cover the basics.

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Protein Powder

Protein

Protein is essential when building mass, and you don’t always want to have to eat meat.

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Weight Gainer

mass gainer

Only one actor needed to gain weight for 300 (Michael Fassbender), but a mass gainer is a good option for those who struggle to get enough calories in.

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probiotics

Probiotics

Probiotics help you get the most out of your food. Snyder suffered a terrible loss when his daughter died. To manage stress, depression, and anxiety, herbs like ashwagandha and St John’s wort can help.

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Vitamin D

vitamin D

Spartans spent plenty of time out of doors, but many modern people run low on the ‘sunshine vitamin,’ aka, vitamin D.

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Zack Snyder’s Lifestyle

Recovery Matters

While filming 300, Snyder had a massage therapist on-site. A kinesiologist also visited twice a week to help with injury prevention, stamina, and staying the course.

Cool Ride

Snyder has always loved Aston Martins and bought his first one for $28,000. In thanks for a job well done on 300, Warner bought Snyder a $350,000 Aston Martin Vanquish.

Awesome Office

Snyder’s office is an old warehouse on a Warner Bros. lot that was used, in pre-CGI days, to create backdrops. It was slated for destruction when Snyder rescued it.

Odd Art

Besides his practical and humungous wall-sized whiteboard, Snyder has a collection of skulls and axes at his office, alongside sundry superhero figurines and a headless horse.

Hard Core Christian Science

Snyder’s parents were members of the Christian Science Church, which teaches, among other things, that illness is merely an illusion. He says such ideas made ancient myths and superhero stories very relatable.

Early Inspiration

Snyder was blown away by the movie Star Wars, and began filming his own stop-action films that same year.

Sky-High Ambition

Snyder wasn’t shy about asking for favors. While still in high school, he wanted a police car to film an arrest scene. He asked the local police department to borrow one, and got it. He also got his hands on a small crane to get a nice overhead shot.

Lucky Shot

Snyder met his future wife Deborah while filming a Lady Footlocker ad in 1996. He was married at the time, but when they crossed paths again in 2002, both were single — but not for long. They married in 2004.

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Snyder on His First Aston Martin

‘It had a lot of miles on it, but I just had to have it.’

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Snyder on How He Relates To Actors

‘The way I interact with actors has always been very physical.’

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Snyder on His Work Space

‘I was like, “No no no…Do not destroy it. Guys, this is the most awesome place in the world!’

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Snyder on Others’ Opinion of His Office

‘They’re like, “What is this? It’s like the Bat Cave in here.”’

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Snyder on his Curio Collection

‘I don’t know why, I just like skulls. I just like axes. They are cool.’

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Snyder on His Christian Science Summer Camp Experience

‘It was pretty hard-core.’

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