‘The Hundreds’ might be the hardest 10-minute workout you ever do – but it builds serious grit

Are you someone who’s short on time but strong on will (and strong, in general)? Then ‘The Hundreds’ is the workout challenge for you.

This mash-up of barbell and bodyweight builds strength, endurance and conditioning, while also testing your mettle and building your grit.

Two moves, 10 minutes, just one piece of kit. There are a lot of benefits, but believe us, you’re going to pay for them in effort.

The protocol is simple but brutally effective. After a thorough warm-up, load a barbell up to 100kg and start a running clock. Perform 10 deadlifts, then immediately perform 10 burpees over the barbell. Rest for the remainder of the minute. At the beginning of the next minute, go again: 10 deadlifts, 10 burpees. Rinse and repeat this formula for 10 rounds – if you can.

Ten minutes, 100 burpees, 100 deadlifts, 100kg. A tonne of work, literally.

This one isn’t for the feint of heart, but it can be scaled to meet you where you are and still provide just as effective a challenge. You ideally want to use around your 20-rep max for the deadlift weight, and you can scale the burpee reps if it’s those that pose the biggest threat to you finishing. However you choose to scale, do so with the intent of building towards the full ‘hundred’, across the board.

Deadlift

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With feet shoulder-width apart, hinge down and grip your barbell with a flat back, getting your hips low. Take a deep breath, create tension throughout your entire body and push the ground away with your feet, avoiding your hips shooting up too early and standing upright. Your arms should be hanging straight throughout this movement – you don’t want to ‘pull’ on the bar. Think of your arms as hooks. Avoid excessive rounding of the lower back throughout.

Burpee Over Bar

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