Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

The combination of man makers (complex movement) and box step-ups while wearing a weight vest creates significant fatigue. Man makers combine push-ups, renegade rows, and thrusters - already challenging with 55/35lb dumbbells. Adding a 20/14lb vest intensifies every movement, especially over 20 minutes. The continuous AMRAP format provides no structured rest, leading to compounding fatigue in shoulders, core, and legs.

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Endurance (8/10): Twenty minutes of continuous work with a weight vest creates significant cardiovascular demand. Man makers especially tax the cardio system with their complex movement pattern.
• Stamina (7/10): The combination of loaded movements and weight vest challenges muscular endurance, particularly in shoulders, core, and legs through sustained effort.
• Flexibility (7/10): Man makers require good mobility in hips, shoulders, and thoracic spine. Weight vest increases mobility demands throughout.
• Strength (6/10): Moderate-heavy dumbbells plus weight vest creates significant loading, especially in man makers which combine multiple strength elements.
• Speed (5/10): Maintaining steady transitions between movements while managing fatigue from the weight vest is crucial for success.
• Power (4/10): Some explosive elements in the push-up portion of man makers and step-ups, but primarily strength-endurance focused.

Movements

• Dumbbell Man Maker
• Box Step-Up

Scaling Options

Weight vest: reduce to 14/10lb or remove entirely. Dumbbells: scale to 35/25lb or 25/15lb based on capacity. Man makers: substitute push-up + renegade row + clean + thruster as separate movements, or remove push-up component. Box step-ups: reduce height to 20/16", or substitute regular step-ups. For newer athletes, cap at 15 minutes or reduce to 4 man makers + 5 step-ups per round.

Scaling Explanation

Scale if unable to maintain proper form on man makers after 5 minutes, or if unable to complete at least 7-8 rounds. Priority is maintaining steady movement with good technique - intensity should allow continuous work with brief rest periods. Athletes should be able to perform 5+ strict push-ups and maintain plank position for 30+ seconds before attempting Rx. Target is 8-12 rounds with consistent pacing throughout.

Intended Stimulus

Moderate-length oxidative-glycolytic workout (20 min) with strength-endurance focus. The weight vest adds metabolic demand while the dumbbell movements test strength and stability. Primary challenge is maintaining work capacity under load. Expect heart rate to stay elevated but manageable throughout.

Coach Insight

Break man makers into consistent sets (2-3 reps) from the start - don't go unbroken early. Rest in standing position between sets. For man makers: keep core tight during push-up, pull dumbbells close to body during row, and stand tall during thruster. For box step-ups: alternate leading leg each round, maintain upright posture, and control descent. Common mistakes include rushing man makers (leading to sloppy form) and not fully extending hips at top of step-up. Aim for consistent 2-minute rounds.

Benchmark Notes

Analysis based on Cindy (AMRAP 20 of calisthenics) as closest anchor, but with significant adjustments: 1. Man Makers (6 reps): - Clean + Push-Up + Row + Push-Up + Clean + Press = ~8-10s per rep - Set of 6 = 48-60s fresh, increasing with fatigue 2. Box Step-Ups (7 reps): - ~3s per rep with DBs and weight vest - Set of 7 = 21s fresh Base round time: ~75-85s fresh Transitions: 5-8s between movements Total round: 80-93s fresh Fatigue Impact: - Weight vest adds ~15% difficulty - DBs + vest creates significant shoulder/core fatigue - Expect rounds to slow 10-15% by round 8-10 Projected rounds in 20 min: - Elite (L10): 14-15 rounds - Intermediate (L5): 10-11 rounds - Beginner (L1): 6-7 rounds Compared to Cindy anchor (25-30 rounds elite), this is ~50% fewer rounds due to: - Much longer movement cycle time - Added load (DBs + vest) - More complex movements Final Targets: Male: L10: 14+ rounds L5: 10.5 rounds L1: 6.5 rounds Female (adjusted down ~1 round due to relative loading): L10: 13+ rounds L5: 9.5 rounds L1: 5.5 rounds

Modality Profile

Dumbbell Man Maker contains both gymnastics (burpee/push-up component) and weightlifting (dumbbell component) elements. Box Step-Up is a gymnastics movement when unweighted, but since it's typically loaded in CrossFit, it's counted as weightlifting. With two movements split between G and W modalities, this results in a 50/50 split.