Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Extremely Hard

For the average CrossFit athlete, Clean Ladder is Extremely Hard because Clean at up to 365 lb meet a roughly 3:42 work domain. The movements interfere through repeated grip, trunk, leg, or overhead fatigue, and there is little built-in recovery, so local fatigue compounds across movements. The Rx combination is realistically limited to elite athletes.

Benchmark Times for Clean Ladder

• Elite: <2:22
• Advanced: 2:54-3:20
• Intermediate: 3:48-4:15
• Beginner: >6:55

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Strength (10/10): External loading and force demands score 1.0 for strength. The prescription reaches about 365 lb before sex-specific scaling. Force production must remain technically sound as the workout's other demands accumulate.
• Speed (7/10): The 3:42 scoring window and 1 movement score 0.7 for speed; success rewards high-skill or heavily loaded cycling, decisive transitions, and appropriately aggressive pacing.
• Power (6/10): Clean drive a 0.6 power score through repeated explosive extension and fast force production. Explosive intent must remain repeatable rather than deteriorating into slow, inefficient repetitions.
• Stamina (2/10): The repeated work around Clean at up to 365 lb scores 0.2 for stamina; athletes must preserve local muscular output as sets, rounds, and transitions accumulate fatigue.
• Endurance (1/10): Clean Ladder scores 0.1 for endurance because its 3:42 domain creates cardiovascular demand through sustained output. Breathing supports repeatable work, but pure aerobic capacity is not the only limiter.
• Flexibility (1/10): The prescribed positions create a 0.1 flexibility demand: efficient range of motion matters, but mobility is supportive rather than the sole test.

Movements

• Clean

Scaling Options

Reduce Clean to a load that permits crisp small sets without failed reps.

Scaling Explanation

Choose options that keep the athlete working in the short, high-output domain without prolonged failure. Preserve the primary challenge of Clean at up to 365 lb, not the exact Rx load or skill at the expense of intensity.

Intended Stimulus

Clean Ladder is intended as a short, high-output test centered on Clean at up to 365 lb. Athletes should sustain the fastest repeatable output that preserves the prescribed standards, letting breathing and local fatigue build without turning early aggression into failed reps or long stops.

Coach Insight

Start at a pace you can repeat through the middle of the workout, and break Clean at up to 365 lb before technique or cadence collapses. Keep transitions deliberate and short; save the final acceleration for the last round or station.

Benchmark Notes

L5 is anchored near 4:15 for an average Rx athlete, allowing realistic set breaks and transitions around Clean at up to 365 lb. L10 targets 2:02 with deliberate pacing, near-unbroken skill work, and minimal transition loss.

Modality Profile

Counting each unique movement once, W includes Clean. That produces G 0%, M 0%, and W 100%.

Similar Workouts to Clean Ladder

If you enjoy Clean Ladder, you might also like these similar CrossFit WODs:

• Back Nine (91% similar) - For time: 54-ft yoke carry 2 front squats 3 deadlifts 2 front squats 54-ft yoke carry Women: 4...
• 2020 Speed Snatch (88% similar) - For time: 3 snatches (1-minute cap) Women: 145 – 150 – 155 lb Men: 225 – 235 – 245 lb Then, 3 snat...
• Jump Pull Yoke (84% similar) - For time: 20 shuttle box jumps Seated sled pull 30-foot yoke carry, weight 1 30-foot yoke carry, ...
• Pig Party (82% similar) - 3 rounds for time of: 10 bar muscle-ups 10 GHD wall-ball shots 10 dumbbell front squats 1 Pig flip ...
• Final 1815 (81% similar) - 18 thrusters (95/135 lb) 18 bar muscle-ups 80-foot yoke carry (345/525 lb) 15 bar muscle-ups 15 ...
• The Alpaca Redux (81% similar) - All for time: 126-foot sled push, starting with all six kettlebells (443/546 lb) Then 3 rounds of:...
• BOB on BOB (81% similar) - For time: 280-foot Big Bob sled push (667 lb unloaded) Round 1: 1,107 lb Round 2: 997 lb Round 3: ...
• Final 2421 (81% similar) - For time: 24 thrusters (65/95 lb) 24 chest-to-bar pull-ups 80-foot yoke carry (245/425 lb) 21 c...

These WODs similar to Clean Ladder share comparable training demands, time domains, and movement patterns.