Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

This workout combines multiple limiting factors across 2 rounds: 706m Ski-Erg taxes the lungs and arms before 30 power cleans (135/95) — a high-volume barbell cycling demand. Then 6 muscle-ups require significant skill and upper-body strength under fatigue, followed by 3:18 accumulated handstand hold demanding shoulder endurance. The skill requirements (muscle-ups, handstand hold) combined with heavy barbell volume and cardio will force most average athletes to scale significantly.

Benchmark Times for Deputy Brad Johnson

• Elite: <19:00
• Advanced: 21:00-23:30
• Intermediate: 26:30-30:00
• Beginner: >62:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): High cumulative volume across 2 rounds — 60 power cleans, 64 sit-ups, 12 muscle-ups, and extended handstand holds — demands significant muscular endurance, especially in the posterior chain, core, and upper body.
• Endurance (7/10): Two rounds of 706m ski-erg combined with moderate-to-high rep movements creates sustained cardiovascular demand. The ski-erg alone drives significant aerobic stress across the full workout duration.
• Power (6/10): Power cleans are inherently explosive movements, and muscle-ups require a powerful kip or strict pulling power. The ski-erg also rewards powerful strokes, making power a consistent theme throughout.
• Strength (5/10): Power cleans at 135/95 lb represent moderate loading requiring real strength, and muscle-ups demand upper body pulling strength. Not maximal effort, but strength is a meaningful limiting factor.
• Flexibility (5/10): Handstand holds require shoulder mobility and body alignment, power cleans demand hip and wrist flexibility, and muscle-ups need lat and shoulder range of motion. Moderate overall mobility demand.
• Speed (5/10): For-time format incentivizes efficient pacing and quick transitions, but the volume and complexity of movements like muscle-ups and handstand holds require strategic pacing rather than all-out sprinting.

Movements

• Handstand Hold
• Power Clean
• Sit-Up
• Ski Erg
• Muscle-Up

Scaling Options

Ski Erg: Keep the distance but reduce damper setting if needed, or substitute 900m row or 1000m bike erg. Power Cleans: Scale to 95/65 lbs for athletes still developing barbell cycling efficiency, or 75/55 lbs for newer athletes. Sit-Ups: Keep as written — these are accessible for most. Muscle-Ups: Sub 3 bar muscle-ups, 6 chest-to-bar pull-ups, or 9 banded pull-ups plus 9 ring dips performed separately. For athletes with no pull-up capacity, use 12 ring rows plus 12 push-ups. Handstand Hold: Sub a 3:18 accumulated plank hold, pike hold on a box, or wall-facing handstand hold with feet on a box for athletes building inversion comfort. Volume: Reduce to 1 round for newer athletes or those with significant skill gaps in muscle-ups or handstands.

Scaling Explanation

Scale the muscle-ups if you cannot perform at least 3 unbroken in a fresh state — attempting kipping muscle-ups under fatigue with poor technique is a shoulder injury risk. Scale the barbell if you cannot cycle 10+ power cleans unbroken when fresh at the prescribed weight. The handstand hold should be scaled if you cannot safely kick up to a wall hold independently. The goal is to finish both rounds within 30-35 minutes while maintaining movement quality throughout. Prioritize technique over load on the cleans and safety on the gymnastics — the conditioning effect is preserved through consistent movement, not heavy weights or advanced skills performed sloppily. Athletes newer to CrossFit should consider 1 round to learn the flow before attempting the full workout.

Intended Stimulus

This is a moderate-to-long time domain workout targeting 20-35 minutes of sustained effort across two rounds. The stimulus is a hard, grinding engine test that blends aerobic capacity with gymnastics skill and moderate barbell cycling. Athletes should expect a relentless pace that taxes the pulling muscles, midline, and lungs simultaneously. The primary challenges are managing fatigue across the muscle-up sets and handstand holds late in each round when the body is already taxed from the ski and cleans. This is not a sprint — it rewards smart pacing and disciplined movement over raw aggression.

Coach Insight

Attack the ski erg at a controlled, sustainable pace — roughly 85% effort. Going out too hot here will destroy your power cleans and muscle-ups. On the 30 power cleans at 135/95, plan to break these early: consider sets of 10-8-7-5 or 10-10-5-5 rather than grinding through big sets that spike your heart rate. Keep your hips sharp and avoid muscling the bar — use your legs. Sit-ups are your recovery movement, so breathe and reset here. For muscle-ups, if you have them, do 3-3 or 2-2-2 to stay fresh — do NOT go to failure on round one. The handstand hold is accumulated, so break it into manageable chunks of 20-30 seconds. Face the wall for stability and control your breathing. Common mistakes: going too fast on the ski, doing too many unbroken cleans in round one, and burning out on muscle-ups early. Treat round one as setup for round two.

Benchmark Notes

Two rounds of a 706 m ski, 30 power cleans at 135/95 lb, 32 sit-ups, 6 muscle-ups and an accumulated 3:18 handstand hold. The holds alone are 6:36, so nobody finishes much under 18 minutes. L5 (30-34:30) needs about 6 minutes per hold with breaks.

Modality Profile

5 movements total: Gymnastics = Sit-Up, Muscle-Up, Handstand Hold (3 movements, 60%); Monostructural = Ski Erg (1 movement, 20%); Weightlifting = Power Clean (1 movement, 20%). Rounded to nearest 10%: G:60, M:20, W:20. Adjusting to sum to 100: G:60, M:20, W:20.

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