Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Extremely Hard

This is an ultra-high volume, long-duration grind. Expect 6–12 bike intervals interspersed with 150-rep bodyweight sets that accumulate well over 1,000 total reps for most athletes. There’s no heavy loading or advanced skill, but the sheer volume, repeated upper-body pressing fatigue, and prolonged work time make it extremely demanding.

Benchmark Times for Highway to Hell

• Elite: <70:00
• Advanced: 80:00-90:00
• Intermediate: 100:00-110:00
• Beginner: >150:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (9/10): High-rep squats, push-ups, and sit-ups repeated many times test local muscular endurance and fatigue resistance, especially in the chest, triceps, hip flexors, and midline.
• Endurance (8/10): Sustained cardio output on the bike across many intervals demands a robust aerobic base and recovery between repeated efforts over an extended time domain.
• Speed (3/10): Limited by volume; quick transitions help, but most time is spent in steady, sustainable sets rather than true sprint cycling.
• Flexibility (2/10): Basic range of motion: full-depth squats and sit-up reach. No advanced mobility positions required beyond standard CrossFit movement standards.
• Power (2/10): Some sprint-like efforts on the bike, but the dominant stimulus is steady grinding rather than explosive power output.
• Strength (1/10): No external loading and no heavy barbell; demands are muscular endurance rather than maximal force production.

Movements

• Air Bike
• Push-Up
• Air Squat
• AbMat Sit-Up

Scaling Options

Scale to: 3-mile total • 25-25-25 after each interval • Push-Ups to incline/knees and Sit-Ups to 30 reps

Scaling Explanation

Reducing distance and penalty reps preserves the interval structure and stimulus while cutting overall volume and protecting shoulder stamina for sustainable, high-quality movement.

Intended Stimulus

A brutal, sustained grind. Bike hard but sustainable, then chip steadily through large bodyweight sets without redlining. Expect muscular fatigue in the push-ups and a deep aerobic burn. The best results come from controlled pacing, short breaks, and consistent movement quality that keeps you progressing for a long time.

Coach Insight

Pace the first two rounds conservatively. Find a repeatable bike output and break push-ups early (e.g., 10s or 5s) to avoid failure. Key tip: Protect your push-ups. Small, planned breaks beat big, unplanned blow-ups later. Common mistakes: Sprinting the bike early, doing huge first push-up sets, and ignoring transitions. All three can add 10–20 minutes by mid-workout.

Benchmark Notes

Times assume steady 2-minute bike efforts with consistent 50/50/50 penalties between. Faster athletes cover more distance per interval (fewer penalty rounds). Slower athletes accumulate many penalty rounds, driving times upward. If you hit the time cap before 5 miles, record total miles and completed reps.

Modality Profile

Most of the work is high-volume bodyweight gymnastics (squats, push-ups, sit-ups). The bike is significant but occupies shorter bursts relative to the repeated penalty sets, so gymnastics dominates total training time with monostructural as a strong secondary element.

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