Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

This workout stacks multiple brutal elements across 5 rounds: 30 calories of bike taxes the legs before 6 heavy squat cleans (155/120 lb) requiring significant technique under fatigue. Then 14 devil presses (2x50/35 lb) — a high-demand full-body movement — compound the shoulder and grip fatigue before double-unders demand coordination when exhausted. The combination of heavy barbell cycling, high-rep dumbbell work, and cardio creates multiple simultaneous limiting factors. Most average athletes will need to scale weight or volume significantly.

Benchmark Times for Julian Keen

• Elite: <14:00
• Advanced: 16:30-19:15
• Intermediate: 22:30-26:00
• Beginner: >50:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (9/10): High cumulative volume across 5 rounds — 150 calories biked, 30 squat cleans, 70 devil presses, and 100 double-unders — taxes muscular endurance in legs, shoulders, and grip extensively.
• Endurance (8/10): Five rounds of 30-calorie bike efforts combined with continuous movement across three other exercises creates significant cardiovascular demand, sustaining elevated heart rate throughout the workout's duration.
• Power (7/10): Squat cleans are inherently explosive, requiring a powerful pull and hip extension. Devil presses also demand a powerful snatch-like finish, making power a consistent theme throughout the workout.
• Strength (7/10): Squat cleans at 155/120 lb require meaningful strength to execute, and devil presses with 50/35 lb dumbbells add loaded pulling and pressing demand across all five rounds.
• Flexibility (6/10): Squat cleans demand thoracic mobility, hip flexibility, and a solid front rack position. Devil presses require shoulder mobility through a full overhead lockout from a floor-based position.
• Speed (6/10): For-time format incentivizes efficient transitions and cycling speed, particularly on double-unders and bike calories, but heavy loads on cleans and devil presses moderate the overall sprint stimulus.

Movements

• Squat Clean
• Air Bike
• Devil Press
• Double-Under

Scaling Options

Squat Cleans: Scale to 115/85 lb for intermediate athletes, or 95/65 lb for newer athletes. If squat clean mechanics are not solid, substitute power cleans + front squats (6 power cleans into 6 front squats) to keep the stimulus without risking injury. Devil Presses: Scale to 35/25 lb dumbbells. Reduce reps to 10 if 14 reps will cause the workout to stall excessively. Substitute dumbbell burpees (no press) if shoulder mobility or overhead strength is a limiting factor. Double-Unders: Sub 40 single-unders per round, or 10 attempts at double-unders with a 40 single-under cap. Bike Calories: Scale to 20-25 calories if the bike is a major bottleneck, or substitute 200m row or 400m run. Rounds: Scale to 3-4 rounds if the athlete is newer or the 5-round version would push beyond 45 minutes.

Scaling Explanation

An athlete should scale if they cannot perform at least 3 squat cleans unbroken at the prescribed weight with solid mechanics, or if devil presses at Rx weight will cause them to stop and rest for more than 30 seconds per set. The target window is 25-40 minutes — if an athlete is projected to go beyond 45 minutes, reduce rounds or volume rather than sacrificing intensity. Prioritize technique on squat cleans above all else — a fatigued, heavy clean is a high-injury-risk movement. Intensity is important, but not at the cost of a rounded back on devil presses or a forward-collapse on cleans. The goal is to keep moving with purpose every round, not to survive. Scale to preserve that stimulus.

Intended Stimulus

This is a moderate-to-long grind lasting roughly 25-40 minutes for most athletes. The stimulus is a sustained, hard effort that taxes your aerobic engine while repeatedly challenging your ability to move heavy weight under fatigue. Each round is a mini-gauntlet — the bike flushes your legs, the squat cleans demand technical strength when you're already breathing hard, the devil presses are a full-body gut check, and the double-unders require coordination when your heart rate is spiking. The primary challenge is mental and conditioning-based: staying composed and keeping moving when every movement feels harder than it should.

Coach Insight

Pace the bike intentionally — this is not a sprint station, it's a recovery-into-work transition. Aim for a consistent, moderate effort (roughly 70-75% output) that lets you step off and immediately address the barbell. The squat cleans at 155/120 are the load anchor of this workout — treat them with respect. Break them from the start: sets of 2 or 3 are smart, singles are acceptable by rounds 3-5. Do NOT go touch-and-go and blow up early. Focus on a strong receiving position — elbows up, full squat depth, controlled stand. Devil presses are the volume killer — 14 reps with 50/35 lb dumbbells is significant. Break these into 7+7 or 5+5+4 and keep your hips from sagging in the plank position. Avoid the temptation to rush the dumbbell snatch portion — use your hips, not your arms. Double-unders are your 'rest' — use them to lower your heart rate with a smooth, relaxed rhythm. Don't rush them and risk tripping up repeatedly. Common mistakes: going too hard on the bike in round 1, going unbroken on squat cleans early and dying by round 3, and letting devil press form deteriorate into a back-injury risk.

Benchmark Notes

Five rounds of a 30-calorie bike, 6 squat cleans at 155/120 lb, 14 devil presses (2x50/35 lb) and 20 double-unders. The bike and devil presses take most of the time. L5 (26-30 min) bikes each 30 calories in about 2 minutes and takes about 5:45 a round. L10 (under 14 min) bikes near 55 seconds.

Modality Profile

4 movements total: Air Bike (M), Squat Clean (W), Devil Press (W - dumbbell movement), Double-Under (G). That's 1 Monostructural, 2 Weightlifting, 1 Gymnastics. Percentages: G=25%, M=25%, W=50%.

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