Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Extremely Hard

Huge volume and duration: 2 miles of running and 600 bodyweight reps. Simple movements but extreme muscular endurance demands—especially grip and pressing. Most athletes take 45–90+ minutes, with significant strategy required to avoid failure on push-ups and to protect grip. Cardio, stamina, and mental toughness dominate.

Benchmark Times for Murph

• Elite: <33:00
• Advanced: 35:00-38:00
• Intermediate: 43:00-48:00
• Beginner: >80:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (10/10): Hundreds of push-ups, squats, and 100 pull-ups tax local muscular endurance in pressing, hips, and grip. Success hinges on managing small sets and consistent turnover under fatigue.
• Endurance (8/10): Two 1-mile runs bookend high-rep calisthenics, demanding steady aerobic output for a long duration. Breathing control and sustainable pacing are crucial to avoid late-workout blow-ups.
• Speed (4/10): Transitions and short sets can keep tempo up, yet the workout is a grind. Over-speed early leads to blow-ups, so moderate consistent speed beats sprinting.
• Flexibility (2/10): Standard ranges: full-depth air squat, stable shoulder position for pull-ups, and plank integrity on push-ups. Mobility demands are basic but good positions reduce fatigue and maintain speed.
• Power (2/10): Minimal explosive requirement. Faster cycle rates and crisp reps help, but sprint power isn’t the emphasis. The event rewards repeatable, controlled movement more than peak explosiveness.
• Strength (2/10): No external load; strength isn’t the limiter. Baseline upper-body pulling/pressing strength is required to maintain movement quality and avoid early failure, but max force is not tested.

Movements

• Push-Up
• Air Squat
• Run
• Pull-Up

Scaling Options

Scale to: 20 rounds of 5 Ring Rows, 10 Incline Push-Ups, 15 Air Squats with 800m runs • 1/2 Murph: 800m run, 50 Pull-Ups, 100 Push-Ups, 150 Air Squats, 800m run • 20 rounds of 3-6-9 (pull-up/push-up/squat) with full 1 mile runs

Scaling Explanation

These options reduce pulling/pressing difficulty or total volume while preserving the long aerobic grind and consistent movement stimulus.

Intended Stimulus

A steady grind with controlled breathing and minimal rest. Run the first mile at conversational pace, then chip through small, repeatable sets to keep push-ups and grip from failing. The second mile should feel tough but runnable. Partition smartly to maintain constant movement and avoid long breaks.

Coach Insight

Pace the first mile just slower than 5K pace. Use small, repeatable sets (e.g., 20 rounds of 5-10-15) from the start. The one tip: Protect your push-ups—break early and often to avoid failure. Common mistakes: Starting too hot, doing huge pull-up sets, and letting push-up standards slip. Stay strict and consistent.

Benchmark Notes

This workout is the classic Hero WOD Murph (no weight vest, Rx volume). I used the Murph anchor as my baseline: L10: 1800-2040 sec, L5: 2580-3300 sec, L1: 3900-4800 sec. Breaking down the workout: 1st Mile Run (fresh): L10 270-300 sec, L5 390-420 sec, L1 600-720 sec. 100 Pull-Ups: In fresh state would be 100-200 sec, but after mile run with significant fatigue, expect 1.3-1.5x multiplier plus set breaking. L10 athletes do sets of 10-15 with minimal rest (180-220 sec total), L5 athletes break into 5-8 rep sets with more rest (360-480 sec), L1 athletes use small sets of 2-3 reps (600-900 sec). 200 Push-Ups: Fresh would be 200-300 sec, but with accumulated upper body fatigue from pull-ups, apply 1.4-1.6x multiplier. L10: 320-400 sec, L5: 480-720 sec, L1: 840-1200 sec. 300 Air Squats: Relatively less affected by upper body fatigue but legs are tired from first run. Fresh would be 300-450 sec, with fatigue: L10: 360-480 sec, L5: 540-720 sec, L1: 900-1200 sec. 2nd Mile Run: Significantly slower due to full-body fatigue. L10: 360-420 sec (+90-120 sec from fresh), L5: 540-660 sec (+150-240 sec), L1: 900-1080 sec (+300-360 sec). Adding transition times (30-60 sec total) and accounting for the cumulative nature of this chipper-style workout. Total estimated times align closely with established Murph benchmarks: L10: 1800-2040 sec, L5: 2580-3300 sec, L1: 3900-4800 sec. My calculated levels distribute evenly across this range with L10 at 1980 sec (33:00), L5 at 2880 sec (48:00), and L1 at 4800 sec (80:00).

Modality Profile

Most time is spent on gymnastics (pull-ups, push-ups, air squats), with two miles of running contributing substantial monostructural work. There is no external loading, so weightlifting is absent. The combination creates a long mixed-modal endurance and stamina test.

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