Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

This workout combines heavy bench press (185lb) with strict pull-ups, creating upper body fatigue before the high-volume thrusters. The max-rep thruster sets under fatigue will force significant breaks, and the 100-rep thruster target is brutal. The combination of heavy pressing, strict gymnastics, and high-volume Olympic lifting creates multiple limiting factors with minimal built-in rest.

Benchmark Times for T.J.

• Elite: <12:00
• Advanced: 13:00-14:00
• Intermediate: 16:00-18:00
• Beginner: >30:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): Accumulating 100 thrusters while managing fatigue from bench press and pull-ups tests muscular endurance extensively, especially in shoulders and core.
• Endurance (7/10): The high volume of thrusters (100 total) combined with heavy bench press and pull-ups creates significant cardiovascular demand over an extended period.
• Strength (7/10): Heavy bench press (185lb) and thrusters (135lb) require significant strength. Pull-ups add relative strength demands between loading phases.
• Power (6/10): Thrusters are inherently a power movement, though fatigue will impact explosiveness as volume accumulates.
• Flexibility (5/10): Thrusters demand good mobility in ankles, hips, and shoulders. Front rack position and overhead lockout require decent range of motion.
• Speed (4/10): Transitions between movements and maintaining thruster cycle rate matter, but weight and volume force measured pacing.

Movements

• Thruster
• Bench Press
• Pull-Up

Scaling Options

Bench Press: Reduce to 135/95lb or 60-70% of 1RM. Pull-ups: Use ring rows at chest-to-ring height or banded pull-ups. Thrusters: Scale to 95/65lb or 50-60% of thruster 1RM. For significant scaling, reduce thruster target to 60-75 total reps. Maintain 2:1 work-to-rest ratio regardless of load.

Scaling Explanation

Scale if you cannot perform 5+ unbroken bench reps at prescribed weight, 3+ strict pull-ups, or 10+ unbroken thrusters at prescribed weight. Prioritize maintaining consistent sets over grinding singles. Athletes should finish between 15-25 minutes - scale load/volume if projected beyond this. Form deterioration on any movement indicates need for scaling. Goal is to keep moving with minimal extended breaks.

Intended Stimulus

Moderate-to-long glycolytic workout (15-25 minutes) with oxidative system contribution. Primary focus is on upper body pushing/pulling strength endurance and leg drive. The thruster max sets create a unique psychological challenge of managing fatigue while maintaining output across multiple sets.

Coach Insight

Break bench press into 2 sets of 5 or 3-4-3 early to preserve strength. Strict pull-ups should be singles or doubles from the start - don't burn out. For thrusters, aim for sets of 8-12 reps early while fresh, expecting sets to decrease to 4-6 reps as fatigue accumulates. Rest 20-30 seconds between movements. Don't rush transitions or sacrifice form chasing cycle time. Most athletes will need 8-12 sets to accumulate 100 thrusters.

Benchmark Notes

This is a high-volume thruster workout with heavy bench press and strict pull-ups mixed in. Analysis: 1. Movement breakdown per round: - 10 bench press (185#): ~3-4s/rep = 30-40s - 10 strict pull-ups: ~3-4s/rep = 30-40s - Variable thruster set (135#): Estimate 15-20 reps/round = 45-60s Base round time: ~120s fresh 2. Fatigue factors: - Heavy bench press will fatigue chest/triceps - Strict pull-ups tax grip/back - Thrusters at 135# is heavier than Fran (95#) 3. Set breaking patterns: - Bench press: 5-5 or 6-4 splits with 10s rest - Pull-ups: 4-3-3 or 5-3-2 with 15s rest - Thrusters: Progressive breakdown from 10-8-5-3 4. Closest benchmark is Grace (30 C&J at 135#) but this is ~3x volume with added gymnastics. Projected round breakdown (elite): Round 1: 120s Round 2: 140s (1.15x fatigue) Round 3: 160s (1.3x fatigue) Round 4: 180s (1.5x fatigue) Round 5: 120s (final thruster push) Total elite time: ~12 minutes (720s) Final targets: Male L10: 720s (12:00) Male L5: 1080s (18:00) Male L1: 1800s (30:00) Female L10: 840s (14:00) Female L5: 1320s (22:00) Female L1: 2100s (35:00)

Modality Profile

Pull-Up is gymnastics (G). Bench Press and Thruster are both weightlifting (W) movements. With 3 total movements, 1 G movement (33%) and 2 W movements (67%), and no M movements (0%).

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