Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Extremely Hard

185/135lb thrusters and cleans are near-maximal loads for average athletes, and 8 rounds compounds fatigue severely. Burpee ring dips are a high-skill, high-fatigue movement that destroys pressing capacity needed for thrusters. Heavy barbell cycling (thrusters + cleans at the same load) with no built-in rest creates multiple simultaneous limiters: grip, lungs, legs, and pressing strength. Most average athletes cannot complete this as prescribed.

Benchmark Times for Thomas Deangelis

• Elite: <10:15
• Advanced: 12:30-15:00
• Intermediate: 17:45-21:00
• Beginner: >43:30

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Power (9/10): Every movement is explosive: thrusters drive the bar overhead, cleans require a powerful pull and catch, box jumps are pure lower-body power, and burpee ring dips demand explosive hip extension. Power is the dominant theme.
• Strength (8/10): 185/135 lb thrusters and cleans are near-maximal loads for many athletes. These heavy barbell movements demand significant absolute strength, making this one of the primary fitness demands of the workout.
• Stamina (7/10): Repeated heavy thrusters, cleans, box jumps, and burpee ring dips across 8 rounds accumulate meaningful muscular fatigue. Upper body pushing and pulling stamina are particularly taxed by the burpee ring dip combination.
• Endurance (6/10): Eight rounds for time with continuous movement creates significant cardiovascular demand. The combination of heavy barbell work and explosive movements elevates heart rate substantially throughout, requiring solid aerobic capacity to sustain output.
• Flexibility (6/10): Thrusters require thoracic extension and overhead mobility; cleans demand hip and wrist flexibility. Burpee ring dips add shoulder mobility requirements. Overall, moderate-to-high range of motion demands across multiple planes.
• Speed (5/10): For time format incentivizes fast transitions and efficient cycling, but heavy loads and complex movements limit true sprint cycling. Athletes must balance urgency with technical execution across all 8 rounds.

Movements

• Thruster
• Ring Dip
• Burpee
• Clean
• Box Jump

Scaling Options

Weight: Scale thrusters and cleans to 135/95 lb (intermediate) or 95/65 lb (beginner) — target loads you can cycle for at least 2 reps unbroken when fresh. Box jumps: Reduce to 24/20 in, or substitute step-ups for athletes with knee or Achilles concerns. Burpee ring dips: Sub burpee push-ups (chest-to-deck burpee with a push-up at the top) or reduce to 3 reps per round. For athletes newer to cleans, substitute hang power cleans to simplify the pull. Volume: Reduce to 6 rounds if 8 rounds at scaled weight would push beyond 35 minutes. Rounds: 6 rounds for intermediate athletes managing heavier loads.

Scaling Explanation

Scale the weight if you cannot perform at least 2 touch-and-go reps on the thruster or clean when fully fresh — singles from round 1 at Rx weight will make this a 45+ minute suffer-fest that loses the intended stimulus entirely. Scale the burpee ring dips if you do not have a stable ring dip (full lockout, controlled descent) — sloppy dips under fatigue are a shoulder injury waiting to happen. The goal is to keep each round moving with brief, intentional rest rather than long stalls at the bar. Prioritize technique on the cleans above all else — a missed clean or a back-rounding deadlift under fatigue is not worth the Rx label. Target completion time is 22-32 minutes for a well-scaled effort. If you finish under 20 minutes, you likely had room to go heavier or add a round.

Intended Stimulus

This is a moderate-to-long time domain grind lasting 20-35 minutes for most athletes. The combination of heavy barbell cycling (thrusters and cleans at 185/135 lb) with explosive and gymnastic movements creates a relentless demand on your posterior chain, legs, and upper body pushing capacity. The primary challenge is strength-endurance — your ability to keep moving a heavy barbell when your legs and lungs are already taxed. Expect this to feel like repeated short sprints with no real recovery. The burpee ring dips are the sneaky wildcard that will fry your triceps and shoulders right before you pick the bar back up.

Coach Insight

Treat each round as its own mini-workout — go in with a plan and stick to it. On the thrusters, do NOT go unbroken just because you can in round 1. A 2-1 or 1-1-1 split from round 3 onward is smarter than blowing up early. For the cleans, use a deadlift-to-power-clean or squat-clean strategy depending on your strength — at 185/135, most athletes will need to treat these as singles with a breath reset between reps. Box jumps should be your active recovery — step down every rep to protect your Achilles and keep your heart rate from spiking unnecessarily. Burpee ring dips are the most complex movement here: lower the rings to a height where you can flow from the burpee directly into the dip without wasted motion. Keep your elbows tight on the dip and lock out fully. Common mistakes: going too hot on thrusters in rounds 1-3, letting the bar crash on cleans instead of receiving it controlled, and rushing the burpee-to-dip transition causing sloppy reps. Set a consistent round pace — if round 1 takes 2:30, aim for every round to stay under 3:30.

Benchmark Notes

Eight rounds of 3 thrusters and 3 cleans at 185/135 lb, 5 box jumps at 30/24 in and 5 burpee ring dips (a burpee, then a ring dip). 185 lb is near an average athlete's thruster max, so L5 (21-25 min) rests between heavy singles. L10 (under 10:15) holds about 75 seconds a round.

Modality Profile

3 movements: Thruster (W), Box Jump (G), Clean (W). 2 Weightlifting movements and 1 Gymnastics movement. W: 2/3 ≈ 67%, G: 1/3 ≈ 33%, M: 0%.

Similar Workouts to Thomas Deangelis

If you enjoy Thomas Deangelis, you might also like these similar CrossFit WODs:

• Gerard Dewan (90% similar) - For Time 21-15-9 reps of: Clean-and-Jerks (95/65 lb) Burpees Then, 15-10-5 reps of: Clean-and-Jerks...
• Kenneth Watson (90% similar) - 4 Rounds for Time 21 Pull-Ups 4 Clean-and-Jerks (225/155 lb) 21 Burpees 4 Back Squats (225/155 lb)...
• 343 Tribute (89% similar) - AMRAP in 20 minutes 3 Muscle-Ups 4 Power Cleans (225/135 lb) 3 Front Squats (225/135 lb)...
• Joseph Maffeo (89% similar) - 10 Rounds for Time 1 Clean-and-Jerk (185/135 lb) 3 Overhead Squats (185/135 lb) 5 Push Jerks (185/13...
• David Laforge (89% similar) - For Time 30 Bear Complexes (155/105)...
• Corporal Ian Plank (89% similar) - 31-10-3 Reps for Time Power Snatches (80/55 kg) Bar Muscle-Ups...
• Michael Montesi (89% similar) - EMOM for 20 minutes 1 Clean-and-Jerk (80% of 1 RM) 1 Clean (1 RM) 5 Burpee Box Jumps (24/20 in)...
• Terence McShane (88% similar) - EMOM for 20 minutes For odd minutes, perform: 5 Front Squats (205/115 lb) For even minutes, perform...

These WODs similar to Thomas Deangelis share comparable training demands, time domains, and movement patterns.