Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Hard

The 1RM back squat creates significant leg fatigue before the AMRAP begins. The 20-minute continuous format with 135/95lb power cleans and reverse lunges compounds this fatigue, while lateral burpees add metabolic stress. The combination of pre-fatigued legs from max effort squatting followed by sustained barbell cycling and unilateral loading creates multiple limiting factors that will force most athletes to scale weight or break frequently.

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): High-volume barbell work with power cleans and lunges will heavily tax muscular endurance, especially grip strength and posterior chain stamina over 20 minutes.
• Strength (8/10): Finding a 1RM back squat is pure maximal strength testing, while the 135/95lb loads in the AMRAP require significant strength endurance.
• Endurance (7/10): The 20-minute AMRAP creates significant cardiovascular demand, though the 1RM portion provides some recovery before the sustained aerobic challenge begins.
• Power (6/10): Power cleans are explosive by nature, requiring rapid force development from the floor, though the high volume may compromise power output.
• Speed (5/10): The AMRAP format encourages steady pacing rather than sprint efforts, with transitions between barbell movements requiring efficient cycling and setup.
• Flexibility (4/10): Power cleans demand good hip and ankle mobility, while reverse lunges require hip flexor length and thoracic extension for proper positioning.

Movements

• Back Squat
• Power Clean
• Reverse Lunge
• Lateral Burpee

Benchmark Notes

This workout combines a 1RM back squat (not scored) with a 20-minute AMRAP of 5 power cleans (135/95), 10 alternating reverse lunges (135/95), and 15 lateral burpees. I'll analyze the AMRAP portion since that's what's scored as 'Rounds + Reps'. Movement breakdown per round: - 5 Power Cleans (135/95): At moderate load, ~2.5 sec/rep = 12.5 sec + 3 sec transition = 15.5 sec - 10 Alt Reverse Lunges (135/95): With barbell, ~2 sec/rep = 20 sec + 3 sec transition = 23 sec - 15 Lateral Burpees: ~4 sec/rep = 60 sec + 5 sec transition back to barbell = 65 sec Round 1 (fresh): 15.5 + 23 + 65 = 103.5 sec (~1.7 min) Round 2-3: Apply 1.1x fatigue = 114 sec/round Round 4-5: Apply 1.2x fatigue = 124 sec/round Round 6-7: Apply 1.3x fatigue = 135 sec/round Round 8+: Apply 1.5x+ fatigue = 155+ sec/round The barbell work (cleans + lunges) will create significant grip and posterior chain fatigue, while lateral burpees add cardiovascular stress. The combination of moderate barbell loading with high-rep burpees creates a grinding pace. Using Cindy (AMRAP 20: 5 pull-up + 10 push-up + 15 air squat) as the closest anchor: - Cindy L10: 25-30 rounds, L5: 15-18 rounds, L1: 6-8 rounds This workout is significantly harder than Cindy due to: 1. Barbell loading (135/95 vs bodyweight) 2. More complex movements requiring setup 3. Lateral burpees vs air squats Adjusting Cindy downward by ~70% due to increased difficulty: - L10: 8-9 rounds (elite can maintain pace through barbell fatigue) - L5: 6 rounds (average athlete slows significantly after round 4) - L1: 3-4 rounds (beginners struggle with barbell coordination) Final targets: L10: 8.4 rounds, L5: 6.0 rounds, L1: 3.5 rounds

Modality Profile

4 movements total: Back Squat and Power Clean are Weightlifting (W), Reverse Lunge and Lateral Burpee are Gymnastics (G). 2 W movements and 2 G movements = 50/50 split.