Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Hard

Strict handstand push-ups are a high-skill movement requiring significant upper body strength and shoulder stability. Most average CrossFitters struggle with even basic strict HSPU, and adding deficit height increases difficulty exponentially. The 21 total reps (7x3) with minimal rest creates cumulative shoulder fatigue. While the volume isn't extreme, the skill demand and strength requirement make this challenging for the average athlete, with many needing to scale to pike push-ups or reduce reps.

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Strength (9/10): Primary demand is maximal upper body pressing strength, especially shoulders and triceps in inverted position.
• Flexibility (7/10): Significant shoulder and wrist mobility required for handstand position, plus thoracic extension for proper alignment.
• Stamina (4/10): Moderate upper body pressing stamina required across 21 total reps, though manageable volume for most athletes.
• Endurance (2/10): Minimal cardiovascular demand due to low volume and strength-focused nature allowing adequate recovery between sets.
• Power (1/10): Strict movement eliminates momentum and kipping, making this purely a strength grind with no explosive component.
• Speed (1/10): No time component or cycling demand; focus is on strength execution with full recovery between efforts.

Movements

• Handstand Push-Up

Benchmark Notes

This workout is scored by the height of deficit used for strict handstand push-ups across 3 rounds of 7 reps each (21 total). Since this is a strength/skill-based movement scored by load progression rather than time, I'm treating this as a distance-based benchmark measured in inches of deficit height. For strict handstand push-ups, the movement requires significant upper body pressing strength, shoulder stability, and core control. Most athletes start with standard (0" deficit) strict HSPUs, which is already quite challenging. A 1-2" deficit represents early progression, 3-4" shows solid strength development, 6-8" indicates advanced capability, and 10-12" represents elite-level pressing strength and control. The progression is not linear due to the exponential difficulty increase with deficit height - each additional inch significantly increases the range of motion and strength demands. L1 (0"): Standard strict HSPU, no deficit - this is the baseline as many athletes cannot perform strict HSPUs at all. L2-L3 (1-2"): Minimal deficit showing initial strength progression. L4-L5 (3-4"): Moderate deficit indicating solid pressing strength. L6-L7 (6-8"): Advanced deficit requiring significant strength and control. L8-L9 (10-12"): Elite-level deficit heights seen in competitive athletes. The 21 total reps (3x7) makes this a substantial volume test at whatever deficit height is chosen, so athletes will select a challenging but sustainable height they can maintain across all three rounds.

Modality Profile

Handstand Push-Up is a bodyweight gymnastics movement, making this 100% Gymnastics