Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Medium

This partner workout provides significant built-in recovery as athletes rotate through stations. The bike calories are moderate volume at conversational pace, while 95/65lb thrusters are manageable weight for most CrossFitters. The 3-person rotation means roughly 2:1 rest-to-work ratio, preventing major fatigue accumulation. Total volume is reasonable (40 calories + 90 thrusters per person). The structure prevents the intensity spikes that would make this harder.

Benchmark Times for PARTNER STRONGHOLD

• Elite: <15:00
• Advanced: 17:00-19:00
• Intermediate: 21:00-23:00
• Beginner: >35:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (9/10): High volume of calories and thrusters (90 total thrusters per person) tests muscular endurance across multiple muscle groups with accumulated fatigue.
• Endurance (8/10): Two rounds of continuous cycling and thrusters with minimal rest creates significant cardiovascular demand, especially with three-person relay format maintaining constant work.
• Speed (7/10): Relay format demands quick transitions between partners and maintaining fast cycling pace on bike to minimize team time and maximize efficiency.
• Power (6/10): Thrusters are inherently explosive movements requiring power from legs through shoulders, though fatigue will diminish power output as rounds progress.
• Strength (4/10): Moderate thruster load at 95/65 pounds requires decent strength but emphasizes endurance over maximal force production in this high-rep format.
• Flexibility (4/10): Thrusters demand good shoulder, hip, and ankle mobility for proper overhead position and full squat depth throughout high repetitions.

Movements

• Air Bike
• Thruster

Benchmark Notes

This is a team workout with 3 partners cycling through bike calories and thrusters for 2 complete rounds. Each round consists of 5 rounds of bike calories (10/8 cal per person) followed by 5 rounds of thrusters (9 reps at 95/65 per person). Total work per person: 2 rounds × (50 calories + 45 thrusters). I'll analyze this as a single athlete completing the equivalent work: 100 calories on bike + 90 thrusters at 95/65. For bike calories: 100 calories typically takes 4-8 minutes depending on fitness level. Elite athletes can maintain ~25 cal/min (240 sec), intermediate ~15 cal/min (400 sec), beginners ~10 cal/min (600 sec). For 90 thrusters at 95/65: This is 3x the volume of Fran's thrusters (30 total). Using Fran as anchor where L10 completes 30 thrusters in ~60-80 sec, L5 in ~180-240 sec, L1 in ~360-480 sec. Scaling to 90 thrusters: L10: 180-240 sec, L5: 540-720 sec, L1: 1080-1440 sec. Adding fatigue multipliers for the high volume and transitions between bike/barbell work (+20-30%), plus rest periods between the cycling format. Combined estimate: L10: 240 + 240 + transitions/rest = ~480-600 sec, L5: 400 + 720 + fatigue = ~1200-1400 sec, L1: 600 + 1440 + significant fatigue = ~2100+ sec. However, the team format allows for rest while partners work, reducing individual fatigue significantly. Adjusting downward by ~25% for the built-in rest periods. Final targets: L10: 450-600 sec (7:30-10:00), L5: 900-1200 sec (15:00-20:00), L1: 1800-2100 sec (30:00-35:00).

Modality Profile

Bike is monostructural cardio (M) and Thruster is a weighted barbell movement (W). Two modalities split evenly.