Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Hard

This workout combines moderate loads with high volume across 6 movements for time, creating significant cumulative fatigue. The 50/35lb DBs become challenging when held for 70 total reps (step-ups + lunges), while handstand push-ups under fatigue will force many to scale. The continuous format with no built-in rest and movement interference (shoulders fatigued before wall balls, legs pre-exhausted for final lunges) elevates this beyond medium difficulty for most athletes.

Benchmark Times for THE JOKER

• Elite: <12:00
• Advanced: 14:00-16:00
• Intermediate: 18:00-20:00
• Beginner: >30:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): Ascending ladder from 10-60 reps tests muscular endurance across multiple movement patterns, with grip and shoulder stamina being particularly challenged.
• Endurance (7/10): The high volume ladder format with minimal rest creates significant cardiovascular demand, especially as fatigue accumulates through the ascending rep scheme.
• Flexibility (6/10): Handstand push-ups require significant shoulder mobility, while step-ups and lunges demand good hip and ankle range of motion.
• Speed (5/10): For-time format encourages steady pacing and efficient transitions, though movement complexity may slow cycling speed compared to simpler movements.
• Strength (4/10): Moderate loads with dumbbells and bodyweight resistance provide strength demands, but not maximal effort due to high volume nature.
• Power (3/10): Wall balls and double unders have explosive components, but the high volume format limits true power expression as fatigue sets in.

Movements

• Wall Ball
• Burpee
• Dumbbell Front Rack Walking Lunge
• Handstand Push-Up
• Double-Under

Benchmark Notes

This is a high-volume chipper with 6 movements totaling 170 reps. I'll break down each movement with fatigue considerations: 10 DB Front Racked Step-Ups (24"/20", 50/35): Each rep takes 3-4 seconds including step up/down. Fresh time: 30-40 seconds. 20 Handstand Push-Ups: Critical bottleneck movement. In complex WODs, HSPUs take 8-12 seconds per rep due to setup and fatigue. Expect significant set breaking (3-5 reps per set). Time: 160-240 seconds. 30 Wall Balls (20/14): Standard pace 2-3 seconds per rep, but coming after HSPUs with shoulder fatigue, expect 2.5-3.5 seconds per rep. Time: 75-105 seconds. 40 Burpees: At 3-4 seconds per rep with accumulating fatigue, expect 4-5 seconds per rep. Time: 160-200 seconds. 50 Double Unders: Normally 0.5 seconds per rep, but with grip and coordination fatigue, expect 0.7-1 second per rep plus trip recovery. Time: 35-50 seconds. 60 DB Front Racked Lunges: Similar to step-ups but more demanding. With significant leg fatigue, expect 2.5-3.5 seconds per rep. Time: 150-210 seconds. Transitions: 6 movements = 5 transitions at 5-15 seconds each = 25-75 seconds total. Total calculation: 30+180+90+180+42+180+50 = 752 seconds base, scaling to 720-1800 seconds across levels. This workout is most similar to a high-volume chipper like Angie (1980-2400 sec for L1) but with more complex movements. The HSPU bottleneck makes this significantly harder than typical chippers. Elite athletes will move efficiently through step-ups and lunges but still face HSPU limitations. Final targets - L10: 720 sec (12:00), L5: 1200 sec (20:00), L1: 1800 sec (30:00)

Modality Profile

6 movements total: 3 Gymnastics (Handstand Push-Up, Burpee, Double-Under) and 3 Weightlifting (Dumbbell Front Racked Step Up, Wall Ball, Dumbbell Front Rack Walking Lunge). No monostructural movements present.