Benchmark Workouts - CrossFit

CrossFit Journal Article Reprint. First Published in CrossFit Journal Issue 13 - September 2003Benchmark WorkoutsGreg GlassmanWorkout DesignThe design and crafting of workouts is CrossFit’sprimary concern. Factors like impact, motivation,perception, recovery, and timing combine with decadesof experience seasoned by luck and intuition to createour daily fare, the “Workout of the Day”.Though the process by which we engineer our workoutsis largely rational, the finished product is often seeminglyinfused with qualities more commonly associated withart than exercise like symmetry, theme, or character.It is in this sense that we have in the past referred to“the choreography of exertion” in describing the bestof workout design.When everything goes right the finished product comesalive in a blend of elegance, simplicity, form, and impact.We are featuring six such workouts this month.ideal, give us opportunity to lay bare some of thepossibly unseen considerations and details we weigh inour programming design. Second, these six workoutsintroduce a series of workouts that will serve tomeasure and benchmark your performance andimprovements through repeated, irregular, appearancesin the “Workout of the Day”. The workouts intendedas benchmarks will be readily distinguished from otherWorkouts of the Day by their being given, in eachinstance, a female name. (See inset.)Our first six benchmark workouts are split evenlybetween two distinct thematic groups. The first threeworkouts are comprised entirely of push-ups, pullups, sit-ups, and squats while the second group isdistinguished by couplets of fundamental weightliftingand calisthenic or gymnastic elements. Each is scoredby time.Benchmark WorkoutsOur intent is two-fold in examining these workouts.First, these workouts, being exemplars of the CrossFit“The Girls”Angie100 pull-ups100 push-ups100 sit-ups100 squatsfor timeBarbaraChelseaDianeElizabethClean 135 lbsFran20 pull-ups30 push-ups40 sit-ups50 squats5 pull-ups10 push-ups15 squatsDeadlift 225 lbsHandstand push- Ring DipsupsPull-ups5 rounds for time- 3 minutes restbetwen roundseach minute onthe minute for 30minutes21-15-9 reps3 rounds for time21-15-9 reps3 rounds for time21-15-9 reps3 rounds for timeThruster 95 lbs of 5 CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc. 2006 All rights reserved.Subscription info at http://store.crossfit.comFeedback to feedback@crossfit.com

Benchmark Workouts (continued.)The First Group: Angie, Barbara, and ChelseaThe workouts of the first group, Angie, Barbara, and Chelsea, aresuper simple (being comprised entirely of common calisthenics),very tough, dramatically reinforce the pull-up, and yet eachpresents a different metabolic challenge.Angie and Barbara, contain pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, and squats.Chelsea contains pull-ups, push-ups, and squats but no sit-ups.For each of these three workouts the pull-ups clearly presentthe greatest challenge. And, in the workouts’ aftermath, mostathletes expressed surprise at their significant lat, rear delt,and biceps soreness. At CrossFit the pull-up is sacrosanct andeveryone needs more. Angie, Barbara, and Chelsea supportthese values and aims.Varied Metabolic DemandsThe real story with these three workouts though is perhapshidden by their obvious similarities. Each offers a distinctly uniquemetabolic stimulus. (Though, each is completely exhausting.)Angie represents about 20 minutes of continuous work. Even withthe necessary breaks in the pull-ups and push-ups the exertion islargely steady from start to end. For most, the tempo picks upwith each new exercise. This workout has a strong aerobic flavorthat increases throughout the workout.Barbara demands roughly 3 minutes of all out work punctuatedby 3 minutes of rest repeated for a total of 5 intervals. At about3 minutes of work and a 1:1 work to rest ratio this is an aerobicinterval. Though three-minute efforts reach into aerobic turfthey are short enough t

expressive of the CrossFit fitness ideal, and these ladies fit the bill. Within three days of a workout bearing a woman’s name being posted on www.CrossFit.com, complete the workout and post your results to comments. We are going to develop a database around your performance on these workouts and