Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Medium

The power clean weight (40/25kg) is light-moderate for most CrossFitters, allowing focus on speed and technique. Burpees over bar are straightforward but taxing. The 8-minute time cap creates urgency without being crushing. While continuous work builds fatigue, the alternating movement patterns (hip hinge to full body) provide some muscular relief. Most average athletes can maintain steady rounds throughout, making this a solid moderate challenge.

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): Moderate rep ranges repeated over eight minutes will heavily tax upper body pulling, pressing, and leg muscular endurance systems.
• Power (8/10): Power cleans are explosive hip extension movements, and burpees require rapid transitions from ground to jump, emphasizing power output.
• Endurance (7/10): Eight minutes of continuous work with power cleans and burpees creates significant cardiovascular demand and tests aerobic capacity under fatigue.
• Speed (7/10): AMRAP format rewards fast cycling between movements and quick transitions from barbell to burpees to maximize rounds completed.
• Strength (4/10): Power cleans at 40/25kg require moderate strength, while burpees are primarily bodyweight resistance with some strength component.
• Flexibility (4/10): Power cleans demand good hip, ankle, and shoulder mobility, while burpees require basic range of motion for ground-to-standing transitions.

Movements

• Power Clean
• Burpee Over Bar

Scaling Options

Reduce barbell weight to 30/20 kg or 35/25 lbs. Substitute dumbbell power cleans 15/10 kg each hand. Replace burpees over bar with regular burpees or step-ups. Consider reducing to 5 power cleans and 8 burpees to maintain intensity.

Scaling Explanation

Scale weight if you can't perform 6 unbroken power cleans at start. Scale burpees if you can't complete 10 in under 45 seconds when fresh. Goal is to maintain consistent round times around 90 seconds. Prioritize movement quality and sustainable pace over heavy load.

Intended Stimulus

High-intensity glycolytic sprint lasting 6-8 minutes. Tests ability to maintain power output and movement efficiency under moderate metabolic stress. Primary challenge is conditioning with secondary strength component from power cleans.

Coach Insight

Target 4-6 rounds total. Break power cleans into 3+3 or 2+2+2 early to preserve grip and form. Focus on fast hip extension and catching in quarter squat. For burpees, step back/up if needed to maintain pace - jumping is not required. Keep transitions quick between movements. Most athletes will slow significantly after round 3-4.

Benchmark Notes

This is an 8-minute AMRAP with 6 Power Cleans (40/25kg) and 10 Burpees Over Bar per round. I'll analyze this by breaking down movement times and applying fatigue. Movement Analysis: - Power Clean (40kg/25kg): This is moderate loading, approximately 2-2.5 seconds per rep when fresh - Burpees Over Bar: Slightly slower than regular burpees due to bar clearance, approximately 4-5 seconds per rep when fresh Round Breakdown: - Round 1 (fresh): 6 cleans × 2.5 sec + 10 burpees × 4.5 sec = 15 + 45 = 60 seconds - Transitions and brief rests: +10 seconds = 70 seconds total Fatigue Application: - Rounds 1-2: 70 seconds each (140 total) - Rounds 3-4: 75 seconds each (150 total, 290 cumulative) - Rounds 5-6: 80 seconds each (160 total, 450 cumulative) - Round 7: 85 seconds (535 cumulative) - Round 8: Partial round in remaining time CrossFit Anchor Reference: This workout is similar to Cindy (AMRAP 20: 5 pull-ups + 10 push-ups + 15 air squats) but shorter duration and different movements. Cindy benchmarks: L10: 25-30 rounds, L5: 15-18 rounds, L1: 6-8 rounds over 20 minutes. Adjusting for 8-minute duration and movement difficulty: - The power cleans add significant metabolic demand compared to Cindy's bodyweight movements - Burpees over bar are more demanding than Cindy's movements - 8 minutes vs 20 minutes requires different pacing Calculated Performance Levels: - L10 (Elite): 8.4+ rounds - Can maintain sub-70 second rounds throughout - L5 (Average): 6.0 rounds - Steady pace with manageable fatigue - L1 (Beginner): 3.5 rounds - Significant rest between movements, slower execution Final targets: L10: 8.4+ rounds, L5: 6.0 rounds, L1: 3.5 rounds

Modality Profile

Power Clean is a weightlifting movement with external load (barbell), while Burpee Over Bar is a bodyweight gymnastics movement. With two modalities present, this creates a 50/50 split between Gymnastics and Weightlifting.