Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

High-skill strict handstand push-ups paired with a demanding 100 total calories on the rower create a potent test. The 12-minute cap forces challenging set management on the HSPU while maintaining strong rowing output. Advanced gymnastics strength and pressing stamina are the primary limiters, with aerobic capacity influencing the row pace and transitions.

Benchmark Times for Regionals 15.5

• Elite: <7:00
• Advanced: 8:30-9:00
• Intermediate: 9:30-10:00
• Beginner: >12:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): Fifty strict handstand push-ups heavily tax pressing stamina. Success depends on repeating submax sets with short breaks while maintaining quality reps under fatigue.
• Endurance (6/10): Two 50-calorie rows demand sustained aerobic work for 8–12 minutes. Heart rate stays high, and breathing control affects whether you hold, surge, or fade between sets.
• Speed (5/10): You’ll move quickly in transitions and on the row, but strict HSPU cadence is inherently slower. Smart pacing beats reckless sprinting here.
• Strength (4/10): Strict overhead pressing strength is required, but it’s submaximal and repeated. The limiter is more about strength endurance than single-rep max strength.
• Power (4/10): Rowing rewards powerful strokes, but the event is not pure power. HSPU are strict and controlled, limiting explosive expression overall.
• Flexibility (3/10): Requires solid shoulder and thoracic mobility to stack joints in the handstand and keep a neutral spine. Not extreme, but poor mobility degrades positions and efficiency.

Movements

• Strict Handstand Push-Up
• Row

Scaling Options

Scale to: 2 rounds: 20 kipping HSPU + 50 cal row • 2 rounds: 20 box pike HSPU + 45/40 cal row • 2 rounds: 25 DB strict press (35/20 lb) + 45/40 cal row

Scaling Explanation

These options preserve the strict vertical press stimulus and aerobic row while adjusting skill, volume, and strength demands so athletes can move steadily without failing reps.

Intended Stimulus

Push the row at a strong but sustainable pace while keeping strict HSPU in small, consistent sets that rarely hit failure. You should feel shoulder and triceps fatigue building while breathing stays high. The second round is where composure matters—maintain form, short breaks, and quick transitions to finish under the cap.

Coach Insight

Open with manageable HSPU sets (e.g., 5s or 3–5–5–4–4–4) and keep rest to 5–10 seconds. Row at a pace you can repeat in round two. The one thing: Never go to failure on strict HSPU—chip away before you’re redlined. Common mistakes: Oversprinting the first row, giant HSPU sets early, and inconsistent standards leading to no-reps.

Benchmark Notes

Times range from barely finishing at the 12:00 cap to elite performances around 7:00. If you’re under 10:00 you’re managing HSPU efficiently and rowing hard. Expect most intermediate athletes to land near 9–10 minutes, with pacing dictated by strict HSPU capacity.

Modality Profile

Even split between gymnastics and monostructural work: strict handstand push-ups are pure bodyweight pressing, while rowing is steady monostructural output. No external loading is used, and both elements occupy a comparable share of total time for most athletes.

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If you enjoy Regionals 15.5, you might also like these similar CrossFit WODs:

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These WODs similar to Regionals 15.5 share comparable training demands, time domains, and movement patterns.