Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Medium

This workout combines moderate volume with manageable loads across three fundamental movements. The 12-minute AMRAP allows athletes to pace themselves and take breaks as needed. Wall balls and step-ups target similar muscle groups creating some fatigue accumulation, but the push-ups provide active recovery for the legs. The rep scheme (12-12-12) is sustainable for most rounds. Average CrossFitters can complete this as prescribed with steady pacing.

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (8/10): High volume of wall balls, push-ups, and step-ups will heavily tax muscular endurance, especially shoulders, chest, and legs.
• Endurance (7/10): A 12-minute AMRAP with continuous movement creates significant cardiovascular demand, requiring sustained aerobic output throughout the time domain.
• Speed (6/10): AMRAP format rewards quick transitions and efficient movement cycling to maximize rounds completed in 12 minutes.
• Power (5/10): Wall balls are explosive hip extension movements, while step-ups require some power generation from legs.
• Strength (4/10): Medicine ball weight and bodyweight movements provide moderate strength demands, but not maximal force production.
• Flexibility (3/10): Wall balls require overhead mobility, step-ups need hip flexion, push-ups basic shoulder range of motion.

Movements

• Wall Ball
• Push-Up
• Step-Up

Benchmark Notes

This 12-minute AMRAP contains 36 total reps per round (12 wall balls + 12 push-ups + 12 step-ups). I'll analyze this against the Cindy benchmark (AMRAP 20: 5 pull-ups + 10 push-ups + 15 air squats, 30 reps/round) as the closest anchor. Movement breakdown per round: Wall balls (20/14): 12 reps × 2.5 sec = 30 sec fresh, Push-ups: 12 reps × 1.25 sec = 15 sec fresh, Step-ups with medicine ball: 12 reps × 2.5 sec = 30 sec fresh. Fresh round time: ~75 sec + 10 sec transitions = 85 sec. With fatigue progression: Round 1-2: 85 sec, Round 3-4: 95 sec (1.12x), Round 5-6: 105 sec (1.24x), Round 7-8: 120 sec (1.41x), Round 9+: 140 sec (1.65x). Cindy benchmarks (20 min): L10: 25-30 rounds, L5: 15-18 rounds, L1: 6-8 rounds. This workout is 40% shorter (12 vs 20 min) but has heavier loading (medicine ball adds resistance to wall balls and step-ups vs bodyweight air squats). The wall balls and weighted step-ups create more metabolic demand than Cindy's air squats. Adjusting Cindy for 12-minute duration and increased difficulty: L10 should achieve 8-9 rounds, L5 around 6 rounds, L1 around 3.5 rounds. Final targets: L10: 8.4+ rounds, L5: 6.0 rounds, L1: 3.5 rounds.

Modality Profile

Wall Ball is weighted (W), Push-Up and Step-Up are bodyweight (G). Two gymnastics movements out of three total gives 67% G, 33% W.