Workout Description

Why This Workout Is Very Hard

This workout combines high skill demands (bar muscle-ups) with significant volume across 7 rounds. The 400m runs create cardiovascular fatigue that compounds with grip-intensive KB snatches and muscle-ups. Most athletes will struggle with 14 total muscle-ups under fatigue, especially after running and KB work. The continuous nature with no built-in rest makes this extremely challenging for average CrossFitters, requiring scaling of muscle-ups or rounds.

Benchmark Times for THE BILES

• Elite: <15:00
• Advanced: 17:00-19:00
• Intermediate: 21:00-23:00
• Beginner: >35:00

Training Focus

This workout develops the following fitness attributes:

• Stamina (9/10): High volume of kettlebell snatches, muscle-ups, and push-ups across seven rounds heavily taxes upper body and grip stamina.
• Endurance (8/10): Seven rounds of 400m runs with minimal rest creates significant cardiovascular demand, testing aerobic capacity throughout the workout.
• Power (8/10): Kettlebell snatches are explosive hip-driven movements, and muscle-ups require powerful pulling and transition phases throughout seven rounds.
• Flexibility (7/10): Kettlebell snatches demand overhead mobility, while muscle-ups require significant shoulder and thoracic spine flexibility for proper positioning.
• Strength (6/10): 53/35lb kettlebell snatches and bar muscle-ups require moderate strength, especially as fatigue accumulates through multiple rounds.
• Speed (6/10): Maintaining consistent pace across runs and efficient transitions between complex movements becomes crucial as fatigue sets in.

Movements

• Run
• Kettlebell Snatch
• Bar Muscle-Up
• Push-Up

Benchmark Notes

This workout is 7 rounds of: 400m run, 10 KB snatch left (53/35), 2 bar muscle-ups, 15 push-ups, 10 KB snatch right (53/35), 2 bar muscle-ups. I'll use Helen (3 rounds: 400m run, 21 KB swing 53/35, 12 pull-ups) as my primary anchor, scaling for the additional rounds and movement complexity. Helen benchmarks: L10 450-510 sec, L5 630-690 sec, L1 900-1080 sec. Round-by-round breakdown: Round 1 (fresh): 400m run 75-120 sec, 10 KB snatch left 20-30 sec, 2 bar muscle-ups 6-10 sec, 15 push-ups 15-23 sec, 10 KB snatch right 20-30 sec, 2 bar muscle-ups 6-10 sec, transitions 10-15 sec = 152-238 sec. Rounds 2-3 (1.1x fatigue): 167-262 sec each. Rounds 4-5 (1.2x fatigue): 182-286 sec each. Rounds 6-7 (1.3-1.4x fatigue): 198-333 sec each. Total estimated times: Elite (L10): 900-1080 sec, Intermediate (L5): 1260-1440 sec, Novice (L1): 1800-2160 sec. This workout is significantly longer than Helen due to 7 rounds vs 3 rounds (2.33x volume) and more complex movements (bar muscle-ups vs pull-ups, KB snatches vs swings). The scaling factor of approximately 2x from Helen's times accounts for the increased volume and movement complexity. Final targets: L10: 900 sec (15:00), L5: 1380 sec (23:00), L1: 2100 sec (35:00).

Modality Profile

4 movements total: Push-Up and Bar Muscle-Up are Gymnastics (50%), Run is Monostructural (25%), Kettlebell Snatch is Weightlifting (25%)