We improve faster when we can measure. In functional fitness, that measurement has a name: the benchmark WOD. These are standardized workouts, always identical, repeated at regular intervals to gauge where our fitness stands. Before a competition, they are pure gold.
What is a benchmark WOD?
A benchmark is a fixed WOD. Same movements, same loads, same format, every single time. Because it never changes, it becomes a measuring stick. We run it again after a few weeks of training and the clock speaks for itself.
These tests were born in the world of CrossFit® and spread across all of functional fitness. Two big families shape them:
- The "Girls", short and intense WODs named with female first names
- The "Hero WODs", longer efforts created to honor soldiers and first responders killed in the line of duty
Most of them are For Time or AMRAP formats. Their score can therefore be compared directly from one attempt to the next.
The "Girls": the timed classics
These are the most widely performed tests in the world. Four of them come up again and again:
- Fran — 21-15-9 reps of thrusters and pull-ups, as fast as possible. A sprint that burns in just a few minutes.
- Cindy — a 20-minute AMRAP: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 air squats, on a loop. A bodyweight endurance test.
- Grace — 30 clean and jerks for time. Short, heavy, technical.
- Helen — 3 rounds of a 400 m run, 21 kettlebell swings and 12 pull-ups.
Each one targets a different quality: power, endurance, technique under load. Repeating the same benchmark every two to three months reveals where we progress, and where we stall.
A benchmark never lies. Today's time, compared to the one from three months ago, tells the truth about our training.
The "Hero WODs": effort as tribute
Hero WODs carry the names of soldiers, firefighters or police officers who died in service. The most famous is Murph: a 1-mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats, then another 1-mile run, often with a weighted vest.
It honors Lieutenant Michael Murphy, a U.S. Navy SEAL killed in Afghanistan in 2005. In the United States, it is traditionally performed on Memorial Day.
These WODs are long and grueling. They are not something we improvise. Above all, they test effort management over the long haul, exactly what separates athletes in a multi-event competition.
Using benchmarks before a competition
A benchmark is more than just a workout. It is a preparation tool:
- It reveals our weak points before an event exposes them
- It trains pacing, the effort dosage that wins or loses a WOD
- It builds familiarity with the clock and the pressure of being measured
One tip: we attack a benchmark rested, not at the end of a heavy week. And we always log our score, otherwise the comparison means nothing. Movement standards matter too: an uncounted pull-up skews the whole result.
Ready to test your benchmarks against the reality of an event? Check out the competition calendar and pick a format built for your strengths.
