The workout
Women: 21-15-9 Thruster 30 kg, Pull-ups
How Fran works
Fran uses a 21-15-9 rep scheme: you do 21 reps of each movement, then 15, then 9. The clock stops after the last rep. Your score is your time.
Fran is one of the Girls. The Girls are the best-known benchmark workouts in functional fitness and come from CrossFit® training. Short, with just a few movements, and built so you can repeat them every few months and read your progress straight off the clock.
What's a good Fran time?
The standards apply to Rx, meaning with the prescribed weights and no scaling. They're a rough reference, not statistics across all athletes. For women, times are set about 10% longer and rounds about 10% lower.
| Level | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Elite | up to 2:30 | up to 2:45 |
| Advanced | up to 4:00 | up to 4:25 |
| Intermediate | up to 6:30 | up to 7:10 |
| Beginner | up to 10:00 | up to 11:00 |
| Novice | over 10:00 | over 11:00 |
Tips for Fran
A short, intense workout. Break the big sets into chunks early, for example 21 as 12 and 9, instead of going to failure. Short breaks of a few breaths beat long breaks later.
How to scale Fran
If part of it is still too hard, scale it so the workout keeps its pace and intended stimulus. Log it as "Scaled". Possible options:
- Thruster: Dumbbell Thruster; Thruster with an empty bar
- Pull-up: Banded pull-up; Jumping Pull-up from a box