The workout
| Reps | Movement | Rx men | Rx women |
|---|---|---|---|
| 400 m | Run | – | – |
| 21 | Kettlebell Swing | 24 kg | 16 kg |
| 12 | Pull-up | – | – |
Women: 3 RFT: 400 m Run, 21 KB Swings 16 kg, 12 Pull-ups
How Helen works
Helen is done for time: all rounds and reps as fast as possible, in the order given. Your score is the time to your last rep.
Helen 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 Helen 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 8:00 | up to 8:50 |
| Advanced | up to 9:30 | up to 10:25 |
| Intermediate | up to 12:00 | up to 13:10 |
| Beginner | up to 15:00 | up to 16:30 |
| Novice | over 15:00 | over 16:30 |
Tips for Helen
Find a pace you can hold and break the reps into fixed sets before you get tired. Transitions between movements often cost more time than the movements themselves.
How to scale Helen
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:
- Run: Shorter distance; Walk-run intervals
- Kettlebell Swing: Lighter kettlebell; KB Deadlift
- Pull-up: Banded pull-up; Jumping Pull-up from a box