Heavy Murph Workout

The Heavy Murph workout is conducted on a 25-minute time clock, during which competitors must perform as many reps as possible of:

10 pull-ups
20 shoulder presses (50 pounds for men; 20 pounds for women)
30 split squats
40 sit-ups

How to Record Your Workout

The Heavy Murph Open includes four separate workout elements. It is the athlete’s responsibility to record the workout in such a way that all workout elements (including required form) are visible to judges in the workout video submission.

All athletes are strongly advised to submit a sample workout video any time from March 28 through April 10 prior to submitting a full workout video to verify setup of equipment and execution of workout elements in advance of undertaking the full workout.

Heavy Murph Exercises

Strict Pull-Ups

Shoulder Presses

Split Squats

Sit-Ups

Workout Rules

To be considered for cash prizes, all competitors in the Heavy Murph 2024 Open must adhere to the following rules. Approved workouts will be ranked based on the total number of reps completed. There will be a 25-minute time clock, during which competitors must perform as many reps as possible in the following order:

10 pull-ups:

Strict pull-ups only, no kipping or butterfly pull-ups.
Palms must face outward, chin must clear the bar at the top of each pull-up, and arms must be fully extended at the bottom of each pull-up.
Hand protection is permitted (lifting gloves, etc.)
Banded pull-ups are acceptable, but your finish time will be placed after other competitors who performed the move unassisted.

20 shoulder presses;

Performed with dumbbells from a seated position on a flat bench with no back support.
Men will use 50-pound dumbbells and women will use 20-pound dumbbells.
Adjustable dumbbells are permitted (e.g., PowerBlock, etc.).
Dumbbells will start on the shoulders and progress in an alternating manner.
The arm must be fully extended and locked out in the up position, with the bicep in line with the ear.
Dumbbells must touch the shoulders in the down position.
Upper body must remain vertical while pressing.
Feet must remain on the floor.

30 split squats:

The athlete must perform 15 Bulgarian split squat reps per leg, for a total of 30 reps for both legs, in any order.
The athlete’s leg must fully extend and lock out in the up position.
The hip crease must be below the knee and the knee should touch the floor in the down position.
A thin yoga mat (approximately 1/8” in thickness) should be used to protect the knee.
A bench must be used for back foot support. Boxes, chairs or odd objects may not be used for back foot support.
The video must show the athlete’s entire body and the full range of motion. Camera angle must be from the side at a 90-degree angle for the split squat.*

40 sit-ups:

Performed with the feet secured under a dumbbell or other object, back flat and arms crossed over the chest.
Hands must be touching the shoulders at all times.
Shoulder blades must touch the ground at the bottom of each sit-up.
Both elbows must touch the legs within 6 inches of the kneecaps at the top of each sit-up.
Butt cannot come off the ground at any point during the sit-up.
Athletes must demonstrate the full range of motion.
The video must show the athlete’s entire body and the full range of motion.*

Athletes are responsible for self-timing their workout, either with an app (i.e. WOD Tracker, SmartWOD Timer, WETime) or by having a gym clock or iPad with a timer clearly in view throughout the workout. Links to timing apps can

Donor Games judges recommend having an individual count reps for you during your workout.

*If you are unsure of your camera angle, you are welcome to submit a short sample video via the Donor Games app up to one week before the competition opens. Judges