10 minute AMRAP
Backdraft
Upper-lower switch · Blood Shunt · intensity 3 of 5
The workout
As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes of:
Overview
Backdraft is 30 double-tap jumps, 10 t-press ups, and 16 reverse lunges. The work moves through the quads and the upper back instead of sitting on one muscle.
Muscles worked
Energy systems
These are overlapping contributions. This workout is not assigned to one energy system.
- Glycolytic: Moderate
- Oxidative: High
- Neuromuscular: Moderate
Training effect
Immediate demand
10 minutes, intensity 3 of 5. Today the limiter is the double-tap jumps.
Intended stimulus
The same upper-lower switch, held long enough that the work keeps moving while the heart rate stays up. On this workout that is 30 double-tap jumps, 10 t-press ups, and 16 reverse lunges.
Repeated practice
Repeat the same workout and compare the score. What can change over weeks is how long that pace lasts. One time through does not produce that change.
Body-composition context
Body weight changes with the rest of how you eat and train. This workout is one piece of work on one day.
Expected feel
30 double-tap jumps is where the round gets hard. The other movements still have to be finished after it.
Pacing
Fast penguin taps into a short-range rear-delt press, then lunges to finish the shunt. Soft landings; arms stay heavy on the T.
Keep each round about the same length. Do not drop the double-tap jumps to keep the other sets moving.
The movements
Double-Tap Jumps (Penguin Taps)
This perfectly simulates the neurological timing of a double-under with a jump rope. Keep the torso completely hollow and rigid in the air.
What not to do. Bending forward to reach the thighs instead of jumping higher.
T-Press Ups
The range of motion on this is naturally very short. Do not force your chest higher by straining your neck. Focus entirely on the squeeze in the back of your shoulders.
What not to do. Craning the neck to force the chest higher than the rear delts can drive.
Reverse Lunges (Total)
Keep your torso completely upright. Leaning forward shifts the load to the lower back and robs the quads of the intended tension.
What not to do. Stepping back too short, which forces the front shin to angle over the toe.
Why these movements
The work moves through the quads and the upper back instead of sitting on one muscle.
Scaling
Keep an upper-body movement and a lower-body movement in the same round. Drop reps on both before you drop one of them.
Double-Tap Jumps (Penguin Taps)
- Step instead of jump. Same pattern, same range, no flight. Keeps the pace without the landing.
- Lower and slower. Keep the jump but cut the height and take the landing softly.
T-Press Ups
- Shorter lift. Drive into the floor but only lift as high as you can control without the hips or neck cheating.
- Hold the squeeze. Reach the top and freeze for a count instead of cycling reps. Same drive, less fatigue management.
Reverse Lunges (Total)
- Hold a support. One hand on a wall or chair for balance. The legs still do the work.
- Shorter range. Drop only as far as you can stand back up from without pushing off your hands.
Mistakes and who it is for
- Opening the double-tap jumps at a sprint makes the double-tap jumps the piece that falls apart.
- Resting until you feel fresh between movements removes the point of keeping them in one round.
- Letting the double-tap jumps shrink so the rest of the round can speed up changes the workout on the page.
Suited to someone who wants 10 minutes through Double-Tap Jumps (Penguin Taps), T-Press Ups, Reverse Lunges (Total).
Scoring and progression
Work through the movements in the order listed, then start the next round. Your score is the number of complete rounds plus any reps of the round you were partway through when the clock hit zero — written as rounds plus reps, so seven full rounds and twelve reps is7+12.
Progression is repeating this workout and comparing that score. The page does not promise a change from one time through.
Related workouts
- Flash Point
Same quads and upper back, shorter clock
- Shock Front
Same quads and upper back, longer clock
- Arterial Pull
Same quads and upper back, longer clock
Run it with friends
Backdraft runs on a shared countdown: share a rally link, everyone gets the same 10-minute clock, and the leaderboard updates as people log rounds.