AMRAP With Friends

20 minute AMRAP

The Centurion

Steady engine · Aerobic Matrix · intensity 2 of 5

The workout

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:

Overview

The Centurion is 10 diamond push-ups, 15 v-ups, 20 fast calf raises, and 40 high knees. The fast calf raises and the diamond push-ups trade the calves and the arms. 40 high knees is the long piece, and it keeps the legs in the work, so the calves do not get a rest before the next round.

Muscles worked

Energy systems

These are overlapping contributions. This workout is not assigned to one energy system.

This workout departs from its style on the profile below.

  • Glycolytic: Low
  • Oxidative: High
  • Neuromuscular: Moderate

Training effect

Immediate demand

20 minutes, intensity 2 of 5. Today the limiter is the arms and the calves, along with 40 high knees.

Intended stimulus

The style is built so four movements keep you moving for the full clock. On this workout that is 10 diamond push-ups, 15 v-ups, 20 fast calf raises, and 40 high knees.

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

40 high knees is where the round gets hard. The other movements still have to be finished after it.

Pacing

Saves the large leg muscles but destroys the calves and midline.

40 high knees is where the round gets long. That set is where a planned break belongs. If that set falls apart, shorten the diamond push-ups on the next round rather than rushing it.

The movements

Diamond Push-ups

Muscular failure happens suddenly here. Break your sets earlier than you think you need to.

What not to do. Letting the elbows drift outward as the set gets hard.

V-Ups

If you bend your knees to reach your toes, you are cheating the lower abdominals.

What not to do. Bending the knees to bring the feet closer to the hands.

Fast Calf Raises

As the calves fill with lactic acid, your body will naturally try to shorten the range of motion. Fight for maximum height on the 20th rep just like you did on the 1st rep.

What not to do. Cutting the lift short, so the heels never reach full height.

High Knees

Land lightly on the balls of your feet. If you are stomping flat-footed, you are destroying your momentum and your knees.

What not to do. Leaning back to swing the knees higher instead of keeping the torso stacked.

Why these movements

The fast calf raises and the diamond push-ups trade the calves and the arms. 40 high knees is the long piece, and it keeps the legs in the work, so the calves do not get a rest before the next round.

Scaling

Keep all four movements in the round. Drop reps so the round stays continuous.

Diamond Push-ups

  • Hands elevated. Hands on a bench, chair or step. The higher the surface, the easier the rep.
  • From the knees. Knees down, hips in line with the shoulders — do not let the hips pike up.
  • Partial range. Lower as far as you can control and press back. Depth grows as you do.

V-Ups

  • Knees bent. Bend the knees to shorten the lever. The shorter it is, the lighter it is.
  • Partial range. Move only through the range where you can keep the lower back on the floor.

Fast Calf Raises

  • 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.

High Knees

  • Low impact. Keep one foot down throughout — march the pattern instead of running it.
  • Slower cadence. Same movement, fewer beats per minute. Cadence is the dial, not the shape.

Mistakes and who it is for

  • Opening the diamond push-ups at a sprint makes the high knees the piece that falls apart.
  • Resting until you feel fresh between movements removes the point of keeping them in one round.
  • Spending the first minutes hard leaves the later rounds as a different, slower workout.

Suited to someone who wants 20 minutes through Diamond Push-ups, V-Ups, Fast Calf Raises, High Knees.

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

Run it with friends

The Centurion runs on a shared countdown: share a rally link, everyone gets the same 20-minute clock, and the leaderboard updates as people log rounds.

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