Once you consider Tom Holland, you might image him swinging between skyscrapers or backflipping as Spider-Man, not grinding by way of CrossFit-style exercises. However throughout press for Spider-Man: No Manner Dwelling, Holland revealed that his go-to exercise was the enduring CrossFit WOD “Cindy.” Right here’s the loopy kicker to Tom Holland’s CrossFit “Cindy” exercise numbers: His finest is 27 rounds in 20 minutes. Let that sink in for a second.
That’s 135 pull-ups, 270 push-ups, and 405 air squats.
Cindy seems easy on paper as a result of how onerous can body weight be? But it surely’s a traditional take a look at of grit, pacing, and full-body muscular endurance. Whether or not you’re chasing Holland’s rating or wish to degree up your conditioning, this text will make it easier to construct the power, stamina, and psychological toughness to go toe-to-toe with one in every of Hollywood’s fittest stars. Let’s break all of it down with the assistance of Dr. Bo Babenko, then construct it up, and simply possibly, beat Spider-Man at his personal recreation. Are you in? Then let’s go.
Why Crossfit “Cindy” Exercise Works Wonders
Cindy on paper is fundamental: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, and 15 air squats, repeated for 20 minutes. However don’t mistake fundamental for simple. This exercise has humbled many CrossFit athletes and health lovers.
It focuses on push, pull, and squat, three motion patterns that practice your whole physique. You’re coaching again, chest, arms, shoulders, core, and decrease physique each spherical. Moreover, there’s no built-in relaxation; you’re additionally placing your cardiovascular system to the take a look at.
Right here’s what you’ll get in the event you attempt it.
- It’s time-efficient: You get a full-body exercise in a brief period of time.
- It builds muscular endurance: Particularly within the higher physique, which tends to fatigue first.
- It’s a psychological take a look at: You construct psychological toughness by conserving your tempo, pushing by way of fatigue, and refusing to faucet out earlier than the clock runs out.
What It Takes To Take On Tom Holland
Should you’re admiring Tom Holland’s 27-round efficiency like we’re, perceive this: You’re competing in opposition to your physique and the clock. To finish 27 rounds in 20 minutes, it’s essential to end one spherical each 44 seconds, with out fail. That’s elite-level pacing, flawless transitions, and critical muscular endurance.
It’s not simply spectacular—it’s downright freakishly environment friendly. Whereas most individuals crash and burn, Holland thrives. Why? First, he turns it into an EMOM problem, the place he completes one spherical each minute for 20 minutes. Should you end a spherical in 40 seconds, congrats—you’ve earned 20 seconds of invaluable relaxation. Second, Holland usually wears a weighted vest to extend the depth additional. The additional resistance turns every repetition right into a problem and prepares his physique for regardless of the Spider-Man swimsuit throws at him.
Final however not least, he additionally dietary supplements Cindy’s routine with high-rep body weight ladder exercises—resembling a monster 1,500-rep session that includes pull-ups, dips, push-ups, sit-ups, and squats. His strategy is centered on excessive quantity, strict self-discipline, and psychological toughness.
To match Holland’s document, you want a sensible recreation plan. Making an attempt to repeat his strategy is a positive approach to burn out and get injured. Nonetheless, with this coaching technique, you possibly can construct your engine, resilience, and velocity to succeed in that 27-round objective.
Subsequent up: a progressive coaching plan that can assist you do exactly that.
The ten-Week Cindy Exercise Coaching Plan
The primary stumbling block for knocking out the Cindy WOD is your pull-up power and grip endurance. If performing 5 unbroken pull-ups is an issue, Dr. Bo has an answer.
“I’m an enormous fan of the Russian fighter pull-up program from Pavel Tsatsouline to construct pull-up power,” he says. “Moreover, enhancing your general grip power and hanging capability usually enhances your skill to carry out strict pull-ups. I like Ido Portal’s concept of accumulating a number of minutes of hanging every day for a constant month—his essential problem is seven minutes a day.“
If that’s a problem, begin there. If not, let’s start constructing that base.
Construct the Base (Weeks 1–4)
Purpose: Groove excellent kind and construct consistency as much as 15 rounds.
Focus: Nail kind on push-ups, pull-ups, and squats to enhance effectivity and stop overuse accidents, and to change into accustomed to fatigue.
EMOM 10: You’ll rotate by way of pull-ups, push-ups, and air squats, unfold throughout a repeating 3-minute cycle. You’ll proceed this sample for 10 minutes or longer.
- Minute 1: Carry out 3 pull-ups, then relaxation the rest of the minute.
- Minute 2: Carry out 6 push-ups, then relaxation the rest of the minute.
- Minute 3: Carry out 9 air squats, then relaxation the rest of the minute.
That’s 1 spherical of the cycle. Repeat this 3-minute cycle for 3 to five whole rounds, relying in your health degree and tolerance. Do that twice per week.
Half Cindy: 10-minute AMRAP of three pull-ups, 6 push-ups, 9 air squats. Deal with conserving every spherical clean and regular. Take into account including yet another rep to the squats and push-ups every week. Carry out this as soon as each week.
Dial Within the Engine (Weeks 5–7)
Purpose: Enhance pacing, scale back transition time, construct towards 20+ rounds.
Focus: To remain according to sub-1-minute rounds and enhance whole quantity every session.
Cindy Pacing Drills: Carry out 1 spherical each 60 seconds for 10–quarter-hour. If that’s doable, shorten relaxation to 45-50 seconds per spherical. Do that twice per week,
Triset Circuit: 3 rounds (not for time)
- 1A. 8 Push-Ups
- 1B. 13 Air Squats
- 1C. 5 Pull-ups
Relaxation 60 seconds after every Triset. Do that as soon as per week, and every week, add an additional spherical.
Go Time (Weeks 8–10)
Purpose: Hit 25+ rounds in coaching and break by way of plateaus. Do every exercise solely as soon as every week, then relaxation for every week and attempt to beat Tom’s document.
Focus: Preserve velocity and not using a drop-off in kind, embrace the grind, and concentrate on clean transitions. Transferring instantly between actions saves treasured seconds.
20-Minute AMRAP Check (Cindy): Hit it contemporary as soon as per week and attempt to beat your earlier rating.
Demise By Cindy: Is a progressive, escalating exercise the place you carry out Cindy rounds on the minute, including one additional spherical each minute till you possibly can not sustain.
- Minute 1: Do 1 full spherical of Cindy (5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats)
- Minute 2: Do 2 rounds
- Minute 3: Do 3 rounds (Should you ever get right here, take a bow)
Transition Pace Circuit
- 1A. 5 Pull-Ups
- 1B. 10 Push-Ups
- 1C. 15 Squats
- 1D. 10 Unilateral Dumbbell Rows per aspect
- 1E. 10 Incline Plyo Push-Ups
- 1F. 15 Squats
3–4 rounds, no relaxation between workouts, 60 sec relaxation on the finish of every circuit
Dr. Bo Babenko Kind Ideas for Tom Holland’s CrossFit ‘Cindy’ Exercise
When time is of the essence, effectivity and kind come first. Right here, Dr. Bo explains the finer particulars of the pull-up, push-up, and air squat so you possibly can take purpose at Spiderman.
Pull-Ups
Method can also be usually missed in terms of pull-ups—easy cues resembling wrapping your thumb across the bar, getting your knuckles up towards the ceiling to ‘rev the bar up,’ and creating exterior rotation torque to attach the fingers all through the arms into the lats will help.
Push-Ups
For Cindy, hand placement will decide how shortly you fatigues. To reduce fatigue, range your grip and hand placement commonly. Tempo is significant for a similar motive; we wish to preserve a handy guide a rough concentric tempo, in any other case it’s a signal that fatigue is taking on. Should you start to combat by way of fatigue and sacrifice kind, we begin to edge nearer to the danger of harm.
Shave Seconds Off Your Air Squats
In terms of replicating Tom Holland’s CrossFit ‘Cindy’ Exercise as a lot as potential, probably the most easy resolution is to regulate your foot placement. It is advisable discover a approach to enhance quantity and handle fatigue by sustaining your ideally suited squat place. Nonetheless, within the brief time period, in the event you’re making an attempt to enhance your rating, use a bounce or rebound by participating your hamstrings and hitting your calves. This system must be practiced and educated for security, but it surely’s additionally a good way to shave seconds and increase your general athletic capability.
