The “Kalsu” Hero WOD honors 1st Lt. James Robert Kalsu, 11th Artillery Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, U.S. Army, who was killed in action on July 21, 1970 in the A Shau Valley, Vietnam. On lists of the hardest CrossFit workouts, “Kalsu,” is a frequent contender.
The workout was designed by John Welbourn @johnwelbourn of CrossFit Football (now @johnniewod) and former Navy Seal Andy Stumpf.
1st Lt. Kalsu was an All-American Offensive Tackle who played a single season with the Buffalo Bills (US National Football League) before leaving professional football to serve in Vietnam. 1st Lt. Kalsu was offered a deferment as a professional football player, but opted to honor his commitment to serve in the military.
3:00 Row or Bike
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10 Walking lunge
10 Lateral lunge
5 inch worm + hip down push up each rep
2 rounds
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3 Front Squat
3 Push Press
3 Thruster
4 total rounds (build lightly after 2 rounds. 3rd and 4th going up to what is still “light”)
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Strength:
Build to a heavy double Front squat in 12:00.
RXConditioning
For Time
100 Thrusters (135/95 lb)
*5 Burpees to start and at the top of every minute
Start with 5 burpees. Then complete as many thrusters as possible until the minute is up. At the top of the minute (1:00) complete another 5 burpees. Repeat each minute until 100 total thrusters are completed.
Intermediate: 95/65lb.
*4 Burpee’s EMOM
Baseline: 35/15lb.
*2 Burpee’s EMOM
3:00 easy walk/bike
+
1:00 pigeon each leg
