400m run, 21 kettlebell swings, 12 pull-ups — repeated three times. The first benchmark to combine all three movement modalities in a single workout. Every scaling option, every substitution, and the pacing strategy most athletes get wrong.
Complete all three movements in order each round. Total: 1.2 km running + 63 KB swings + 36 pull-ups.
Helen was first programmed on CrossFit.com in August 2003, making it one of the original benchmark workouts. What set it apart from Fran and the others before it was the structure: three distinct movement modalities in a single workout — monostructural (running), weightlifting (kettlebell swings), and gymnastics (pull-ups). It was the first benchmark triplet, and that balance is still what makes it one of the best all-around fitness tests in CrossFit.
Helen isn’t as short and brutal as Fran — it sits in a middle zone of 9–15 minutes for most athletes, long enough that pacing matters but short enough that intensity stays high throughout. The run in each round gives you a brief mental break after the swings and pull-ups, but it also keeps your heart rate elevated heading into the next round. There’s nowhere to hide.
The biggest challenge most athletes don’t anticipate: grip fatigue from the kettlebell swings carries directly into the pull-ups. Your forearms are already burning when you reach the bar. Swinging a kettlebell 21 times and then immediately pulling yourself up 12 times is harder than either movement done fresh — and after three rounds of it, you’ll understand exactly why Helen has the reputation it does.
Helen’s Rx version calls for American kettlebell swings — the bell goes overhead, arms fully extended. But the Russian swing (to eye level or shoulder height) is a completely valid and often smarter scaling option that most guides barely mention. Here’s the actual difference:
The case for Russian swings in Helen: the 21 American swings before 12 pull-ups is a deliberate grip challenge. If that combination is causing your pull-up form to break down completely, switching to Russian swings — or reducing to 15 American swings — preserves more of the intended stimulus than struggling through with compromised mechanics. Scaling is not failure; grinding through broken reps is.
Helen’s target time is 9–12 minutes for most athletes. If you’re going much past 15 minutes, scale down — the cardiovascular stimulus is lost when the workout becomes a grind. Here are structured scaling options:
Helen is one of the more equipment-friendly benchmarks — you only need a kettlebell, a pull-up bar, and space to run. But if you’re missing any of those, here’s exactly what to use instead.
| Equipment | Substitution | Reps | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dumbbell(s) | Dumbbell swings (two hands on one DB) or DB Russian swings | 21 | Hold one end of the dumbbell with both hands. Swing to eye level. Slightly less hip drive than KB but same posterior chain stimulus. |
| Barbell | Barbell Romanian deadlifts | 21 | Hinge-dominant substitute. Less cardio than swings but trains the same posterior chain. Use a light load — this is for time. |
| Resistance band | Banded pull-throughs | 21 | Anchor band low, face away, drive hips forward. Good hip hinge substitute if no weight available. |
| Sandbag | Sandbag swings | 21 | Hold by the handles or ends and swing to eye level. More grip-intensive than a kettlebell — go lighter than you think. |
| Nothing / bodyweight | Good mornings or broad jumps | 21 | Good mornings: hands behind head, hinge at hips. Broad jumps are a high-power alternative if you want the cardio spike. |
| Equipment | Substitution | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Rings or TRX | Ring rows (adjust foot position for difficulty) | 12 |
| Resistance bands | Banded pull-ups (loop over bar) or banded rows | 12 |
| Table / sturdy surface | Table rows (inverted rows) | 12 |
| Doorframe + towel | Towel rows | 12 |
| Nothing | Pike push-ups (targets similar pulling muscles) | 12 |
| Machine / option | 400m equivalent |
|---|---|
| Rowing machine | 500m |
| Assault / Echo bike | 1.5 km or ~3 minutes at hard pace |
| Ski Erg | 500m |
| Jump rope | 3 minutes at moderate pace |
| No space to run | Shuttle runs (25m × 16 or 10m × 40) |
The most common mistake in Helen is treating it like Fran — going all-out in round 1 and collapsing in rounds 2 and 3. Helen is a three-round effort that should feel like a sustained hard effort throughout, not a sprint-and-survive. The run in each round gives you a brief chance to breathe, but not enough to recover from a blown-out first round.
The grip fatigue trap. After 21 American swings, your forearms are already loaded. The pull-ups will feel harder than they should. This is by design. The solution is not to rest between swings and pull-ups — it’s to choose a KB weight that leaves something in your grip for the bar. If you’re shaking out your hands for 30 seconds before each pull-up set, your KB was too heavy.
Helen was featured at the 2023 CrossFit Games, which means there’s more elite-level performance data for this workout than almost any other benchmark. The Games athletes completed it in under 7 minutes — a useful reference point for understanding where the ceiling is.
| Level | Men (Rx) | Women (Rx) | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elite / Games-level | < 7:00 | < 7:00 | Unbroken swings and pull-ups every round. Consistent sub-90s 400m runs. |
| Advanced | 7:00–9:00 | 7:00–9:00 | Unbroken swings, 1 pull-up break per round. Consistent run pace. |
| Experienced | 9:00–12:00 | 9:00–12:00 | 1–2 swing breaks, 2 pull-up breaks per round. Sub-10 is a strong milestone. |
| Intermediate | 12:00–15:00 | 12:00–15:00 | Multiple breaks. Still moving with intent throughout. |
| Beginner (scaled) | 10:00–16:00 | 10:00–16:00 | Lighter KB, ring rows or jumping pull-ups. Finishing under 15 min is a solid goal. |
Helen retests well every 6–8 weeks because the 9–15 minute duration is easy to recover from. Track your kettlebell weight, pull-up style, and time on every attempt — consistent variables make the comparison meaningful.
No kettlebell? FITL substitutes dumbbell swings and tells you why. No pull-up bar? Ring rows or table rows with a coaching note. Your Helen — built for your garage, your hotel room, your setup — every time it’s programmed.