10 minute AMRAP
The See-Saw
Local muscle burn · Localized Trap · intensity 3 of 5
The workout
As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes of:
Overview
The See-Saw is 10 hand-release push-ups, 15 supermans, and 20 air squats. The work moves through the chest, the upper back, and the quads instead of sitting on one muscle.
Muscles worked
Chest
Quads
Upper back
Energy systems
These are overlapping contributions. This workout is not assigned to one energy system.
- Glycolytic: High
- Oxidative: Low
- Neuromuscular: Moderate
Training effect
Immediate demand
10 minutes, intensity 3 of 5. Today the limiter is the air squats.
Intended stimulus
The round spreads the work across more than one region. On this workout that is 10 hand-release push-ups, 15 supermans, and 20 air squats.
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
20 air squats is where the round gets hard. The other movements still have to be finished after it.
Pacing
The squats act as an active flush while transitioning from anterior to posterior focus.
Keep each round about the same length. Do not drop the air squats to keep the other sets moving.
The movements
Hand-Release Push-ups
This enforces a dead-stop and prevents cheating the depth. Use this variation to humble users who claim they can do 50 push-ups unbroken.
What not to do. Resting the whole body on the floor instead of releasing and pressing straight away.
Supermans
The pause at the top of every rep is mandatory to ensure muscular contraction, not momentum.
What not to do. Bending the knees to get the thighs higher.
Air Squats
Let gravity do the work on the way down. Pull yourself into the bottom quickly, then explode up. Use your arms for rhythm.
What not to do. Cutting the depth once the legs burn, so the hip crease stops above the knee.
Why these movements
The work moves through the chest, the upper back, and the quads instead of sitting on one muscle.
Scaling
Keep every movement in the round. Drop reps on the hardest piece before you drop a movement.
Hand-Release 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.
Supermans
- Shorter range. Lift only as high as you can hold the position without arching the back.
- Both legs. Drive through both feet instead of one.
Air Squats
- To a seat. Squat to a chair or box and stand back up. Lower the seat as you improve.
- Hold a support. Hands on a doorframe or chair back to sit deeper than balance allows alone.
- Shorter range. Go only as deep as you can control, and stop before the heels lift.
Mistakes and who it is for
- Opening the hand-release push-ups at a sprint makes the air squats the piece that falls apart.
- Resting until you feel fresh between movements removes the point of keeping them in one round.
- Letting the air squats shrink so the rest of the round can speed up changes the workout on the page.
Suited to someone who wants 10 minutes through Hand-Release Push-ups, Supermans, Air Squats.
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
Track every round. Sync with friends when you want to.
The See-Saw is a 10-minute clock with rounds and splits for you. Share a rally link when other people join, and the leaderboard updates as they log rounds.