On this site, we’ve covered a number of different CrossFit named workouts, to include some of the most iconic Hero WODs of all time. As harrowing as the stories of legends like Staff Seargeant Timothy P. Davis (DT) and Lieutenant Michael Murphy (Murph) are, there is just something about Senior Chief Petty Officer Chad Wilkinson’s story that hits me hard.
The production CrossFit.com put together with Wilkinson’s widow, Sara, really highlights what the workout is all about.
We’ll discuss more of Wilkison’s story and legacy later on in this article, but for now, let’s get to the workout his tragedy created. The Chad CrossFit workout, also known as Chad 1000x.
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What is Chad 1000x
Wilkinson was a Navy SEAL and prided himself on being ready for any type of assignment, regardless of the various conditions or challenges that were associated with them. In order to be prepared for difficult mountain treks (as well as his more “casual” hobby of climbing some of world’s most epic mountains, such Kilimanjaro), he began doing yuge sets of weighted box step-ups in his garage. This one “simple” movement has formed the basis for the Chad CrossFit workout/Chad 1000x.
I didn’t think it was so “simple”!
Chad 1000x is interesting in that involves elements of CrossFit (the almost comically large rep scheme of the box step-up movement) as well as elements of rucking (the inclusion of the ruck sack and the constant “ascent” that the step-ups create).
What does Chad 1000x look like?
Like most Hero WODs, the Chad CrossFit workout is not for the faint of heart, at least in it’s “Rx” form. Although the step-up height is more than reasonable (especially for men who generally have to deal with at least 24-inch step-ups), 1000 reps is 1000 reps. Also, doing anything with a 45-pound ruck is challenging, even for those who have completed a rucking workout or two in their time!
For those who are unaccumstomed to rucking or who do not regularly embark on rucking ventures, a ruck sack may not be available (that or they don’t trust their kid’s Jansport to hold up with 45 pounds of iron inside!) Wanting to stay in the spirit of doing “weighted” step-ups, a standard (20 pounds for men, 14 pounds for women) weighted vest is substituted for the ruck. When this substitution is made, Chad 1000x looks like this:
Admittedly, before September 13, 2023, I had only ever attempted the Chad CrossFit workout on one occasion. Truth be told, it was one of the more heavily-scaled versions of the WOD as I completed 1000 unweighted step-ups.
Although this version is, for all intents and purposes, “scaled” relative to the Rx version of the WOD, I can assure you that it is incredibly challenging in its own right. If you don’t have access to any type of weighted implement that you can support for an extended period of time (performing Chad 1000x with a barbell or…shudder…performing it as a Farmer’s Carry WOD, isn’t recommended), give 1000 unweighted step-ups a try!
Chad at the 2024 CrossFit Games
Of course, in 2024, the top athletes in the world took on Chad…although in this case, there was a bit of a twist…
This version of Chad had the same 1000 “box” step ups, although in this case, they were more of “stair box step ups”, having to ascend and descend a few boxes on each “rep”.
This isn’t a “standard” version of Chad by any means, but it does certainly present a different challenge…if you happen to have 6 or more plyo boxes available for the endeavor!
What are Good Chad 1000x times? Good Chad 1000x times by age?
Due to its popularity, there is a lot of data out there on the Chad CrossFit workout. As of August 2023, over 3,300 people have submitted their times to the good people at beyondthewhiteboard.com, proving an extremely large sample size to draw some conclusions from.
As far as the Rx version of Chad 1000x, you’re in the elite of the elite if you go sub-41 (for men) or sub-38 (for women). Around 57 minutes (men and women) is good for the top 25th percentile while the median time reported is right around 65 minutes.
One thing to note, according to my time of exactly 75 minutes (from my Chad 1000x experience on September 13, 2023), I’m in the bottom ~27% of male participants. Interestingly enough, only a few months ago, I was in top ~ 13% of male participants in CrossFit Open Workout 23.1, top ~8% in 23.2, and somewhere in the top 10-25 percent void in 23.3. Tony Facchini, who has participated in the last 2 CrossFit Games, finished (with a 50-pound wreck bag) at just under 66 minutes.
So Tony, the CrossFit Games athlete, just barely made the 50th percentile. As such…take the data from beyondthewhiteboard.com (at least with this specific workout) with somewhat of a grain of salt.
In our analysis of good Murph times to beat, we also looked at good times to beat for each respective age group, we have used the same multiplier to formulate age-group standards for Chad 1000x. If you’d like to get a much better idea of the process we used to develop these age-group multipliers, please see the full methods presented in that article!
