wod-extraction

WOD Extraction — Converting Workouts to Whiteboard Script

Overview

Take any workout description — from a whiteboard photo, a coach's programming post, a competition event description, or a casual text message — and produce well-formed Whiteboard Language syntax that captures both the workout structure and the implied measurements the athlete cares about.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• A user provides a workout in plain English (or any natural language) and wants it converted to Whiteboard Language syntax
• A user asks to "write this workout in Whiteboard syntax" or "encode this workout"
• A competition workout needs to be transcribed into the project's wod/ library
• The user wants help understanding what metrics a workout is tracking

---

Core Concept: What Does the Athlete Want to Measure?

Every workout implies what should be measured. Encode both the prescription AND the collectible metrics.

Workout Intent	Athlete Measures	Syntax Signal
"For Time"	Time to complete	Reps/distance prescribed; time tracked automatically
"AMRAP in X minutes"	Rounds completed	20:00 AMRAP with prescribed exercises
"EMOM for X minutes"	Completion per interval	(N) :60 EMOM with + children
"Run for 20 minutes"	Distance covered	Fixed timer + ?m
"Run 5K"	Time it took	5km Run; time tracked automatically
"Work up to a heavy single"	Weight achieved	?lb / ?kg
"Max reps in 1 minute"	Reps performed	Fixed timer + ?

Collectible Rule

Prescribed (given to athlete) → write literally. Outcome (athlete discovers) → use ? placeholder.

Symbol	Meaning
?	collectible reps
:?	collectible timer
^:?	collectible count-up timer
?lb / ?kg	collectible resistance
?m / ?mile / ?km	collectible distance

---

Whiteboard Script Reference

Statement Structure

[group-prefix] [rounds] [timer] [reps] [effort] [resistance] [distance] [action]

Indentation creates parent-child relationships.

Fragments

Timer

5:00    → 5 min countdown      :30     → 30 sec
1:30    → 1 min 30 sec         ^5:00   → 5 min count-up
:?      → collectible timer    ^:?     → collectible count-up

Reps

21      → 21 reps (when preceding an effort)
?       → collectible reps

Effort — exercise name, Rest, AMRAP, EMOM, etc.

Resistance

95lb    32kg    bw    1.5bw    ?lb    ?kg    @135lb

Distance

400m    1000m    1mile    5km    ?m    ?mile    ?km

Rounds

(3)              → 3 rounds
(21-15-9)        → 3 rounds with rep scheme 21, 15, 9
(10-9-8-…-1)     → descending rounds

Group Prefix

-    → "round": children run sequentially as separate steps
+    → "compose": children bundled into one set (EMOMs, complexes, supersets)

No prefix = default repeat group.

Actions

[:action-name]    [:!pinned]

Indentation

(3)                   ← parent: 3 rounds
  400m Run            ← child (implicit repeat)
  21 KB Swings 53lb
  12 Pullups

---

Conversion Patterns

For Time

Input: Fran: 21-15-9 Thrusters (95lb) and Pullups, for time

(21-15-9)
  Thrusters 95lb
  Pullups

Time tracked automatically; no :? needed.

AMRAP

Input: 20-minute AMRAP: 5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 air squats

20:00 AMRAP
  5 Pullups
  10 Pushups
  15 Air Squats

EMOM

Input: EMOM 30 minutes: 5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 air squats

(30) :60 EMOM
  + 5 Pullups
  + 10 Pushups
  + 15 Air Squats

Intervals with Rest

Input: 4 rounds of 100m swim with 30 seconds rest

(4)
  100m Swim
  :30 Rest

Single Modality For Time

Input: 150 wall ball shots at 20lb, for time

150 Wall Ball Shots 20lb

Distance-Based For Time

Input: Row 1000m, 50 thrusters 45lb, 30 pullups — for time

1000m Row
50 Thrusters 45lb
30 Pullups

Max Weight

Input: Work up to a 1-rep max clean & jerk

1 Clean & Jerk ?lb

Max Reps in Time Domain

Input: In 1 minute, as many pushups as possible

1:00 ? Pushups

Run for Time, Measure Distance

Input: Run for 20 minutes, record distance

20:00 ?m Run

Run a Distance, Measure Time

Input: Run 5K for time

5km Run

EMOM Complex

Input: EMOM 20 minutes: 2 cleans, 1 press, 3 front squats

(20) 1:00
  + 2 Clean
  + 1 Press
  + 3 Front Squat

Descending Reps

Input: 21-15-9 deadlifts at 225lb and handstand pushups

(21-15-9)
  Deadlift 225lb
  Handstand Pushups

Multi-Section Workout

Input: Warmup: 4x100m swim/30s rest. Main: 8x50m kick/30s rest. Cooldown: 400m easy.

(4) Warmup
  100m Swim
  :30 Rest

(8)
  50m Kick
  :30 Rest

400m Cooldown

Rest Between Rounds

Input: 5 rounds: 20 pullups, 30 pushups, 40 situps, 50 air squats. Rest 3 min between.

(5)
  + 20 Pullups
  + 30 Pushups
  + 40 Situps
  + 50 Air Squats
  3:00 Rest

Bodyweight Loads

Input: 10-9-8…1 Deadlift 1.5BW, Bench BW, Clean 0.75BW

(10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1)
  Deadlift 1.5bw
  Bench Press 1bw
  Clean 0.75bw

Timed Sections

Input: 5 min: 100 KB Swings 70lb. 1 min rest. 10 min: 10 Turkish Getups 70lb.

5:00 100 KB Swings 70lb
1:00 Rest
10:00 10 Turkish Getups 70lb

Tabata

Input: Tabata air squats (8 rounds: 20 sec on, 10 sec off). Record lowest round.

(8)
  :20 ? Air Squats
  :10 Rest

Left/Right Asymmetry

Write separate lines per side:

(20)
  + 1 Clean & Press Left
  + 1 Clean & Press Right
  + 2 Front Squat Right

---

Decision Framework

Step 1: Identify Workout Type

Clue	Type	Key Syntax
"For time"	For Time	Reps/distance prescribed, time implicit
"AMRAP"	AMRAP	XX:00 AMRAP
"EMOM"	EMOM	(N) :60 EMOM + + children
"Max reps"	Max Reps	Fixed timer + ?
"Max weight", "heavy", "1RM"	Max Weight	Exercise + ?lb/?kg
"For distance", "run/row for X min"	For Distance	Fixed timer + ?m
"Tabata"	Tabata	(8) :20 + :10 Rest

Step 2: Prescribed vs Collected

Element	Prescribed	Collected
Time	5:00, 20:00	:?, ^:?
Reps	21, 15	?
Weight	95lb, 32kg	?lb, ?kg
Distance	400m, 5km	?m, ?km

Step 3: Grouping

• Sequential exercises (one at a time): no prefix
• Composed/complex/superset (done together): + prefix
• In rounds: indent under (N) parent

---

Common Mistakes

❌ Don't	✅ Do
Warmup: (colon = timer syntax)	Warmup
Child's Pose (apostrophe in name)	Childs Pose
# Header inside Whiteboard block	Put headers outside the code fence
[Rest] 2:00 (brackets = actions)	2:00 Rest
:? on a for-time workout (redundant)	Omit — time tracked automatically
+ 400m Run in sequential rounds	No prefix for sequential exercises
21 Thrusters under (21-15-9)	Omit reps — rounds define the scheme
95 with no unit	95lb
For Time as an effort name	Omit — time tracking is implicit

---

Output Format

# Workout Name

**Category**: [CrossFit Benchmark | StrongFirst | Competition | Custom]  
**Type**: [For Time | AMRAP | EMOM | Max Weight | Intervals]  
**Difficulty**: [Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced]

## Description
[Brief description]

```wod
[Whiteboard Language syntax]
```

## Collectible Metrics
- [What this workout measures and why]