Hyrox - Anyone done it/doing it?

[Jefferson Steelflex]

After watching a few videos on YouTube, I've signed up for the Hyrox event in London in November.

https://hyrox.com/

I've just joined a new gym and have been able to train for most of the events, so SkiErg, rowing, sled push/pull and the weighted lunges have all been completed, albeit without the 1km run in between. I'm looking to see if any PHers have done this event or will be at the London one, keen to gather as much information as possible and tips/tricks before I start?

What terrifies me is my legs have poor stamina, the lunges or rowing by themselves won't be an issue, but combining with 10k of running and loads of other exercises I wonder if I'll be able to complete it.

Should be fun anyway. Just training for this event has been hugely motivational, and I'm seeing decent gains in areas I haven't really worked much in the past.

[Inspire]

If you haven’t already, I would have a look at Mark Lewis’ videos on YouTube. He provides, I think, lots of useful info on the approach to each component of the event and has just done a joint video with his wife covering off their recent participation.

Thanks

Rob

[JimmyConwayNW]

Given the increase in popularity has anyone else signed up for Hyrox?

[Mark Lewis]

Inspire said:

If you haven’t already, I would have a look at Mark Lewis’ videos on YouTube.

Good advice my friend

[fiatpower]

I’d like to give it a go but they seem to get filled extremely quickly so I miss out

[CG2020UK]

I’ve been offered (attempted to twist my arm) to sign up to a few but so far I’ve held off.

I was going to Dublin this year in November as a pair but the guy who asked me couldn’t get tickets in the end as they sold out.

They do look like a good challenge.

[BevR]

I've signed up for the Birmingham event in October (two weeks after a Spartan race because I'm not a clever man) but I've been doing Hyrox training once or twice a week alongside my other training for a while and think it's brilliant. Probably helps that's there's around a dozen people training for HyRox and a few of them are aiming to be competitive in their age group, their enthusiasm can be infectious.

I've been doing a bit of running in preparation for a half marathon obstacle course (Spartan again) and found doing a full race run through for HyRox way more tiring than a 20k run.

Only downside is I'm having to be careful quite how much I train as I think I ramped up a bit to quickly and my knees have been giving me warning signals. Already decided after my next race I'm going to stick to 10k distance training/events.

[Mark Lewis]

BevR said:

I've signed up for the Birmingham event in October (two weeks after a Spartan race because I'm not a clever man) but I've been doing Hyrox training once or twice a week alongside my other training for a while and think it's brilliant. Probably helps that's there's around a dozen people training for HyRox and a few of them are aiming to be competitive in their age group, their enthusiasm can be

Hyrox is brutal on knees if you have any weakness. Personally I avoid full depth lunges and wall balls until races day. If I hit them in training I’d be a mess.

[BevR]

Mark Lewis said:

Hyrox is brutal on knees if you have any weakness. Personally I avoid full depth lunges and wall balls until races day. If I hit them in training I’d be a mess.

The lunges are okay for me but the wall balls are brutal. I was doing them most sessions but have dialed it back to once a week or so. For me it's the transition from the run to the wall balls that I have to be careful with. I do the first 5-10 quite slowly to stretch out, after that I am okay.

As the race is so far away I'm also going to reduce some of the weights, as I'd heard the carpet at the event had more resistance I had been using 180-200kg on the sled, I'll get back there but I'll slowly build rather than pretty steep pyramids.

One of the trainers at my gym won his age category earlier this year so I'm talking to him about training weights and targets.

[biggbn]

Never gonna do something as intense as that, too old, too fat, too fragile BUT am liking the idea of adding those wall balls to my morning circuit and/or as a separate cardio workout weekends. They look quite brutal. Never been a fan of lunges and my gym doesn't have a sled although I was pretty decent with that in my old gym

[JimmyConwayNW]

Olympia London coming up for me.

Started specifically training for it around 6-8 weeks back. Did a full run through simulation Saturday just gone which gave a huge confidence boost as finished in 1h13 which was significantly better than I had expected.

Running isn't a huge issue for me, even under fatigue but it was the lunges station that zapped me and then wall balls I could improve vastly on.

Quite looking forward to it now. That first full run through really took it out of me though, was fine on the Sunday but absolutely drained come the Monday and like someone else said, wouldn't feel that way off going for a 90min run.

[Mark Lewis]

BevR said:

as I'd heard the carpet at the event had more resistance I had been using 180-200kg on the sled, I'll get back there but I'll slowly build rather than pretty steep pyramids.
.

Everyone moans about the carpet but I don't buy it. I've raced multiple events in various countries and the carpet always feels the same. What tends to happen is that you go off fast on your first 1K, smash the ski, blast out another run and by the time you hit the sled you are doing so more fatigued than you have ever done in training. Personally, I never bother training as heavy on the sled as it is on the day. Instead, I concentrate on moving a lighter sled real fast. That way, when you arrive at the station, your brain is anticipating moving quick! The squat rack is where you train for strength.

[Inspire]

Mark Lewis said:

Good advice my friend

You’re welcome - I think your videos are ace!

Thanks

Rob

[Chicken Chaser]

Inspire said:

You’re welcome - I think your videos are ace!

Thanks

Rob

Seconded. Mark you have a knack of keeping me entertained throughout a video, even when I don't really have that much interest in the subject! You're an inspiration to many.

[Mark Lewis]

Chicken Chaser said:

Inspire said:

You’re welcome - I think your videos are ace!

Thanks

Rob

Seconded. Mark you have a knack of keeping me entertained throughout a video, even when I don't really have that much interest in the subject! You're an inspiration to many.

Thanks guys.

Been a while since I was on here Lost many an hour here in when I had a Scooby back in the day!

[BevR]

Mark Lewis said:

Everyone moans about the carpet but I don't buy it. I've raced multiple events in various countries and the carpet always feels the same. What tends to happen is that you go off fast on your first 1K, smash the ski, blast out another run and by the time you hit the sled you are doing so more fatigued than you have ever done in training. Personally, I never bother training as heavy on the sled as it is on the day. Instead, I concentrate on moving a lighter sled real fast. That way, when you arrive at the station, your brain is anticipating moving quick! The squat rack is where you train for strength.

Sorry slight misunderstanding, the carpets are said to have more resistance than the sleds on the AstroTurf I train on. It's a covered indoor area that also has sand spilled from bags around. I imagine most of the competition carpets should be comparable.

[Jefferson Steelflex]

It was Mark's fault I signed up originally from the YouTube vids, and I absolutely loved it. It was November 22 I did it, I think I got round in 1hr 32m and from memory a couple of the exercises stood out:

- Sled push and pulls are harder than they were at the gym. Carpet felt like it had more resistance but as Mark says is also down to fatigue
- Rowing is always a weak point for me and doing a 1000m row halfway through the event was absolutely painful. I had to keep stopping
- Farmers carry thing was also a bit tougher than expected, but I didn't train that at all as I though walking carrying weights was easy
-Wall balls is the worst. The bds kept telling me i'd missed the target and i ended up doing about 300 of them. Took me over 10 minutes, but was another one I hadn't practiced at all so my own fault.

I've taken a lot of the training for Hyrox into my regular gym routine now, so I do a load of walking lunges on leg day and increased it to 35kg bag, SkiERG is still horrible but a great finisher on back day and I even do some wall balls with an imaginary target if I'm feeling energetic enough.

Due to the popularity of Hyrox I couldn't get a place at London next month so I've signed up to volunteer instead. Hopefully see a few people there so I can dish out some abuse/advice...

Edited by Jefferson Steelflex on Thursday 25th April 16:02

[Jefferson Steelflex]

fiatpower said:

I’d like to give it a go but they seem to get filled extremely quickly so I miss out

Volunteer and you get a guaranteed place at a future event

[JimmyConwayNW]

There are a few facebook pages selling tickets where you will get a ticket for any uk event if you turn notifications on, loads of people pulling out of events thats how I got my Olympia ticket.

I watched a few of your Videos aswell Mark, after getting the ticket, then thinking of st what have I gone and signed up for

[fiatpower]

Jefferson Steelflex said:

Volunteer and you get a guaranteed place at a future event

Good to know, thanks. Will have a look into it