It’s 7.15am on a dreary, drizzly Friday and I’m standing in my shorts and vest, contemplating the meaning of life. Hannah (@hcfitt), personal trainer at Hyrox-affiliated gym MZ9 (https://mz9sports.co.uk), is wearing more appropriate attire and a bigger smile than I am. Frankly, I feel pretty sick: I’m 53-years-old and have signed up to compete in the ‘blue riband’ Hyrox event at London Excel on November 30th. And yes, I’m bricking it.
But they do say practice makes perfect and today, despite the ungodly hour, it’s another Hyrox-specific workout. I’ve been trying to nail two of these each week for the last couple of months and, while I’m a long way from being proficient, I can see the benefits of the training. I can also see the difference in my ability to run ‘compromised’. Having come primarily from a running background, people tell me Hyrox is ‘basically a running race’. I think it’s designed to allay my fears. What they haven’t taken into account is my acute lack of flexibility and very real hatred of burpees. As for wall balls, well, the less said the better.
Unless you’ve been living on Mars, you can’t fail to have seen the Hyrox name popping up in gyms, social media, running clubs and magazines. It’s the ‘must-do’ fitness event with cross-over appeal: cheaper and less time-consuming than an Ironman and more accessible with fewer skillsets than CrossFit. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security though – Hyrox is tough with a capital ‘T’. It comprises eight one-kilometre runs interspersed with eight ‘functional’ fitness stations, each one designed to test your mettle and push your body to the limits.
Today’s session is no different. It’s 3 x 15 minutes AMRAP (as many reps as possible) broken down into sets of the following: 500m run, 40m sled push, 40 wall balls; 500m run, 100m farmer’s carry, 500m ski; 500m run, 50m burpee broad jumps, 50m sandbag lunges. It’s brutal and I’m feeling queasy from the off. Did I mention it’s 7.15am?
I think where Hyrox has really captured the imagination is in its variation. It is a challenge, no question, but it attracts a much wider audience than its competitors – everyone from average gym-goers to accomplished athletes, CrossFit enthusiasts to runners and triathletes. My journey into Hyrox was actually fuelled by my best friend’s nephew laying down the gauntlet with his virgin Hyrox completion time in 2023 (1hr 26mins). Being of a competitive disposition, I thought ‘how hard can it be?’. Well, the answer is pretty bloody hard.
The beauty of training for Hyrox though is that you don’t have to be smashing out Hyrox-specific sessions every day. Running is such a big part of the event that focusing on this element remains of key importance. Similarly, strength work in the gym will also pay dividends, especially exercises that can improve some of the functional elements of Hyrox (farmer’s carry, wall balls etc). Of course, practising running when your legs are burning from pushing a sled the weight of eight Easyjet-compliant 20kg suitcases is definitely going to help. But it’s not essential.
As for my session this morning, I completed it. It wasn’t pretty, especially as I was on the edge from the get-go. But it’s another one in the bag. Race day is now fast approaching and there will only be a few key sessions left in my training cycle this time round. Age, it seems, is not a barrier to Hyrox entry. While the bulk of the entries are between 30-45, the age groups above this are still packed – more than enough to whet the competitive appetites of anyone looking to do well. And if you’re goal is to complete, then there’s plenty of kudos that goes with saying you’re no longer a Hyrox virgin.
