Coined as the ultimate “hybrid event”, I thought I’d take on the challenge to compete in my first Hyrox.
My thoughts? Absolutely loved it. Did I get the time I wanted? Absolutely not. Will I do it again? Absolutely.
Hyrox Results
Finished with a 1:24:00 time in the Men’s Open event which took place on Saturday, April 26th in Barcelona. Prior to the race, 1:10:00 was the target. 14 minutes is a lot of time to shave off to reach this goal, but it doesn’t scare me in the slightest. It’s great to have the breakdown of times which helps me program my training more appropriately.
The clear weaknesses were burpee broad jump, wall balls, and running.
How I prepared
4-6 weeks prior
Basketball is my primary sport, so short athletic bursts over long period of time is something I’ve adapted to. Plenty of jumping, cutting, sprints, etc… over the period of a game should translate pretty well to Hyrox.
I stopped competing full-time in September 2024 after accepting a job opportunity. My muscular and aerobic base significantly dropped compared to what it was. While I was still lifting 4-6 times per week, rarely were any high rep or cardiovascular exercises part of my routine.
After purchasing my ticket 6 week prior to the event, cardio was the top priority. Understanding my body and how I’d react, it was important not to rush into large amounts of running. Being 6’8 and 240lbs (109kg) with a history of knee injuries, it was smart to start small and gradually increase my work load. The first 2 weeks involved a 5k run on the weekend, and a 3k interval run during the week.
This first 5k (22m 32s) was set as the foundation so by the time race week came, I could measure myself against it. While prioritizing cardio, I began working on Hyrox stations to familiarise myself and work on my technique. Plenty of Skierg’s and Sled pushes at this point. Continuing regular lifting with SL bulgarian split squats, back squats, front squats, deadlifts, bench press, pull ups, incline bench, calf raises, core…
Diet has been very consistent for the last 2 years. Prioritizing whole foods, avoiding ultra-processed foods. No seed oils, no soda. Rarely eat out at a restaurant or get a takeaway. I’d say about 90% of what I eat throughout the week is on point with being clean, single ingredient products.
2-4 weeks prior
Now doing 3x runs per week. A 5k on the weekend, 1 interval session midweek, and 1 zone 2 long run (8k) on Fridays.
Ran a 22m 37s 5k, then the next week I had a PB with 21m 46s with a 4:21km pace. At this point, I am very happy to see progression. I’ve mentioned cardio was my priority through this training, but nothing comes above staying healthy and not getting injured. Every workout that I pushed myself and didn’t feel any pain, is a huge win.
I did feel a little bit of pain after my long runs and that was due to running in shoes I’d been wearing for the last 11 months. Very worn down, so I had to get a new shoe which would provide some support. After some research and solid reviews, the Puma VELOCITY NITRO 3 HYROX are what I went with. I would certainly recommend these to anyone. Incredibly comfortable and I’ve had no issues or pain since using them.
Implementing track workouts was also very handy at this point. It broke up my training nicely, also helps the weather got better. Training on a bouncier surface was also a nice change from the concrete.
1-2 weeks prior
2 weeks before the event I picked up quite the fever. Body fatigue, headaches, weakness, all that good stuff. This had me out for about 5 days then I slowly started working back into it.
1 week before the event I wanted to get in my last hard sessions to make up for the previous week, while giving myself enough time to recover. This included track sessions, long runs, and strength workouts to 80% of full strength.
Days before
I flew out to Barcelona on Thursday, 24th April. Luckily I have family in Barcelona who I stayed with throughout my trip.
I treated this travel day as a rest day, then the day before the event I did a 5k shakeout run at a local gym. Going to the venue just to get comfortable with my method of travel (train) and seeing the environment, stations, circuit, etc… was incredibly helpful.
Honest Greens was my best friend. I’d have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner throughout my whole trip.
Since my run was at 8:40AM, I didn’t prepare as best as I could in terms of fueling and optimizing sleep. The day before I went out for a late lunch/early dinner with my cousin at a restaurant which didn’t serve the healthiest of options. The timing I ate was in such a grey area where I should have been consuming a high carb meal around 6PM/7PM, but I was getting hungry again at around 10PM, which is when I should have been asleep.
As much as it was a mini-holiday and an opportunity to see my family, how I fuel the day before is essential and it’s something I’ll be stricter with in my next race.
The day of
For the 8:40AM start time, I woke up at around 6:30AM. Drank my water, electrolytes, ate my bagel, banana, and energy bar. Was out the door by 7:30AM. Got on the underground train and checked-in at the venue by 8:00AM.
Had plenty of time to warm-up, use the bathroom, and drink my red-bull. The warm-up station is really helpful in calming the nerves and getting prepared. Once you’re on time and in the process of lining up to race, you just gotta have fun with it. All the work you’ve put in is in the tank. Just stick to the game-plan and enjoy it!
What I’d do different
More prep time
From general observation, the average amount of time one spends preparing for a Hyrox is around 3 months. I bought my ticket on March 15th, which is 42 days prior to the event, which is exactly 6 weeks. With more preparation and a tailored program to work on my weaknesses, there’s no excuses than to get a better time.
More cardio
If you don’t have a good aerobic base in Hyrox, there’s no way you can be successful. As mentioned, my aerobic base significantly declined after competing and it showed. It’s become a non-negotiable to implement 3 cardio based workouts per week.
Cardio is an interesting area for me as it used to be my greatest asset at around 17 from all the activity revolving around basketball. We’d do the Yoyo test, and I’d always be the last man standing competing against myself to get the highest score. The highest I got was in the 21’s. Not sure if I’d get anything close to that now.
You may be wondering why it declined so much, well after my knee surgeries, I never got back to the level I once was. The main focus was also to rehabilitate, strengthen, game-like movements, then back to the court. In my programming, getting cardio back to a good level was never really touched on, which I believe is a huge factor.
A better cardiovascular system improves tissue healing times and reduces recovery time. The moment athletes get fatigued, our biomechanics begin to falter, increasing the risk of injury.
Work on weaknesses
Looking at my results, the big 3 glaring areas which need work are the Burpee Broad Jumps(BBJ), Wall Ball, and running.
I did not anticipate the BBJ to be as difficult as they were. Coming into each exercise at a certain level of fatigue is difficult to replicate in training. Now I have that feel for it, I’m in a better position to plan for it. (Add times)
The Wall Ball will always be difficult as it’s the final exercise. I probably had about 15 reps that didn’t count. Judging from these results, my muscular endurance needs some serious work, and it makes complete sense.
I’m still lifting like I’m a basketball player, meaning anaerobic exercises for 70-80% of 1RM at around 6-10 reps to improve athleticism. While there is still a time and place for this, doing more work around high rep exercises will be more practical to build up that endurance
Finally, running. The most important part of the race. With an average pace of 5:02 per km, there’s plenty of room for improvement. Building a strategic plan to build my cardio while running on compromised legs will be a huge factor in my development.
What’s next
There are a couple events coming up in the UK towards the end of the year. Birmingham in October, and London in December. Lot’s of time to prepare. The time I had gotten was 1:24:00, getting 1:15:00 or lower would be an incredible achievement in either of these events.
Thanks for taking the time to read through my first Hyrox experience. Maybe you found something similar or even seen something that can help along your journey. This marks the beginning of a long, sustainable, and enjoyable fitness journey to push beyond our limits.
