Hyrox: T-26 days

It’s my first time participating and I’ve been training for a little over 2 months now. Someone called it the “mid-life crisis olympics”, and if that’s the case, this feels like v5 to me.

My goal is simple: survive.

Thinking back to my registration, it must have been confidence or ignorance that pushed me forward. Or both, along with the desire to form new memories through physical challenges. After all, it’s been awhile since I’ve done so. The last time was a marathon back in Oct 2023. Loved and hated it at the same time.

Based on what I’ve found, it looks more feasible than a marathon but it could be subjective. So, I’ll have to enter the dragon’s lair to see for myself. Something interesting to note is that I’ll be participating the event with a good friend of mine. I believe the challenge for both of us is that we aren’t training together cause we live in different countries.

It's quite a disadvantage because teamwork is the name of the game for the men’s doubles category. Doing the next best thing, I’ve decided to compile a list of resources for ease of reference based on social media advices. Here we go.

The structure is simple.

There are 8km and 8 workout stations in total. How it works is that you run 1km, followed by 1 workout. Then, you run 1km, and do 1 workout. 8 times. The good news is that the sequence is always the same.

• 1km run, 1000m SkiErg

• 1km run, 50m sled push

• 1km run, 50m sled pull

• 1km run, 80m burpee broad jumps

• 1km run, 1000m row

• 1km run, 200m farmers carry

• 1km run, 100m sandbag lunges

• 1km run, 100 wall balls

The bad news is that while the rulebooks cover the general information, it isn’t well-designed for visual learners. Also, they don’t cover tips and tricks. I found a few:

1. Men’s Doubles

• General tip

• Nutritional tips

• Potential strategy

• Partner transitions

• Switching more often

• Start at your pace

2. SkiErg

• Pacing

• Technique

3. Burpees broad jumps:

• Sequenced jumps

• Penalty reminders

4. Sled push

• Technique

• Mistakes to avoid

5. Sled pull

• Strategic assist

6. Wallball

• Seamless transition

I didn’t even cover all the exercises, there’s just so much to go through especially as a first time participant. I was intending on breaking down every station one by one but I have a feeling I’ll need to do that part by part. This will do for now.