Video summary

My Unconventional Training leading up to the HYROX World Championships

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Key takeaways

Sport

Overview

Fresh off winning the HYROX World Championships in their age group, the speaker explains how a fitness background that evolved over roughly 16–17 years eventually led to an unconventional training approach—and a win.

2008–2009: Starting Point (Aesthetic Goals + CrossFit-Style Training)

  • Age: 27–28
  • Starting stats: ~205 lbs with 20%+ body fat
  • Reason for hiring a trainer: Mostly aesthetic improvement

Training approach:

  • CrossFit-style lifting
  • Cardio intervals between sessions (rowing or running intervals)
  • Later, they joined Salt City CrossFit in Syracuse, NY

2010–2014: Endurance + Triathlon Building

Triathlon progression

  • 2010: Olympic distance
  • 2011: Half-IRONMAN (they felt they “would die” afterward)
  • 2012: IRONMAN Lake Placid

Kona qualification attempt

  • They missed Kona qualification by one spot
    • They lost the final spot around mile 25 on the run.
  • After that, they trained obsessively with a triathlon coach
    • Using TrainingPeaks
    • Emphasizing consistent daily execution

Performance highlights by year

  • 2013: Third in their age group at Lake Placid → earned a Kona slot
    • Kona 2013: difficult due to GI issues
  • 2014: Big improvement
    • Felt like they went sub-9:40 at Lake Placid
    • Ran Kona 2014 in ~9:36
    • Shifted to a more elite triathlon coach

2015–2017: Loss of Motivation + Injury

Motivation and CrossFit focus shift

  • 2015: Lost motivation for training
  • Started CrossFit more often
    • They helped start a Syracuse CrossFit gym in 2013
    • ~3–4 classes/week
  • They were transitioning and not fully locked into improving a single discipline

Overtraining injury (MCL)

  • 2016: Tore their MCL
    • Caused by excessive daily training
    • ~4–5 hours/day with metcons
    • Not enough rest for CrossFit recovery

2017 move to Colorado

  • Training became more outdoors-focused
  • Mountain biking became a favorite
  • They stayed fit but weren’t fully committed to maximizing any one discipline

2020–2024: Going All-In on CrossFit Strength

Training and nutrition adjustments

  • Reduced cardio volume
  • Stopped running for periods
  • Increased protein
  • Returned to more red meat/carbs
  • Improved strength and muscle:
    • Peak CrossFit weight: ~188 lbs
    • Current: ~175 lbs at ~8% body fat

Results in CrossFit competitions

  • PRs: back/front squat, clean, snatch
  • Age-group competitions improved consistently (reaching semi-finals)
  • However, they often lost to workouts requiring a standard they couldn’t meet consistently—especially a 225-lb snatch requirement

HYROX/CrossFit culture reflections

  • They enjoy finishing long events
  • They dislike long warmups for short, intense formats

HYROX Experiences Before the Win (2021–2024)

2021: Dallas (Individual Pro)

  • With little specific prep, they placed third
  • They liked HYROX’s blend of:
    • strength
    • cardio
    • muscle endurance

2022: Vegas (Doubles)

  • Finished second in the world (~54 minutes)
  • Enjoyed the field being less “runner-heavy” early on

2023–2024: Setback (Shoulder injury)

  • 2023: Mountain bike crash caused shoulder injury
    • Partially torn labrum
  • They couldn’t snatch 225 lbs reliably
    • This reduced their long-term CrossFit “games” options

2024: Chicago (World Championships)

They aimed to win but mispaced:

  • Went too hard on the run early
  • They were in sled lane 3, which viral videos suggested was extremely slow
  • Their sled push took 5+ minutes (typical was ~3), causing a major blow-up
  • Finished in 70 minutes (their slowest HYROX race)
  • They believed it cost them the win and left a “sour taste”

Path to the 2025–2026 HYROX World Win

Sweden World Championships lead-in

  • After doubles in Chicago, they rebuilt endurance with a friend
  • Running gradually reintroduced:
    • 15 → 30 miles/week

2025: Individual Pro improvements

Venues mentioned:

  • Vegas
  • Houston
  • New York

Notable outcome:

  • About 59 minutes in New York
  • They noted sled conditions were unusually easy and felt the time was “a little unrealistic” for them

Lead-up for Sweden: Coaching + Bike-Heavy Training

  • Hired a coach: Natasha (NVDM coaching)
  • Emphasized biking heavily for ~4 months
  • Minimal gym work (often once/week)
  • No sled push/pull since Phoenix

Biking focus:

  • High volume intervals (including V2/max and threshold)

Running during this phase:

  • ~20–25 miles/week
  • Few intervals
  • No track sessions

Race Recap: HYROX World Championships, Sweden

Logistics

  • Arrived the day before via red-eye
  • Rested and fueled properly
  • Race time: 3:00 p.m.

Strategy

  • Paced conservatively early (unlike Chicago)
    • Avoided ego-driven fast starts
  • Strengths:
    • steady running
    • strong finishing on stations

Key Positioning by Segment

Ski

  • Around 25th when they finished the ski segment

Run → Sled

  • Entered sled around 15th
  • Exited second
  • They attributed the jump to cycling conditioning transferring to sled muscle groups (quads/glutes) via high wattage intervals

Second sled portion

  • They believed they entered third
  • Exited around fifth
  • They noted sled pull technique isn’t their focus

Penalty

  • Received a 15-second penalty on the sled pull
  • Cause: toe touched a line
  • Their explanation: it happened while picking up the rope; they walked back before pulling

Station Performance & Critical Moments

Burpee broad jumps

  • Took a conservative approach to avoid penalties
  • A strict judge and unclear instructions led them to slow slightly
    • Risking loss of speed

Row

  • Maintained steady pacing around 150ish
  • Shared rowing tips:
    • foot setup before gripping the handle
    • correct damper level
    • adjusting mechanics to save quads for lunge/wall balls

Lunges + wall balls

  • Felt this was where they could gain ground
  • The judge scrutinized their lunges
  • They adjusted to move more conservatively

Wall balls sequence:

  • Entered wall balls in third
  • Planned to maintain pace
  • Briefly dropped a ball at 60 reps (~1 second), then recovered
  • Later, when the announcer said:

    “Eric [Hinnman] is going to be your world champion” they realized another competitor had failed/dropped wall balls multiple times

Finish + Aftermath

Closing performance

  • Finished strong and collapsed
  • Counted seconds up through the expected 15-second gap
  • Concluded no one surpassed them—believing they had won

Respect and competition context

  • They previously finished third at Chicago, but won the age group in Sweden
  • Expressed strong respect for Lucas Store, who took second
    • They believe Lucas lost on wall balls and may return stronger next year

Final Message

They emphasize that winning still requires training—HYROX is highly competitive.

Their unconventional approach worked because it:

  • supported their body
  • matched their preferred endurance method (biking)
  • biking supported mountain biking and lifting better than high-volume running

They also note:

  • they don’t publish exact training programs
  • they recommend coaching approaches, specifically mentioning: Rich Ryan / RMR Training

Presenters / Sources Mentioned

  • Quintilian (quoted/used as an instructional example)
  • Rich Ryan (RMR Training) (training program recommendation)
  • Jason Grub (programming influence for Masters CrossFit athletes via Boulder Athlete)
  • Natasha (NVDM coaching) (coach for lead-up into Leadville/Half Ironman and Sweden HYROX prep)
  • Eric Botszford (MC / director of partnerships, North America for HYROX)
  • Hunter McIntyre (referenced in the 2021 race context)
  • Merrick (rower purchase/brand context)
  • Muscle Mountain (retailer where the rower came from)
  • Dan Churchill and Greg Wade (friends cheering in attendance)
  • Noah (Squatch) (training partner)
  • Mike Morelia (doubles partner)
  • Jack Espie (doubles partner in Chicago)
  • Lucas Store (competitor; second in Sweden)
  • Events/brands/organizations referenced:
    • Leadville
    • Unbound Gravel
    • IRONMAN Lake Placid / Kona
    • World’s Toughest Mile
    • Founders Only
    • HYROX
    • Salt City CrossFit

Original video