{"id":32513,"date":"2024-11-06T14:45:17","date_gmt":"2024-11-06T14:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/?p=32513"},"modified":"2024-11-20T14:25:44","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T14:25:44","slug":"why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","title":{"rendered":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s 7.15am on a dreary, drizzly Friday and I\u2019m standing in my shorts and vest, contemplating the meaning of life. Hannah (@hcfitt<\/a>), personal trainer at Hyrox-affiliated gym MZ9 (https:\/\/mz9sports.co.uk<\/a>), is wearing more appropriate attire and a bigger smile than I am. Frankly, I feel pretty sick: I\u2019m 53-years-old and have signed up to compete in the \u2018blue riband\u2019 Hyrox event at London Excel on November 30th<\/sup>. And yes, I\u2019m bricking it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But they do say practice makes perfect and today, despite the ungodly hour, it\u2019s another Hyrox-specific workout. I\u2019ve been trying to nail two of these each week for the last couple of months and, while I\u2019m 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 \u2018compromised\u2019. Having come primarily from a running background, people tell me Hyrox is \u2018basically a running race\u2019. I think it\u2019s designed to allay my fears. What they haven\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unless you\u2019ve been living on Mars, you can\u2019t fail to have seen the Hyrox name popping up in gyms, social media, running clubs and magazines. It\u2019s the \u2018must-do\u2019 fitness event with cross-over appeal: cheaper and less time-consuming than an Ironman and more accessible with fewer skillsets than CrossFit. Don\u2019t be lulled into a false sense of security though \u2013 Hyrox is tough with a capital \u2018T\u2019. It comprises eight one-kilometre runs interspersed with eight \u2018functional\u2019 fitness stations, each one designed to test your mettle and push your body to the limits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
All smiles after another tough Hyrox session<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today\u2019s session is no different. It\u2019s 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\u2019s carry, 500m ski; 500m run, 50m burpee broad jumps, 50m sandbag lunges. It\u2019s brutal and I\u2019m feeling queasy from the off. Did I mention it\u2019s 7.15am?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 \u2013 everyone from average gym-goers to accomplished athletes<\/a>, CrossFit enthusiasts to runners and triathletes. My journey into Hyrox was actually fuelled by my best friend\u2019s nephew laying down the gauntlet with his virgin Hyrox completion time in 2023 (1hr 26mins). Being of a competitive disposition, I thought \u2018how hard can it be?\u2019. Well, the answer is pretty bloody hard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The beauty of training for Hyrox though is that you don\u2019t 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<\/a> (farmer\u2019s 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\u2019s not essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for my session this morning, I completed it. It wasn\u2019t pretty, especially as I was on the edge from the get-go. But it\u2019s 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 \u2013 more than enough to whet the competitive appetites of anyone looking to do well. And if you\u2019re goal is to complete, then there\u2019s plenty of kudos that goes with saying you\u2019re no longer a Hyrox virgin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Men’s Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for his first-ever Hyrox.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":263,"featured_media":32514,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"amazon_asin_number":"","model":"","featured_image_overlay_img":"","hjpType":"","squirrel_render_by":"","squirrel_id":""},"categories":[450],"tags":[835,834],"yoast_head":"\nWhy I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53 | Men's Fitness<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Men's Fitness\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mensfitnesstoday\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-11-06T14:45:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-11-20T14:25:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"675\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Castle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@MensFitnessMag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@MensFitnessMag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Castle\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\",\"name\":\"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53 | Men's Fitness\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-11-06T14:45:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-11-20T14:25:44+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/30684c983dac7edfca5c740a405bced2\"},\"description\":\"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp\",\"width\":1080,\"height\":675},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"Men's Fitness\",\"description\":\"Expert-led workouts, equipment tests, and top advice - Get Fit for Life\",\"alternateName\":\"MF\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/30684c983dac7edfca5c740a405bced2\",\"name\":\"David Castle\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bee6c198a38bb01239d779d8d2c4a78c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bee6c198a38bb01239d779d8d2c4a78c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"David Castle\"},\"description\":\"I have been a runner for longer than I can remember and a journalist since before email was invented. I was editor of Running Fitness and Men's Running magazines before a career side-step saw me buy a running shop. I am also a qualified sports massage therapist. At the tender age of 53 I'm training for my first Hyrox.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/author\/davidcastle\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53 | Men's Fitness","description":"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53","og_description":"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.","og_url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","og_site_name":"Men's Fitness","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mensfitnesstoday","article_published_time":"2024-11-06T14:45:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-11-20T14:25:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1080,"height":675,"url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"David Castle","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@MensFitnessMag","twitter_site":"@MensFitnessMag","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Castle","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","name":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53 | Men's Fitness","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp","datePublished":"2024-11-06T14:45:17+00:00","dateModified":"2024-11-20T14:25:44+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/30684c983dac7edfca5c740a405bced2"},"description":"Men's Fitness editor David Castle explains why he is attempting to get race-fit for Hyrox at London's Excel on November 30.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp","width":1080,"height":675},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/","name":"Men's Fitness","description":"Expert-led workouts, equipment tests, and top advice - Get Fit for Life","alternateName":"MF","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/30684c983dac7edfca5c740a405bced2","name":"David Castle","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bee6c198a38bb01239d779d8d2c4a78c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bee6c198a38bb01239d779d8d2c4a78c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"David Castle"},"description":"I have been a runner for longer than I can remember and a journalist since before email was invented. I was editor of Running Fitness and Men's Running magazines before a career side-step saw me buy a running shop. I am also a qualified sports massage therapist. At the tender age of 53 I'm training for my first Hyrox.","url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/author\/davidcastle\/"}]}},"acf":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53","url":"http:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp"},"articleSection":"News","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"David Castle"}],"creator":["David Castle"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Men's Fitness","logo":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/02\/MF-desktop_favicon_32-1.png"},"keywords":["fitness","hyrox"],"dateCreated":"2024-11-06T14:45:17Z","datePublished":"2024-11-06T14:45:17Z","dateModified":"2024-11-20T14:25:44Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"Why I\u2019m doing my first Hyrox at 53\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"http:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/news\/why-im-doing-my-first-hyrox-at-53\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2024-11-06T14:45:17Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"fitness,hyrox\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"David Castle\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/mensfitness.co.uk\/p.js"},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/11\/images_8628_ALN1DRONE1_00011.webp","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2024-12-13 02:07:35","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32513"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/263"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32513"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32513\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32593,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32513\/revisions\/32593"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32513"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32513"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mensfitness.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32513"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}