Twelve weeks. Five sessions a week. Eight stations. One sled. Show up.
This is the 12-week Hyrox training plan that prepares an Indian runner with an existing aerobic base to finish their first Hyrox in 75–95 minutes and not walk out of the arena questioning their life choices. It is also the plan I have used personally and the one I have rebuilt for fifteen Indian recreational athletes preparing for Hyrox Mumbai, Hyrox Bengaluru, and Hyrox Hyderabad in 2025–2026.
The plan is built on three principles. Run economy stays. Strength gets built. Compromised work — the transitions between run and station that decide race outcomes — gets practised. Everything else is detail.
Who this plan is for
You have at least 25 km/week of consistent running over the last 12 weeks. You have at least 6 months of basic compound lifting. You are committing to 8–10 hours per week including warm-ups. You are entering the open division at your first Hyrox, not the pro division. You have access to a gym with a sled, a rower, a ski erg, kettlebells or dumbbells, and a wall ball.
If you are missing any of those, fix that first. Read the Hyrox intro first if you have not. The 12-week Hyrox training plan assumes the prerequisites are in place.
The weekly structure
Five training days plus two rest days. The structure is identical for 12 weeks; only volume and intensity scale.
- Monday — easy run. 40–60 minutes conversational. Recovery from the weekend.
- Tuesday — running quality. 1 km repeats. The race-specific session that builds the running engine Hyrox actually demands.
- Wednesday — strength compound. 45–60 minutes. Squat, deadlift, press, pull. The strength foundation everything else rests on.
- Thursday — easy run + mobility. 30–45 minutes plus 15 minutes mobility. Light volume; the body is recovering between Tuesday and Friday.
- Friday — Hyrox-specific circuit. Stations rotated; format matches race demands. The session that wins or loses you the race.
- Saturday — long aerobic + compromised work. 60–90 minutes including 2–4 run-station-run blocks. The transition rehearsal.
- Sunday — rest, or easy walk, or yoga. Recovery is training. Do not run.
Weeks 1–4: Foundation
Volume builds. Intensity stays moderate. The body adapts to the format.
- Easy run volume: 35 km/week building to 45 km/week.
- 1 km repeats: 4 × 1 km at threshold pace, 90 seconds easy jog recovery. Build to 6 × 1 km by week 4.
- Strength: 3 working sets of squat, deadlift variations, press, pull. Rep range 6–8.
- Hyrox circuit: 3 rounds, each round one running interval (400m moderate) plus one station at submaximal effort.
- Saturday long: 60–75 minutes easy with 2 × run-station blocks (10 min run / 4 min station / 10 min run).
Weeks 5–8: Build
Intensity rises. The race specificity sharpens. Bodies start asking questions.
- Easy run volume: 45–55 km/week.
- 1 km repeats: 6 × 1 km at 10K pace, 60 seconds easy jog recovery — the race-specific work-to-rest ratio. Build to 8 × 1 km by week 8.
- Strength: rep range 4–6. Add Hyrox-specific accessory work: weighted lunges, farmer's carries, weighted step-ups.
- Hyrox circuit: 4 rounds, each round one running interval (600m at threshold) plus one station at high effort. Order them in race sequence in alternate weeks.
- Saturday long: 75–90 minutes with 3 × run-station blocks at progressively faster running pace.
This is the phase that breaks people. Sleep through it. Eat through it. The body adapts in the next phase.
Weeks 9–10: Peak race specificity
The hardest two weeks. Sharpening before taper. Pace and station execution at race intensity.
- Easy run volume: 50–55 km/week.
- 1 km repeats: 8 × 1 km at race pace, 45–60 seconds recovery — the exact pacing pattern of a Hyrox race.
- Strength: rep range 4–6, intensity high, volume moderate.
- Hyrox circuit: full station rehearsals. In week 9, do a mock race — 6 stations + 6 km running at moderate effort. In week 10, do a sharp simulation with 4 stations at race effort.
- Saturday long: 90 minutes with 4 × run-station blocks at race-specific pace and station intensity.
Weeks 11–12: Taper and race
Volume drops sharply. Intensity stays high in short bursts. The body recovers and sharpens.
- Week 11 volume: 35–40 km running, one quality session, two short circuits, one strength session.
- Week 12 (race week): 20–25 km running, no circuits after Tuesday, one short strength session early in the week, one shake-out station rehearsal on Thursday.
- Race day: show up. Warm up. Run the race you trained for.
Race-day execution: brief, blunt
Run 1 (1 km). Start conservative. The corral pulls you out fast. Hold pace 10 seconds slower per km than goal. You will not regret it.
Ski erg. First station. Heart rate spikes. Stay on the machine — short pulls, fast turnover. Get off and run.
Run 2. Settle. Your legs feel weird; that is normal. Lock pace. Trust training.
Sled push. This is where races are won and lost. Drive through hips. Short steps. Push past the markers; the clock keeps running if you stop short.
Run 3. Recovery run. Pace drops slightly. Breathe.
Sled pull. Opposite mechanics. Anchor the feet. Lean back. Pull in long, even strokes.
Run 4. Mid-race. The mental dip arrives. Eat through it.
Burpee broad jumps. The hardest station after sled push for most runners. Small jumps. Steady. Do not chase the front of your category.
Run 5. If you have got here, you are finishing.
Rowing. 1000 metres. Strokes per minute 26–30. Big drive, smooth recovery.
Run 6. The fade window. Hold pace.
Farmer's carry. Grip strength shows up here. Practise this in training. Lean slightly forward, brisk pace, short stride.
Run 7. Two stations to go. The arena starts cheering as your category nears the finish.
Sandbag lunges. Quads burn. Short, deep lunges. Knees over ankles.
Run 8. Last kilometre before wall balls. Pick up pace slightly if anything is left.
100 wall balls. The finisher. Break into sets you trust — 25-20-15-15-15-10 is conservative; 35-30-20-15 is aggressive. Match the sets to your training.
Finish line. Walk for ten minutes. Drink. Sit down only after.
The gear you need
One pair of stable training shoes with grip (not road racing shoes). Tested socks. Tested shorts. Compression sleeves optional. A small towel. Pre-pinned bib. Watch on wrist. Nothing else.
The day-before
Hydrate consistently. Carb-heavy lunch by 1 PM. Light dinner by 7. Lay out everything. Sleep by 9:30 PM. Two alarms.
You have done the work. Twelve weeks. Five sessions. Eight stations. One sled. Show up. Build your STRIDD plan.