With just one week to go until race day, every HYROX athlete wants to perform their best. But what should you focus on in these final days? Overtraining, poor nutrition and neglecting recovery can all sabotage your efforts. To help you prepare smartly and confidently, we’ve gathered expert HYROX race week tips from the Irma Human, the Head of Athletics at F45 South Africa.
From training tweaks and nutrition advice to mindset strategies and race-day preparation, this guide covers everything you need to cross the finish line strong.
READ MORE: The Best HYROX Workout and Gear to Conquer HYROX Cape Town
HYROX Race Week Training Priorities: What To Focus On
In this final week, the priority is keeping the body moving without overloading it.
Focus On Movement Quality And Confidence
Focus on movement quality, mobility and confidence-building sessions that reinforce the race flow. Think: sessions like a light run-sled combo, wall balls with clean technique or ski/row intervals at race pace.
Feel Sharp, Not Sore: Keep Moving Without Overloading
Your goal is to feel sharp, not sore. Don’t chase the burn. Now is not the time to get fitter or stronger as the work is already done. It’s show time!
Avoid Burnout Sessions
Avoid burnout sessions as this can cause excessive stiffness on the body, nerve strain and risk of unnecessary injuries.
Pro Tip: Keep your sessions light and focused on movement patterns you’ll use on race day to build confidence without fatigue.
HYROX Tapering Guide: Adjusting Training Volume & Intensity
Taper Training Volume By 40-60%
By this point your training volume should already be dropped down by 40-60% as we are in the tapering phase of training.
Keep Sessions Snappy And Smart
You still want to move but keep it snappy and smart. Remove long grind workouts and stick to short effort style sessions at race pace, but don’t push all the way until red lining.
Last Full Body Session Timing
Your last full body session should be around 3-4 days before your race.
Light Conditioning And Mobility Work After
After that focus on keeping the load on the body light with some mobility and light conditioning work.
Easy 20-25 Minute HYROX Conditioning Workout For Race Week
Warm-Up: 5 min easy jog or bike for warm up
3 rounds (not for time):
• 250m row or ski
• 10 air squats
• 10 push-ups
• 10 walking lunges
• 30 sec plank
Cool Down: Finish with 5-10 min of mobility/stretching.
Pro Tip: Your last intense full-body session should be 3-4 days before the race to allow full recovery.
READ MORE: The HYROX Simulation Workout You Can Do in Any Gym
Common HYROX Race Week Training Mistakes To Avoid
We see quite a few common mistakes people make when it comes to the final week of race day.
Trying To “Cram” Fitness
Many think there can still be a tremendous impact on their fitness or nutrition, however this is not the case. Trying to “cram” fitness or squeeze in a hard workout to feel “ready” before race day often leads to soreness or fatigue.
Skipping Recovery Sessions
Many tend to skip their recovery sessions and replace them with more workouts because they feel a sense of “guilt” resting before the race.
Neglecting Sleep, Hydration And Nutrition
People tend to neglect proper sleep, hydration or nutrition, which are more important leading up to the race than training itself.
Pro Tip: Rest and recovery in the final week are just as important as training – don’t skip them out of guilt.
Active Recovery Tips For HYROX Race Week
Stay Loose And Keep Blood Flowing
Active recovery is your secret weapon leading up to race day. You want to stay loose, keep the blood flowing and calm the nerves. Active recovery can include easy runs or light spinning, banded mobility work and stretch flows and even light swim sessions.
Think “Fresh, Not Flat”: Keep Muscles Relaxed And Ready
When doing active recovery think “fresh, not flat”. The muscles should feel relaxed and ready for action.
Pro Tip: Choose low-impact activities that keep your body moving but leave you feeling energised, not drained.
HYROX Race Week Nutrition: What To Eat Before The Race
Stick To Familiar Foods
This cannot be emphasised enough; stick to what you know. Now’s not the time to try new diets or experiment with supplements.
Avoid New Diets Or Supplements
It’s a tale as old as time; people try new diets or supplements leading up to race day and it leads to poor performance due to your body not being used to them.
Keep Meals Balanced
Focus on keeping it simple with balanced meals, with lean protein, complex carbs and healthy fats.
Fuel Your Body Properly
A big issue is fuelling the body. Many people underfuel and don’t eat enough, causing poor recovery and fatigue on race day.
Don’t Eat Less Just Because You Feel Less Hungry
You might feel less hungry due to tapering week and a lower training volume but this doesn’t mean you should eat less.
Arrive Energised And Well-Fuelled
The goal is to arrive on race day energised, well fuelled and not undernourished or bloated.
Pro Tip: Focus on consistent, balanced meals and avoid experimenting with new foods or supplements in the final week.
Carb Loading For HYROX: When And How To Do It
Keep It Light And Strategic
Again, you don’t want to be changing your eating habits too much before the race. Carb loading doesn’t mean bowls of pasta; it means shifting your focus 2-3 days before the race to slowly increase carb portions like rice, oats, sweet potato or bread (if you tolerate it well).
Pair Carbs With Protein And Little Fat
Pair your carbs with protein-rich sources and little fats to keep your energy neutralised.
Aim To Top Up Glycogen Stores
The aim is to top up glycogen stores for extra energy on race day without feeling “heavy”.
Pro Tip: Gradually increase carb intake 2-3 days out, pairing with protein to avoid digestive issues.
READ MORE: How Pro Athlete Matthew Stone Trains for HYROX
Foods And Supplements To Avoid Before HYROX
Avoid New Or Untested Foods
Anything new, untested or hard on your gut should be avoided during this time.
Avoid Spicy, Greasy Or Fried Food
Very spicy, greasy or fried food is also a no-go.
Don’t Try New Supplements Before Race Day
Avoid new supplements you haven’t tested before race day, especially as adrenaline and heart rate spike.
Avoid High Fibre Meals The Night Before
The night before race day avoid high fibre meals and stick to easy digestible carb sources.
Pro Tip: Stick to familiar, easy-to-digest foods especially the night before the race.
HYROX Hydration Tips For Race Week
Hydration Is Crucial For Recovery And Performance
Hydration and recovery go hand in hand. Even slight dehydration can affect performance.
Start Prioritising Fluids 3-5 Days Out
Start focusing on fluids and hydration 3-5 days before the race.
Don’t Try To “Chug” Water Night Before
You cannot chug 3l of water the night before and expect to be well hydrated.
Aim For 2.5-3L Per Day
Consume 2.5-3L water per day depending on your body size and sweat levels.
Add Electrolytes Daily
Add electrolytes or a pinch of salt to your water daily to help avoid cramps and perform well. If you are someone that sweats quite a bit, make sure to consume a little extra leading up to the race. Electrolytes should not only be taken on the day or the night before; add it to your daily water bottle a week before and sip on it throughout the day.
Sip Water Steadily On Race Day
On race day sip water steadily in the hours before, leading up to your start time and avoid chugging right before the start line.
Pro Tip: Hydrate consistently days before and add electrolytes daily to prevent cramps.
Sleep Tips For HYROX Race Week Recovery
Sleeping Is When The Body Recovers
Sleep is everything this week; it’s when your body actually recovers from training and absorbs all the hard work you’ve put in.
Aim For 7-9 Hours Per Night
A good goal would be to aim for 7-9 hours a night. Don’t panic if you’re a bit restless the night before race day, it’s very normal for pre-race nerves to kick in.
Prioritise Sleep 3-4 Nights Before Race Day
What matters most is the sleep in the 3-4 nights before race day.
Tips To Improve Sleep Quality
- Stick to consistent bed and wake times.
- Avoid screens 30-60 minutes before bed.
- Keep the room cool, dark and quiet.
- A light stretch or hot shower before bed can help relax the body.
- Limit caffeine in the afternoon
- Keep evening meals light.
Pro Tip: Focus on consistent, quality sleep especially 3-4 nights before race day.
Recovery Techniques To Use Before HYROX Race Day
Keep Recovery Simple And Gentle
You want to keep your recovery techniques simple and gentle on the body. Don’t add new or extreme methods your body doesn’t know.
Use Foam Rolling And Target Key Areas
Foam roll lightly and briefly (keeping sessions light and short) to release tension, focusing on your quads, glutes and calves.
Daily Mobility And Stretching
Add daily 5-10 minute mobility and stretching sessions targeting your hips, hamstrings and thoracic spine.
Timing For Sports Massage
If you want to add a light sports massage, do it 4-5 days before race day. And avoid deep tissue massages as they can leave you tender or bruised.
Cold Plunge Or Shower To Flush System
If you’re used to cold plunges or showers, these can help flush the system.
Walking Is A Great Recovery Tool
A winner would definitely be a good stroll. Walking is one of the best recovery tools as it’s low impact, keeps the body moving and calms the nervous system.
Pro Tip: Keep recovery gentle and familiar; walking is one of the best low-impact tools.
READ MORE: 24 Best Running Shoes for Hyrox, Speed, Distance & Everything In Between
Managing HYROX Pre-Race Nerves And Boosting Confidence
Nerves Are Normal
First off, nerves are normal. It means you care
Trust Your Preparation
The key is to trust your prep. You’ve done the work; now it’s about showing up and giving your best and what you’ve got on the day.
Focus On Effort Not Outcome
You are there to have fun and put your hard work to the test. Don’t put pressure or expectations on yourself. You know your capabilities and efforts you worked for, let it talk for itself. Make a mental shift from “outcome” to “effort”.
Use Positive Reminders
Change doubts into reminders. Remind yourself that you have trained hard for this, you have the ability to get through the race and stay composed at each station.
Remember HYROX Is A Challenge, Not A Test
Be proud just to stand at the start line.
Pro Tip: Use mental reminders to replace doubt with confidence and enjoy the challenge.
Mental Training And Visualisation For HYROX Athletes
Visualisation Works: Imagine The Race Day
Spend 5-10 minutes a few times this week imagining the race. See yourself walking into the venue, hearing the crowd, moving through each station strong and focused.
Visualise and feel your breathing at each station and when you are running. Think about your arm movements when you run and and the strides you take.
Mentally practice how you will transition through stations and how you will compose yourself when a station feels hard and challenging to get through. Think and visualise stations you’re stronger at and how you will use that to your advantage to get a breather or make up some time.
Use Short Cues For Focus
Use short cues for yourself to get you through the stations. Try “Breathe and move”, “One pull at a time”, “Up and down”, “Control the controllable” to stay steady. These small mental shifts can really help you stay steady when your heart rate spikes.
Pro Tip: Visualise success and use short focus cues to stay calm under pressure.
Essential HYROX Race Day Preparation Tips
Warm Up For 10–15 Minutes
Make sure to get in a good warm-up. Keep it simple and aim for 10-15 mins of light cardio (jog, ski or bike), some dynamic stretches and a few reps of movement patterns you’ll use (like lunges, squats, wall balls).
Keep Warm-Up Controlled
Don’t go all out; just get warm and switched on.
Use Comfortable, Familiar Gear
Check your race gear, make sure you are comfortable and wear what you trained in. Race day is not the day to get fancy and end up being uncomfortable. Don’t buy new shoes the day before the race, it will not end well for you; make sure your shoes have enough grip and are broken in.
Pack The Night Before
Pack the night before to be fully prepared and not end up rushed on race day.
Know Your Start Time And Arrive Early
Check your start time before the day (and commit it to memory). Get to the venue with enough time to register, warm up and settle in.
Fuel And Hydrate Properly
Eat your usual pre-workout meal 2-3 hours before, sip water steadily and avoid excess caffeine.
Pro Tip: Pack early, warm up gently and wear familiar gear to avoid race day stress.
Biggest HYROX Race Week Mistakes To Avoid
Training Too Hard Instead Of Tapering
Trying to “squeeze in” one more tough session instead of tapering and training too hard are big no-nos.
Last Minute Changes To Gear, Supplements Or Food
New gear, new supplements, last minute changes or untested food = bad idea!
Ignoring Recovery Needs
Neglecting rest, mobility and sleep. People tend to think more is better, ignoring rest, mobility and sleep.
Obsessing Over Outcome Instead Of Trusting Prep
People tend to get caught up with the outcome, only think about their finishing time and not trusting their prep work. This can also lead to not having fun and an overall bad race experience.
Not Planning Logistics
Getting flustered on race day because you didn’t prep clothes or check-in times, registration or transport. If you avoid these, your race day will be way smoother mentally, physically and for sure more fun!
Pro Tip: Avoid last-minute changes and prioritise rest, recovery and planning.
READ MORE: HYROX vs. Traditional Gym Training: What Sets Them Apart?
The Golden Rule For HYROX Race Week Success
Trust The Work Is Done
There’s nothing magical you can do to get fitter this week. But there’s plenty you can do to feel fresher, calmer and more prepared. So taper smart, eat well, sleep deep and show up ready to give your best.
That’s the win!
Pro Tip: Trust your training and focus on recovery – the race day will take care of itself.
The final week before HYROX is not about pushing harder but preparing smarter. Trust the work you’ve already done, prioritise recovery, fuel your body well and stay mentally focused. By following these expert tips, you’ll arrive at race day fresh, confident and ready to give your best performance yet. Remember – HYROX is a challenge to embrace, so enjoy the journey and celebrate every step forward.
Irma Human
Irma Human is F45 South Africa’s Head of Athletics. She’s a CrossFit Semi-Finalist, four-time national karate champion, Western Province cricketer and has represented her university in both hockey and sevens.
Irma’s qualifications span functional fitness, nutrition and performance coaching. Her focus is on helping people feel supported, seen and capable of more than they believed possible.
This article was originally published on Women’s Health South Africa
