💡 New to HYROX? Find out exactly what HYROX is and how it works before diving into my experience.

Last weekend, I pushed myself harder than I ever thought possible. I signed up for HYROX Anaheim a few months ago, partly out of curiosity, partly out of a craving for something that would test my limits. Spoiler alert: it did. And then some.

I’d seen videos, read blog posts, watched sweaty athletes collapse gloriously across the finish line — but nothing could have prepared me for what it actually felt like to be there. To be in it.

Leading Up to the Race

My training in the weeks before HYROX was intense. I was doing a mix of running, sled work, wall balls, and strength circuits. The key thing I learned early on? You can’t fake HYROX. You need real endurance, real strength, and real mental grit.

I focused on interval running and getting comfortable being uncomfortable. Pushing sleds became a regular part of my week, and I started training wall balls like my life depended on it (which, during the last station, it kind of did).

Race Day in Anaheim

Walking into the Anaheim Convention Center that morning, I felt this electric buzz in the air. Hundreds of athletes — all ages, all body types — and yet, somehow, we all looked the same: a little nervous, a lot excited.

I started in the Open category. When the buzzer went off and I hit that first 1K run, I felt strong. Confident. Adrenaline was doing its job.

Then came the SkiErg, and I immediately realized: this is going to be a grind.

From there, it was a relentless rhythm of run, workout, run, workout.

• Sled Push: I’m not going to lie — it crushed me. My quads were screaming halfway through, and I had to mentally break it down into sections just to keep moving.
• Burpee Broad Jumps: I have never hated anything more and still somehow enjoyed it.
• Rowing and Farmer’s Carry gave me a moment to reset, but the intensity never fully let up.
• Sandbag Lunges right before the wall balls felt like a final punch to the gut. My legs were jelly by then.

And finally… 100 wall balls. I broke them into sets of 10 at first, then 5, then… singles. Every rep was a fight.

Crossing the Finish Line

That final run to the finish? I don’t remember much, just that I was giving absolutely everything I had left. When I crossed the line, I didn’t even celebrate — I just bent over and laughed. Out of relief, pride, pain. All of it.

A volunteer handed me a medal, and I swear it felt heavier than it looked. Or maybe het meant more than it looked.

What I Learned

• Pacing is everything. I went out too hot in the first 3K, and I paid for it.
• Strength matters more than you think. If you’re not training sleds and wall balls, you’re not training for HYROX.
• Mental toughness is half the race. There were moments I wanted to quit — especially during the burpees — but I reminded myself: I signed up for this. I chose this.

Would I Do It Again?

Absolutely. Not because it was easy. Not even because it was fun the whole time. But because I learned more about mezelf in that 90+ minutes than I have in most workouts combined.

HYROX Anaheim pushed me to the edge. And I loved it for that.

If you’re thinking of doing a HYROX race — do it. Train smart, go in prepared, and expect to meet a version van jezelf die niet opgeeft. The finish line is worth every ounce of sweat and every doubt you silence along the way.