How to Get Better at Walking Lunges for HYROX (Without Destroying Your Knees)
By Rich Ryan | RMR Training
Walking lunges have never been my strength.
I could survive them. I could manage them. But at the elite end of HYROX, “managing” a station isn’t good enough anymore. You can’t afford to give away 15–20 seconds late in the race and expect to stay competitive.
So this training block, I finally stopped avoiding the problem—and started treating walking lunges like the performance limiter they are.
This article breaks down exactly how I’ve been training walking lunges for HYROX, what’s worked, what hasn’t, and how you can apply the same framework—whether you’re racing Open, Pro, or Elite.
This isn’t theory.
This is experience.
Why Walking Lunges Are So Hard in HYROX
Walking lunges don’t show up fresh.
They show up 45–70 minutes into the race, after:
Running fatigue
Sled push and pull
Farmer’s carry
Burpees
Global muscular and aerobic fatigue
That means your lunge ability isn’t just about leg strength—it’s about:
Recoverability
Aerobic capacity
Muscular endurance
Joint prep
Pacing discipline
You can be “good at lunges” and still fall apart in a HYROX race.
I’ve seen elite rowers look average on the row.
I’ve seen elite runners reduced to Zone 2 survival mode.
HYROX breaks you down—then asks you to perform anyway.
The Real Problem I Had With Lunges (And Maybe You Do Too)
For years, I thought my issue was simple:
“I’m not good at lunges.”
Wrong.
The real problem was recovering from lunges.
Whenever I doubled down on volume, my knees—especially my patellar tendon—would flare up. Hips would feel jammed. Lower back would tighten. And suddenly, everything else in training suffered.
So I avoided lunges.
But avoiding a weakness doesn’t make it go away—it just caps your ceiling.
Step 1: Fix Recoverability Before Adding Volume
Here’s the biggest shift I made:
The problem wasn’t lunges.
The problem was preparation.
I was picking up the sandbag cold and wondering why it felt awful.
Once I treated knee, ankle, and hip prep as non-negotiable, everything changed.
Prep Movements That Changed Everything for Me
Disclaimer: I’m not a physical therapist. This is personal experience—not a textbook.
1. ATG Lunges (Knees Over Toes)
Extreme knee-over-toe range of motion
Calf touches hamstring
2–3x per week before lunges
Massive improvement in knee comfort
2. Heel-Elevated Goblet Squats
Removes ankle mobility as a limiter
Allows deep, controlled knee flexion
Great for knee health and positioning
3. Peterson / Poliquin Step-Ups
6–8 inches
Heel elevated, controlled eccentric
Direct patellar tendon loading
Once my knees felt good before and after lunges, I could finally train them hard.
HYROX Lunges = Aerobic First, Strength Second
This is critical:
If your aerobic capacity isn’t strong enough, none of the strength work matters.
Lunges happen late in the race. If you’re globally fatigued, you won’t access your strength anyway.
This is why:
Farmer’s carries feel “heavy” when they’re not
Wall balls fall apart despite high rep capacity
Lunges slow to a crawl
Aerobic fitness is the foundation.
Everything else stacks on top.
Step 2: Build Muscular Endurance (Progressively)
Once prep and recovery were handled, I finally leaned into volume.
But not recklessly.
How I Approach Lunge Volume
Start low (50–75 reps)
Progress gradually
Build week over week
Stop before recovery collapses
Muscular endurance adapts quickly—if you respect progression.
Once adapted, lunges stop destroying you and start becoming a workhorse movement.
Step 3: Get Stronger Without Crushing Recovery
I’ve tried max-strength lunges. They work—but recovery cost is high.
This block, tempo work has been the sweet spot.
Tempo Lunge Strength Work
3–4 seconds down
Explosive up
Moderate load
Low volume
Exercises I use:
Bulgarian split squats
Split squats (front foot elevated)
Reverse lunges
This builds:
Positional strength
Tendon resilience
Control under load
Without wrecking the rest of training.
Step 4: Isometrics = Free Speed
Isometrics were a game changer.
Overcoming Isometrics
Push against fixed pins
Max effort for 3–5 seconds
Builds neural drive and strength
Yielding Isometrics
Hold heavy load in bottom position
Builds tendon thickness and durability
Uncomfortable—but effective
Thicker tendons = better energy return = more efficient movement.
Step 5: Speed Comes From Position, Not Rushing
Trying to “move faster” with lighter lunges didn’t help.
Speed came from:
Better posture
Better breathing
Better control
Better pacing
Once I owned the sandbag instead of letting it own me, speed followed naturally.
The Pacing Breakthrough: Count Steps
This was embarrassingly simple—and incredibly effective.
I started watching Elite 15 races:
Counted steps per 20m
Timed each length
For me:
18 steps per 20m
~31 seconds per length = sustainable
~26 seconds = too fast, blow-up risk
Now I train lunges exactly like running:
Target pace
Repeatable effort
No guessing on race day
Sample Weekly Lunge Structure
Day 1 – Strength Focus
Joint prep
Isometrics
Plyometrics
Tempo split squats
Day 2 – Muscular Endurance
Prep + ISO
Progressive lunge volume (measured distance + pacing)
Day 3 – Compromised HYROX Workout
Lunges under fatigue
Engine-focused, not grindy
Lunges become aerobic builders, not pace killers
The Big Takeaway
If lunges are a problem for you:
It’s probably not because you’re weak.
It’s because something upstream is broken.
Fix:
Prep
Recovery
Aerobic capacity
Position
Pacing
Then build volume.
HYROX rewards process—not shortcuts.
Train This the Right Way
Inside the RMR Training App, we apply this exact framework across:
Strength
Muscular endurance
Compromised running
HYROX-specific race prep
You’ll find:
12-week & 10-week plans
Base & build programs
Running for HYROX
Strength for HYROX
My full Phoenix build workouts
All coached, all tested.
$49/month. Real training. Real results.
Phoenix is coming—and it’s time to be ready.