HYROX Training, Comebacks, and Why Smarter Work Beats More Work

HYROX training is not always about doing more.

Sometimes the biggest performance gains come from getting stronger, sticking to your race plan, managing your training load, and learning when not to force the work.

In this episode of the Reinforced Running Podcast, Rich Ryan sits down with Meg Jacoby and Ryan Kent for a wide-ranging conversation about HYROX performance, strength training, injury comebacks, race strategy, and the mindset required to stay competitive for the long haul.

Strength Training Can Change Your HYROX Race

Ryan Kent shares one of the biggest improvements he has made recently: committing to a structured squat progression.

After consistently following a 5/3/1-style strength cycle, he retested 15 reps at 225 pounds and completed the same workload in roughly half the time.

More importantly, that strength started showing up where it actually matters.

Sled pushes felt stronger. His rowing improved because he could continue driving through his legs. Wall balls became easier, including a set of 50 unbroken reps with a 30-pound ball.

That is the important takeaway.

Strength work should not exist just to increase a number in the gym. The goal is to build qualities that eventually transfer to the HYROX course.

Race Your Plan, Not Someone Else’s Race

Meg Jacoby's return to racing delivered another major lesson.

Coming back from significant injury setbacks, she entered a competitive field knowing she wasn't yet at her absolute peak fitness. Instead of trying to match the aggressive pace of the athletes around her, she stayed committed to her strategy.

She gradually worked her way back into the race and used her strongest stations—including lunges, farmers carries, and wall balls—to close the gap.

By the time she reached the wall balls, the race had completely changed.

Her comeback reinforces something every HYROX athlete needs to understand:

You don't need to win every kilometer. You need to put yourself in position to perform your best across the entire race.

Going too hard early might feel competitive, but if it destroys your strongest stations later, you haven't raced aggressively. You've simply raced poorly.

Training Is Where You Get Better

Another theme throughout the conversation is one many athletes struggle with: trying to prove fitness during training.

Kent explains that in previous seasons, he sometimes forced workouts because he wanted his training splits to prove he was still the athlete he had been several years earlier.

The problem?

Training became a test instead of a process.

Eventually, he changed his approach. Instead of forcing old paces, he started meeting himself where his current fitness actually was and building from there.

That shift allowed workouts to become productive again.

You do not need to win Tuesday's threshold session.

You need Tuesday's threshold session to help you race better months from now.

More Training Isn't Always Better Training

HYROX athletes love volume.

Long sessions. Double days. Extra Zone 2. Additional compromised running. Another strength session squeezed into the week because someone on Instagram posted that they trained 20 hours.

But more work does not automatically mean more improvement.

Rich, Meg, and Ryan discuss how experience has changed their relationship with training volume. Instead of chasing a certain number of hours every week, the focus has shifted toward completing the work that actually moves performance forward.

Sometimes an optional session really is optional.

Skipping unnecessary volume can leave you fresher for the sessions that matter most.

And for many athletes, that is a difficult lesson to learn.

Stop Comparing Your Training to Instagram

One of the fastest ways to lose confidence in your own program is to constantly watch what everyone else is doing.

Someone else is running more.

Someone else is lifting heavier.

Someone else is training twice a day.

Someone else just posted a ridiculous workout with ridiculous splits.

None of that tells you what you should be doing.

You don't know their training history, recovery, goals, genetics, injury history, or what happened before and after the workout they posted.

Your job is not to copy another athlete's training.

Your job is to build the fitness required for your race.

Longevity Requires a Different Mindset

Perhaps the biggest message from the conversation has nothing to do with intervals, sleds, or wall balls.

It is about why you train.

For experienced athletes, racing can eventually become tied to sponsorships, rankings, expectations, social media, and results. The thing that originally felt fun can slowly become something you feel obligated to do.

Meg describes how changing that mindset has made training enjoyable again.

Instead of feeling like she has to compete, she gets to compete.

Instead of chasing outside validation, she is focused on seeing what she is still capable of.

That is a valuable lesson whether you're chasing the Elite 15 or simply trying to finish your first HYROX.

The best training program is not only one that gets you fitter.

It is one you can consistently execute without destroying your body, your motivation, or your enjoyment of the process.

Build Your HYROX Training Around What You Actually Need

HYROX rewards athletes who can combine running, strength, muscular endurance, pacing, and smart race execution.

That means blindly copying workouts isn't enough.

Your training needs structure.

It needs progression.

And most importantly, it needs to match your current fitness and your goals.

If you're ready to build a smarter training plan around the demands of HYROX, check out our guide:

👉 Learn How to Build Your Own HYROX Training Program:
https://www.rmr.training/how-to-build-your-own-hyrox-training-program-g

Train with purpose. Build the right qualities. And save your best performance for race day.