Hyrox Nutrition Guide — What to Eat Before, During and After

Your finish time is the single most important input for Hyrox nutrition planning.

• Under 75 minutes: You can likely race well on pre-race nutrition alone. Your glycogen stores should last the distance.
• 75–120 minutes: One mid-race gel (20–30 g carbohydrate) is worth experimenting with in training. Most runners benefit from something here.
• Over 120 minutes: Active fuelling during the race becomes important. 30–45 g carbohydrate per hour from gels, chews, or sports drink.

To estimate your finish time, use your 10 km run time and add 20–40 minutes for the functional station time depending on your strength background. If you have not raced Hyrox before, be conservative.

Pre-race nutrition follows the same principles as a 10 km to half-marathon race.

3–4 hours before start: A carbohydrate-rich meal with moderate protein and low fat and fibre. Porridge with banana, toast with eggs, or rice and chicken are all reliable. Aim for 1–2 g carbohydrate per kg of bodyweight.

30–60 minutes before start: A small carbohydrate top-up if you are starting to feel hungry or if your race is longer than 90 minutes. A banana, an energy gel, or a small sports drink works well. Keep this small — starting a race with a full stomach is uncomfortable when you add sled pushes to the equation.

Avoid before Hyrox: - High-fat foods (slow digestion, especially bad before heavy station work) - High-fibre foods (GI distress risk) - Anything unfamiliar on race day — test your pre-race meal in training first

Where and when to take nutrition during Hyrox is complicated by the structure of the event — you are alternating between running and functional work with no extended natural pause.

Practical fuelling windows: - Just before station 1 (SkiErg): If you plan to fuel, take your gel just before entering the first station. You will have time to chew or swallow before the effort ramps up. - Transition runs: The running segments between stations are your best window. Short, established habit — take it in the first 200 metres of the run so it digests before the next station. - During rowing: The 1,000 m row is a predictable, seated effort — some athletes take a gel or chew on the erg. This works if practised in training.

What to carry: Gels are the standard choice — small, predictable calories, easy to carry in a shorts pocket. SiS Go gels (22 g carbohydrate) and Maurten Gel 100 (25 g) are widely used. Avoid anything that requires mixing or measuring on race day.

Hydration: Water stations are available at most Hyrox venues on the running sections. Drink to thirst. For events over 90 minutes, an electrolyte tablet or sports drink at some stations is worth considering — particularly in warm venues.

Hyrox creates significant muscle damage — not just cardiovascular fatigue. The sled push, sandbag lunges, and farmers carry are all eccentric-heavy exercises that cause delayed onset muscle soreness lasting 24–72 hours.

Within 30 minutes of finishing: Aim for 20–40 g protein alongside 40–80 g carbohydrate. A protein shake with a banana, chocolate milk, or a recovery bar all work. This window is particularly important after Hyrox because the functional station damage means your muscles are especially receptive to protein synthesis signals.

Over the following 24 hours: Maintain higher protein intake than usual — 2.0–2.4 g per kg bodyweight. Carbohydrate to replenish glycogen, particularly if you plan to train again within 48 hours. Sleep is the most underrated recovery tool — quality sleep in the 24–48 hours after a Hyrox event accelerates recovery more than any supplement.

Race-day nutrition is only as good as your training nutrition. A few principles for the build-up:

Match carbohydrate intake to training load. High-intensity sessions (track intervals, heavy station work) need more carbohydrate. Recovery days need less. Runners often under-eat carbohydrate relative to their training volume, which impairs both performance and adaptation.

Practise race-day nutrition in training. Take gels during long training runs. Eat the same pre-race meal before your hardest training days. Race day is not the time to experiment.

Protein distribution matters. Spreading protein intake across 3–4 meals (rather than eating most of it in one sitting) produces better muscle protein synthesis outcomes. 30–40 g per meal is a reasonable target for most Hyrox athletes.

Avoid low-energy availability. Under-fuelling is common among runners who are also trying to manage body weight. Severe caloric restriction impairs training quality, hormonal function, and recovery. If you are targeting weight loss alongside Hyrox training, do it gradually — 0.5 kg per week maximum — and prioritise protein.