From six weeks of training
to the HYROX floor
Matt is a 32-year-old teacher who had never done anything like HYROX before. When his PT Louis asked him in February if he fancied giving it a shot, he said yes. Six weeks later, he was on the start line.
Training at Fitness First Hampstead gave him everything he needed. The dedicated track space made a real difference, allowing him to practise the runs, lunges and sled pushes in a way that simply wasn't possible at his local gym. He worked through the stations with Louis, dialling in technique, pacing and positioning, trusting the advice even when it was easier not to.
The wall balls nearly undid him. He'll admit he had been doing them at the start of sessions during training rather than the end, which wasn't exactly race preparation. On the day, after everything that came before them, they were brutal.
The finish line wasn't pretty. No sprint finish, no celebration. Just a walk over the line and straight to the floor, where the cramps set in so severely that paramedics came over to check on him. He's broken bones, and says the cramps were worse. The Theragun and steam room had been part of his recovery routine throughout training, but on race day he skipped all of it, got in a car and suffered.
Looking back, he'd take more electrolytes, buy new running shoes and be a little less casual about the morning of the race. He was having a coffee fifteen minutes before the start.
He'd do it again though. Probably.
Road to HYROX
At Fitness First, we believe progress isn't linear, and results don't come from quick fixes. It's about showing up, again and again. Because when you choose progress, you don't just change your body, you change what you believe is possible.
