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I cut back my Sunday long run, but it was still too much. By 8K, my Achilles and left calf were already starting to play up. I was genuinely tired, but I still pushed through: 10K easy plus about 2K at tempo. The result showed up on Tuesday — my motivation was gone. Sure, work deadlines and bad sleep didn’t help, but I can’t ignore the signal. The end of the week was harder. Work urgency ramped up, and my kid caught a fever. Luckily, I have a secret weapon: pram jogs. Huge relief that my one-year-old can sit in there for more than an hour.

New year, new goals. The first one is the Ballart Half Marathon at the end of April, with 15 weeks to go. Another goal is to keep journaling, at least once a week. As usual, I was gonna give up this journaling project just like before. Until I heard this analogy in this podcast with the author of Atomic Habits: Our journey of chasing the one we want to be is like Sisyphus pushing the stone. Once you stop moving it, it goes all the way back, resets. Journaling will make me better at things, not just running, so I will keep pushing the stone. My running hasn’t gone backwards too much. I did some stride sessions last week, plus an 11 km long run (for me). This week, I started looking forward to training. I was looking forward to the easy-ish one-hour run, and I was looking forward to the tempo session. I can feel it in my body, which is the biggest indicator of readiness, I believe. Importantly, journaling practically enables experiments. For the first half of the build, I am going to replace my Tuesday speed session (400 meters) with a medium distance (6-8km) run with a lot of strides. I will go for a few parkruns to benchmark this practice. Happy to be back!

Hyrox Melbourne, Saturday evening. 30 seconds into the sled pull, I knew my race was done for. I went into a very dark mental space. The remaining race became a battle against giving up, and I was losing it. Throughout training I felt good. Ironically, the sled pull station was the one I was most confident with — I was pulling 30 kg heavier at my gym for sets. What went wrong then? I wasn’t expecting the elasticity of the rope and basic physics: the further the sled is, the harder the pull. The rope I used in training was much shorter and sturdier. When I put my all into one pull and the sled barely moved, the whole game plan — and my momentum — was gone. Besides that, mentally I was expecting and holding much less pain than required. I was doing 4 stops per lane during the sled push. I was skiing/rowing at <2:10 min/500 m pace, which, to be honest, I’m proud of — last year when I did Hyrox Open, I could only hold ~2:20 min/500 m. But this time I was still too conscious about not over-exerting myself. What I could do better Train heavy For stations like the sled pull, I would go to 200 kg with the compromised setup next time. It would also be worth training heavier for stations after the row (farmers carry, lunges, and wall balls), because by then you’re both mentally and physically exhausted. Train heavier, but still have the same expectation in terms of time. Focus on adaptation The majority of sled sessions I did were race-weight sled compromised run sessions. However, I was putting a limiter on my sled strength adaptation. I would arrange it differently next time: schedule specific sled strength sessions, mixing heavier-than-race but shorter sets with easier-but-longer sets. Establish a baseline I have never done any simulation or half simulation. I didn’t do any Hyrox-style workout over 1 hour — the longest one I did was around 40 minutes. For next time, I still don’t think that should be part of the curriculum, but it’s still critical to establish a baseline, compare it with the goal splits, and understand weaknesses and expectations. Honestly just need more time dedicated Pro is a different game. A hobbyist like me going in will likely get punished. I feel like I need to dedicate 7–8 hours minimum per week, given my lack of athletic background. Moving forward I still finished the race in 1 hour 37 minutes, more than 20 minutes slower than my goal. I’m still in the grief stage. I still do not want to watch anything about Hyrox on Instagram or YouTube. But I’m not just going to swallow the L. Next year we have the Ballarat half marathon lined up in late April. I’m planning to follow a training plan properly and hopefully build toward 1 hour 25 minutes, which will be a very hard goal — but that’s what keeps me going. While building the running, I’m planning to keep only the minimum strength sessions. I think I’ll rely on kettlebell workouts given how easy they are to plan and how I can just work out at home. As discussed with my wife, we would like to travel more next year given our kid will be more than 1 year old. So I’m aiming for Hyrox in Korea, where I’d do the Open division, given there’s not much time after the half marathon. Then we’ll see. I feel running makes me happier in general, but it will be good to maintain some strength and at least keep improving in Hyrox at Open — maybe to the top 5%? The race was a great opportunity to challenge and strengthen my identity: dealing with loss, and being more open-minded. I kept my shirt on, pushed through, and can still brag to my coworkers.

Hyrox Melbourne Build - Week 5

I think I fucked up my deload week. My Achilles felt super sore on Monday and Tuesday, so I worked around it by using more machines and swapping my usual Tuesday intervals for a Hyrox-style session with the Assault bike, ski, and thrusters. The rest of the week, I felt deep fatigue. That pushed me to add a new training principle: listen to motivation. I think it was the right call — I skipped a few pram jogs because, at this stage, the only benefit they give me is volume reassurance. They make me feel like I’ve trained enough, but adding them would break one of my other principles: every session must have a goal/adaptation. I also had that internal argument everyone has before a race: Instagram is full of people doing huge Hyrox workouts in peak week. Meanwhile, my longest session this week was only around 50 minutes. But the closest comparable endurance race to Hyrox is a half-marathon, and during a half-marathon build you never do a 16–19 km race-pace workout. Most people stop around 10–15 km max. So even with the self-doubt, I chose to trust my process. It might not magically make me faster on race day, but I got two direct wins. On Sunday I felt more motivated and the pain had eased. I even did a cheeky progressive long run (only 13 km, but still), and I hit 5K pace (from the parkrun last week) in the 10th kilometre without much pain. And today, Monday, my Achilles feels fine. So overall, I’d call it a successful peak week — through fatigue, doubt, and potential injury. And that loops me back to the first principle: Consistency above all.

Hyrox Melbourne Build - Week 4, Day 6

I ran the same parkrun slower than last month. Is this a setback? Well, it is one of the indicators, and I partially put my pride on it. It didn't happen, but a few things to celebrate I felt the same runs are easier on treadmill workouts. My ranking has progressed from 9th to 8th (don't take it seriously tho I know many people doing their Parkrun at their tempo pace). I felt easier in the first few KMs. I don't really know what I could have done differently for the last 4 weeks. But here are what would change AFTER the Hyrox Melbourne More running outside on the actual track. More Hills and threshold. Let's see and learn

Hyrox Melbourne Build - Week 4, Day 2

legs are sore from progressive long run last week. But luckily the deload starts this week! Just some much less volume intervals to keep the feet poppy.

Hyrox Melbourne Build - Week 4, Day 1

Picking backup mobility, move your joints in all different angles. For me is basically doing some prehab exercises like ATG squats without weights.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 3 Sunday

Tired but felt good long run! The easy run shows my adaption, HR was able to maintain at Z1 - Low Z2 at easy run.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 3 Saturday.

I ditched the curved treadmill to get a proper feeling of race pace. I used a motorised treadmill, while waiting for acceleration, I worked on jump squats to keep the lactate. Race pace running at 800m run feels good, maybe sub 70 is tangible! I got too tired to pram jog in the evening.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 3 Friday

High Zone 2, probably not the smartest but felt good

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 3 Thursday

Compromised run with the pro weight is a grind. I feel like I didn't perform well, but I realised this was the first time I did it with minimum rest. Ditch the self-doubt and focus on the progression. I think I have invented a good way to do burpees with kettlebells 2x24kg push up, single arm clean and squat. This movement felt challenging but not killing.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 3 Wednesday

I feel my pulling mechanism for row erg is clicking - not too much leaning back, but drive with the legs. In Ski Erg, I am finding the hard pace sustainable for 1 minute. Overall, I can feel the consistency starting to pay off. I kept at my Z3-Z4, I wonder if it impacts my recovery, or if it is a good way to sneak in some high intensity work without taxing the legs. Will need some research/experiments

7 Weeks Hyrox Build - Week 3 Tuesday

Feeling great! able to push the pace, even the HR is high, but feels good! Don't be scared by the numbers; listen to yourself.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 2 Sunday

In my opinion, it’s just not nice to leave your family duties for too long — for me, two hours is probably the max. I broke my long run this Sunday — 16 km in the morning and 7.5 km later in the day — to stack mileage without disappearing from home for too long. The 16 km segment felt a lot easier than the last one. I’m counting it as solid progress, even if my watch and Strava don’t completely agree. I also listened to the RMR Training Podcast (https://youtu.be/Ugvtpl59a9w?si=v0T0n9R3ceeWpSJh), which made me rethink what I said just a day ago — that with lower mileage, you need more mixed-intensity days instead of pure Zone 2. I’m back to the initial plan: Keep easy days easy and hard days hard. In reflection, this alone has helped me run a much faster 5 K than a few friends who train with higher volume or push the pace on their “easy” runs. (Sorry for the trash talk.) Life’s been busy this week. A few things at work have thrown off my training schedule, but I still hit the key sessions. Flow with life (and with the help of energy drinks, plus being a night owl— sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do) and trust the process.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 2 Saturday

I absolutely love fartlek — it’s such a great tool to touch different paces while managing strain. I should find a way to do more of it. For those of us with lower training loads, we can’t copy the super-polarised approach of elites (we’re not spending three hours on the bike every second day). Mixed sessions like this are perfect for maintaining threshold and race-pace efficiency without huge volume. I’m keen to dig deeper into how mixed training compares to pure Zone 2 work for lower-mileage athletes, and I’ll start experimenting by blending fartlek elements into my long runs.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 2 Friday

Two energy drinks in, after 9 p.m. Not a decision I’m proud of, but I flowed through this quality session. I’m happy that the sled push and pull after the run felt manageable, and I’m more confident about the race. This week’s sessions were a bit skewed due to work, but from a progression standpoint, this one shows I can sustain power output and threshold pace for 30 minutes under fatigue — longer than last week. Trust the process.

7 Week Hyrox Build: Week 2 Thursday

##When life gets in the way, the biggest enemy is your guilt. I missed the designated training time for the day and had to finish a meeting at 11 p.m. Work has been stressful as well. I gave myself this decision framework to combat it: Go back and think about the goal of each session throughout the week. Have a clear priority for the key adaptations — protect them. Another secret weapon — a quick guilt-slasher workout: Something that hits your system just enough to calm your nerves about missing the session. For me, it’s a quick kettlebell EMOM, metcon style, because strength endurance is a key adaptation I want to bank this week. Regrouped. Consistency above all.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 2 Wednesday

I struggled to find rhythm on the row erg — my hips felt disconnected and my biceps were burning. What’s annoying is that just last week, rowing at a lower pace felt much easier, even in a more intense session. But what matters most is that I got the workout in the bank — I rowed non-stop. There’s nothing more important than trusting the process and staying consistent.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 2 Tuesday

Chase fitness, touch hard pace — build strength and speed by flirting with the edge, not living there. Focus on specificity — train for purpose, not exhaustion; Loss of motivation is a signal 🧠 5K Race Pace vs Threshold — Finding the Compromise I’ve been looking for a balance between my 5K goal and my Hyrox goal in interval training. For the 5K, I’ve been experimenting with running intervals at threshold pace instead of race pace. In last week’s race, I still struggled to hold the pace and exploded too early — but I also noticed progress. Running those same paces now feels easier. Fitness improved; pacing is still catching up. For Hyrox, everything revolves around threshold work. (Highly recommended to checkout Rich Ryan's Running Guide https://www.rmr.training/running-for-hyrox-guide) So, I’m trying to bridge the two worlds. In my interval workouts, I progressively increase speed within each set — adding 0.1–0.2 km/h every minute, then starting the next set slightly faster. In the final two sets, I stay at my sub-19 5K goal pace. The session feels hard but controlled. No explosion, just steady effort inside that “controlled hard” zone. 🎯 Focus on Specificity After the run, it was dreadful even thinking about my planned evening EMOM with burpees. I prefer steady, mid-to-heavy kettlebell work — clean and jerk–style movements that feel productive, not chaotic. I debated pushing through the EMOM or adjusting the workout. In the end, I replaced it with a heavier kettlebell clean and press session. The reason: specificity. The goal of the PM session is to build strength, not to prove I can suffer. The EMOM would’ve been more about chasing fatigue than building anything meaningful. Looking back at the week, I already have two compromised running sessions that train that “suffer” element. I don’t need a third. Consistency > everything. This was my body sending a signal — adjust, don’t overreach. For everyday athletes, overtraining is the real killer of progress — not laziness. It shows up as injuries, burnout, or loss of motivation. Sometimes the hardest thing is to trust the process, overcome the insecurity, and remember the goal of each session.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Sunday

This week already had plenty of new stimuli — an extra Hyrox session, longer EMOMs, more time near threshold — so I capped my running volume at around 55 km to stay on top of recovery. I’d been listening to the RoxLyfe podcast with Charlie Botterill, and he mentioned that at his size — around 80 kg — he keeps his weekly running volume in the 50–60 km range. I was glad to hear that — it helped me justify holding back instead of chasing higher mileage. In the morning, I ran about 6 km with the baby in the pram, it has been my secret weapon for stacking volume while shifting into a more Hyrox-focused phase instead of pure running, and hey, the baby got a bumpy nap too! The evening run doubled as my jog to my wife’s parents’ place for dinner — about 8 km away. Normally I’d stretch it to around 14 km, but this time I only added a kilometre or so to keep total volume down. I’ve started experimenting with higher-quality long runs, where you pick up the pace after some easy running — something I picked up from a podcast about Kenyan training, and also from Conor Mantz / Clayton Young. The pickup felt okay, though my heart rate spiked to 5 K levels even though I was only running at threshold pace. After that, I couldn’t quite settle back into Zone 2 — jogging pace sat around 160 bpm. Fatigue, warmth, and lack of sleep all hit at once, mostly the warmth. Got it done. Consistency above all. I will need to be more careful about my sleep too!

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Saturday

First blog entry after 1hr vibe code yayyyy. The main hybrid engine session only lasted about 24 minutes, and I was slightly worried that it didn’t feel long or grindy enough to hit the intended “long, hard work” stimulus. But looking back, the running volume was actually higher than in the original plan, so the total aerobic load still matched the session’s purpose. The row felt great after I made a small technical adjustment: lowering the foot position and setting the damper between 2–3. That change made the stroke feel smoother and more rhythmic. I remember when holding a 2:05/500 m pace used to feel uncomfortable — now it feels like a cruising aerobic rhythm. That’s a really good sign that my base fitness and efficiency are improving. The pram jog after the session also felt better than usual. I could stay comfortably in Zone 2 heart rate but move a bit faster than before, which I think comes from the hybrid training that helped my posture.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Friday

After some hard sessions during the week, stack some easy miles. I found jogging with my-worst-ever-pram-to-jog-with much easier!

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Thursday

I was expecting an easier sled push after how good the sled pull felt yesterday. I had this belief that the pro weight would be fine — my push has always been stronger than my pull. But I really struggled today. The first two sets were at 205 kg, and by the next two I felt completely spent, so I dropped to 200 kg and then 195 kg. On the curved self-propelled treadmill, I couldn’t quite pick up speed to my goal threshold pace — it’s always been a tough one for me on those treadmills. To check if I could still run at 4:10 min/km race pace, I did 2×400 m on the motorised treadmill at around 3:45 min/km. The leg turnover felt controlled but hard. I’m slightly conscious about the total session volume and whether I can hold goal pace on race day, but it’s only week 1. From an adaptation standpoint, it feels like it’s hitting the right zone — building sled familiarity and practicing that pace pickup after a hard station.

7 weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Wednesday

Tested sled pull at race weight — I was nervous about it, but it actually felt alright! I followed one of Rich Ryan’s YouTube videos on sled pull technique and tried to sneak in some short sled-pull sessions as low-fatigue strength work. Surprisingly, I felt great — much better than during my Hyrox Open sled pull last year. Probably all those kettlebell rows at home finally kicked in. The SkiErg was another nice surprise. During the first two pyramid sets, I really felt it in my lower back, but then I found my rhythm in later sets, I even got a "runner's high". The key cue for me was using my legs to send the handles up — like when you do a med-ball slam. You have to actively “thruster” the ball up for the next rep, which chains the whole movement together.

7 Weeks Hyrox Build: Week 1 Tuesday

Decided to focus on threshold work today instead of chasing sub-19 5 K race pace — that’s still my secondary goal for this build, but not the priority right now. I mixed in some incline variations during the sets, since that really spooked me during last week’s parkrun 5 K TT. Evening kettlebell session was solid — good quality work all around.