Nutrition Strategies for Hyrox Competitions: Preparing for Success

Similar to your training, your nutrition plan can make or break your performance on race day. Hyrox is an amazing test of strength, stamina, and fortitude. Planning your diet in the weeks before a competition is crucial, whether your goal is a PB or you simply want to feel strong and fueled throughout.

Let's examine the tactics you'll need for the weeks leading up to race week, carb loading, and race day itself.

Weeks Before: Build the Foundation

You develop both your dietary habits and your level of fitness during your training block. Fueling performance, maximizing recovery, and preserving energy balance are the objectives.

• Carbohydrates: Your primary training fuel is carbohydrates. Make sure a healthy source (rice, oats, potatoes, pasta, fruit) is included in every meal. This helps with both recovery and high-intensity workouts.

• Protein: To aid in muscle repair and adaptation, aim for approximately 1.6–2 g per kg of body weight per day. Your first choice should be whole meals, but if you have trouble meeting your goals, a whey protein supplement might be an easy and affordable fix.

• Micronutrients: Don't overlook variety; vibrant fruits and vegetables include vitamins and antioxidants that promote immunity and healing.

• Meal Timing: Aim for three main meals and two to three snacks per day, spread out to correspond with your workout schedule. Prioritize protein and carbohydrates shortly after workouts to accelerate healing. Try to fuel with carbohydrates prior to sessions.

• Trial Your Strategy: Practice fuelling, particularly testing carb loading, throughout your longer cardio sessions or simulated exercises. Why fill up on carbs? It helps postpone fatigue during the race by optimising glycogen storage. For instance, consume more carbohydrates the day before a major workout and keep an eye on your mood both before and after. In this manner, before race week, you'll know just what suits your physique. By race week, you will know precisely what to eat, when to eat it, and how much you need to consume in order to perform at your best because you can refine that process.

Tip: Don't wait until the last minute to try this; doing so will help you discover what suits your performance and gut the best.

Race Week: Fine-Tune & Carb Load

Tapering training volume in the last week typically frees up more energy for recuperation. Now is the optimum moment to improve your carb-loading technique, ideally expanding on what you tried throughout training.

A tried-and-true method for endurance athletes, carbohydrate loading (also called glycogen loading) maximises your body's glycogen stores, which are your body's main source of energy during extended, high-intensity activity (Burke, Hawley, Wong, & Jeukendrup, 2011).

You can saturate your glycogen stores and have a larger fuel tank to use on race day by consuming more carbohydrates in the 24 to 36 hours before your race. According to research, appropriate carb loading can increase endurance and postpone exhaustion, both of which are essential for a Hyrox race (Havemann et al., 2006).

In the 24 to 36 hours prior to a race, HYROX athletes should aim for 6 to 8 grammes of carbs per kilogramme of bodyweight. A 70 kg athlete, for instance, should aim for 420–560g of carbs, which account for roughly 65–75% of total caloric intake.

Tip: You're changing the ratio so that the majority of your calories come from carbohydrates rather than consuming more calories overall.

Pay attention to complex carbs found in foods like potatoes, rice, pasta, breads, and cereals. Lower-fiber, quick-digesting foods like pancakes, cereal bars, honey, fruit juice, and dried fruit are great complements to satisfy your needs without making you feel extremely full if digestion or appetite are problems.

An example of a 70 kg athlete's day of carb loading:

● Breakfast: Porridge with banana, dried fruit, honey, and a glass of orange juice

● Midmorning snack is bagel with jam.

● Lunch: Chicken and rice with a sports drink

● Mid-afternoon snack: a cereal bar and a fruit smoothie with juice and honey

● Dinner is spaghetti bolognese with garlic bread. 

● Before bed, it's cereal and milk.

Here, organisation and consistency are crucial. Try to eat three main meals and three to four high-carb snacks spread out throughout the day.

Race Day Fuelling Strategy

The start time of your HYROX race will determine when you eat. It's crucial to adjust your fuelling strategy if your start time is later.

Try to eat your last large meal three to four hours prior to the event. To sustain energy levels without feeling excessively full, keep concentrating on high-carb, low-fiber, easily digested foods in the lead-up.

Pancakes with fruit and honey, baguettes, bagels, and sandwiches filled with meat, pasta with a sauce made from tomatoes, chicken noodles, and rice with some meat are other examples.

The Final Step: Pre-Race Snack & Caffeine

You can replenish your energy reserves by having a light, carbohydrate-based snack 60 to 90 minutes before your start time. This could be a liquid alternative, such as a carbohydrate drink, or it could be a little snack. Try to consume about 0.5g of carbohydrates per kilogramme of body weight.

Don't overindulge if you're still satisfied from your previous meal.

There are many adaptable options in the samples given, so you can mix and match to achieve your goals while maintaining your personal tastes.

Hydration

In the hours before, drink liquids or electrolytes. Instead than chugging at the last minute, you should feel hydrated before the race begins. 

Travel Considerations

Make advance plans if you're heading overseas for Hyrox to avoid dietary stress interfering with your preparation.

• Travel snacks: Pack familiar foods high in carbohydrates for the journey and airport.
• Follow your instincts: Steer clear of strange, heavy, or dangerous foods near competitors.
• Plan your meals: Make reservations in advance at eateries that serve straightforward, carb-based dishes that you are sure your body can handle.
• Food safety: When appropriate, give priority to cooked foods and bottled water. 

Final Thoughts Your training is finished by the time race week arrives; it's all about execution. It is now your responsibility to fuel wisely, stick to what you know, and have faith in the method you have practiced. Keep in mind that your approach should inspire you rather than limit you. Now that you've put in a lot of effort to get here, it's time to arrive, fill up, and have fun.