In this article, we will look at the sled pull station at HYROX, and how to appropriately train for it.
The sled pull has caught out many athletes competing at HYROX. It’s certainly an area where it’s very easy to lose a lot of time. Along with the wall balls and sled push, the sled pull is one of the stations which has the largest variability in completion time. That means, however, that’s it’s an area where you can make up a lot of time, relative to others in the race, if you manage to nail it. It is, therefore, worthy of your focus.
Let’s take a look…
Sled Pull Difficulties
There are a few reasons that the sled pull causes problems for HYROX competitors:
– The flooring (i.e. carpet) on which you need to push the sled has seemingly been designed to be about as difficult to pull a sled on as possible! It is far less smooth than the flooring found in most gyms. This makes the sled feel MUCH heavier than it actually is. If there’s one piece of advice I could give to someone entering their first HYROX competition, it’s to expect the sleds to feel heavier than you’re imagining.
– In some cases, the carpet can bunch up whilst you are pulling the sled along it, thus adding even more resistance.
– The competitor hasn’t trained compromised sled pulling. Pulling a heavy sled for 50 meters is one thing. Doing it having already run a total of 3km, covered 1km on the Ski erg, and pushed a heavy sled for 50 meters is quite another.
– The rope used to pull the sled at HYROX is particularly long (the length of the 12.5m track) and does have some give / elasticity in it. This can make the first few pulls of the sled, in particular, feel a little odd if you aren’t used to it.
– You have a pretty small area in which you can stand / move when pulling the sled (roughly 1.8m long). Once you have the rope bunching up behind you it can make stepping back particularly difficult. Many athletes find themselves tripping over.
– It is one of the stations in HYROX where some skill / technique is helpful. Learning to pull the sled in an appropriate way, whilst managing the rope around you, and staying in the small box you are allowed in, does take some practice and experience.
HYROX Sled Pull Weights
The sled pull weights, by category, in HYROX are as follows:
Women: 78kg incl. sled
Women Pro: 103kg incl. sled
Men: 103kg incl. sled
Men Pro: 153kg incl. sled
Mixed Doubles: 103kg incl. sled
Women Doubles: 78kg incl. sled
Men Doubles: 103kg incl. sled
Relay: 78kg / 103kg (F/M) incl. sled
Sled Pull Standards
You must cover 50 meters in total. This is broken up into 4 lengths of 12.5meters.
The sled pull is the third station in a HYROX race. By the time you reach it you will have run a total of 3km, completed 1km on the Ski Erg, and a 50 meter sled push (plus any time in the “Roxzone”).
When you enter the sled pull zone, you must use the lane assigned to you by a judge. Both the sled and participant should be completely behind the line prior to beginning. You must then pull the sled the length of your lane, past the line, walk back to the other end of your lane and pull the sled back. You then need to repeat this process to make up the 50meters. Resting at any time during this process is fine if you wish. It is important, whilst pulling the sled, that you do not step outside of your designated area at the end of your lane. Athletes must not step on the solid white line at the end of the athlete’s box.
Here is a HYROX video covering the sled pull standards:
Sled Pull Technique
With regard to technique on the sled pull, there are a few options available to you.
The first, if you are strong enough, is to stand and pull using your arms only. Depending on your category, this does take a good amount of strength. It likely won’t be possible – at least for the full 50 meters – for most competitors, especially in the Pro division.
The second option is to reach for the rope with your hands, then pull the sled towards you using a hip extension.
The third option is to hold the rope and use your legs to pull, stepping back in the small amount of area that you have.
And the final option is a combination of the first 3 techniques (primarily step back but using your arms as much as possible as you do).
Check out the video below for a demonstration the 3 main techniques…
Sled Pull Training Tips
Get the Weight Right
When training for the HYROX sled pull, you’ll want to ensure you are using an appropriate amount of weight. To achieve an equivalent feel to that which you’ll experience at HYROX, you’ll need to consider the flooring that you are training on. If it’s anything smoother than a VERY resistant carpet, then you’ll likely want to add weight over and above your race day weight. Speaking from personal experience, when training at my gym I need to add an additional 35kg to the sled for it to feel equivalent to race weight (but this will vary depending on your rope, sled and flooring!).
Get the Timing and Effort Right
You never truly know how the sleds at HYROX are going to feel until you’re actually there, in the race. But in training, you can aim to replicate the effort you put into the pull, and the time you want to spend pulling for. That doesn’t mean you need to spend 4 minutes (or however long it will be) each time you do a set in the gym, but rather just aim for a hard effort, for X amount of time, for a number of sets. In some sessions that length of time might be shorter than other sessions (in which case the weight might be heavier). Focusing on your time in the set, as opposed to whether you’ve replicated the weight of the event, is a much better use of your mental energy.
Example Sled Pull Training Sessions
When training the sled pull in isolation, there are obviously a variety of options in terms of sets, length of push, and weight used. Periodisation and progression in your training is important.
An example session might be to pick a heavier weight than what you’ll be competing with and completing 5 sets of 25 meters as quickly as possible, with 2 minutes rest between each set.
You’ll also want to be doing some compromised sled pulls so you can practice pulling the sled under fatigue. A simplistic example of what this might look like could be a 500-meter run at your approximate race pace, followed by a 30-meter sled pull (at race weight). And repeating this for 4 rounds, with no rest in between. This helps to train both the sled pull in a compromised state, as well as your compromised running.
There are obviously numerous options in terms of what a training session might look like. However, using heavier weights, fine tuning your technique, and practicing compromised sled pulls are all important considerations.
Sled Pull Training Without a Sled
Aside from sled work, you can, and likely should, spend time on pull strength. This will involve incorporating exercises such pull ups, bent over rows, single arm dumbbell rows, and possibly rope grip pull ups.
It’s not all just pulling though; your lower body will be working to help move that sled, so posterior chain exercises – such as deadlifts – can also be important. These exercises become even more important if you don’t have a sled that you can regularly train with.
Race Day Tips
The sled pull is just the third station in an eight-station event. By the time you reach it you’ll likely be only 30% (ish) into your total race time. If you fatigue yourself too much on the sled pull, there is a LONG way still to go. You can’t really win the race by doing well on the sleds, but you can certainly lose it. Therefore, it’s worth bearing in mind that you don’t necessarily want to get the 50-meters done as quickly as you possibly can. Of course, you don’t want to go too slow, but pushing yourself to your max, and leaving nothing in the tank for the rest of the race, can be a mistake. That said, it tends not to be quite as taxing on the legs as the sled push, so you can normally push yourself a little more here.
I’ve already mentioned it above, but it’s well worth reiterating, especially if you’ve never done a HYROX before, that the first few pulls on the rope can feel a little strange as the rope is so long (and a little elastic).
Also, be careful when you step back in your box area, especially as the rope starts to bunch up around you. It can often cause competitors to trip over. Moving out of your area before you have completed the pull can result in a penalty.
Finally, try to minimise time between pulls of the rope, and when you are walking to the other end of your lane. Of course, some rest may be needed but you want to be conscious of letting too much time slip by when you aren’t actually moving the sled.
I really hope that helps. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out, and please remember to sign up to our mailing list below so we can keep you up to date with any new articles on the site. Also, to help with training for HYROX, check out our training programmes and 12 week training plans (for individuals or doubles).
