What to Eat for Hyrox Training: A Complete Nutrition Guide
WHAT IS HYROX?
Hyrox is a relatively new phenomenon in the fitness space; it launched in Germany in 2017 and continues to be one of the fastest growing fitness competitions in the world. I completed my first Hyrox race in Mexico City in 2024 and then did two more races in 2025, including competing in the Hyrox World Championships in Chicago in June 2025.
Hyrox is a serious test of fitness - 60 to 90+ minutes of running, erging, and moving weight at a high heart rate. To succeed, you need to train a lot so you can push and pull the sled, stay fast on the ski-erg and rower, crank out 100 wall balls at the end of the race, and oh yeah, run 8 kilometers between it all.
Hyrox “season” starts in the fall (usually September) and runs through early spring. If you’re signed up for a race this season, it’s important to make sure your nutrition matches your training.
What do you need when you train this much? A lot of calories. and a lot of those calories from carbs. A solid nutrition plan will dramatically improve how you recover between sessions, how well you perform during them, and ultimately how you show up on race day.
In this post, we’ll cover how to calculate your calorie needs, why carbs are your main fuel, and how much protein you need to support recovery and strength. Let’s dig in.
Step 1: Estimate Your Calorie Needs
Hyrox training has a high energy demand, which means this is not the time to chase fat-loss goals. You need at least maintenance calories in order to recover and adapt to training.
How many calories should you eat when training for Hyrox? Here are two easy methods to calculate your calorie needs:
Use a simple math equation
Hyrox athletes should eat 15–17 calories per pound of body weight to support training and recovery.
Multiply 15–17 calories per pound of body weight (33–37.4 calories/kg for my metric system users).
Use an online calorie calculator
If you lift regularly and have a lot of muscle mass, search Google for a “Cunningham equation calculator.”
For non-lifters, search “Revised Harris-Benedict calculator.”
You could also ask ChatGPT to run the calculation using one of these formulas. Here is a sample prompt-
Can you calculate my daily calorie needs using the [Cunningham equation / Revised Harris-Benedict equation]? I weigh [X] lbs/kg, I’m [male/female], [age], and I train for Hyrox about [X] hours per week. Please show me both my BMR and my estimated daily calorie needs based on my activity level.
Let’s go through an example using option one:
Take a 150 lb athlete: 150 x 15–17 = 2250–2550 calories. Anywhere in that range would be a good starting calorie amount. I prefer to err on the high side of the range, so I would assign this athlete 2550 calories.
Step 2: Break Down Your Macro Targets
Once we’ve got a calorie number, we can split it into protein, carbs, and fat. Do you need to track your macros to compete in Hyrox? Definitely not. But there is a benefit to knowing your specific macro/nutrition needs to optimize your performance. If you’re new to tracking macros, you can start here.
CALCULATE YOUR PROTEIN NEEDS
There is a really simple equation backed by science to determine protein needs. It is,
Protein needs for Hyrox training: 0.7–1.0 g per pound of body weight (1.6–2.2 g/kg).
You can get into the weeds more with protein requirements if you want, but the above recommendation works really well.
Back to our example: 150 x 0.7-1.0 = 105–150 g protein/day. Anywhere in this range is a good starting point for protein intake. Let’s go right in the middle and give our athlete a protein target of 125.
CALCULATE YOUR CARBOHYDRATE NEEDS
Your training is going to include A LOT of heavy breathing - running, rowing, skiing, burpees, lunges. You need carbs. Carbohydrate needs depend on training hours: 3–5 g/kg for 3–5 hours per week, 5–8 g/kg for 6–12 hours, and 8–12 g/kg for 12+ hours. Many people are scared of carbs, but trust me, eating enough of them is a game changer when training for Hyrox.
Specific carb recommendations depend on weekly training volume. Below is an easy breakdown for carb recommendations based on the research.
3–5 hours/week: 1.36–2.27 g/lb (3–5 g/kg)
6–12 hours/week: 2.27–3.63 g/lb (5–8 g/kg)
12+ hours/week: 3.63–5.45 g/lb (8–12 g/kg)
Example athlete again: 150 lbs training 6 hrs/week × 2.27 g = 341 g carbs/day
(You might be thinking, “This amount of carbs is going to give me diabetes.” But listen…if your training hours are consistently in these ranges, and you’re training hard, eating this much will massively improve your recovery and adaptation.)
CALCULATE YOUR FAT NEEDS
Some quick background info for calculating fat macros: Each macronutrient has a caloric value:
Protein and carbs = 4 calories per gram
Fat = 9 calories per gram
Once you set protein and carbs, fat fills in the remaining calories—with one important consideration: fat should be at least 20% of your total calorie intake.
For our example athlete with a 2550 calorie target, 20% is 510 calories. Divide that by 9, and you get ~57 g of fat as the minimum target.
Continuing with our macro calculation:
Calorie target: 2550
Protein: 125 g (125 × 4 = 500 cal)
Carbs: 341 g (341 × 4 = 1364 cal)
Fat: 2550 – (500 + 1364) = 686 ÷ 9 = 76 g fat.
Example athlete calculations: Our 150 lbs athlete’s final macro targets are 125g protein / 341g carbs / 76g fat.
Step 3: Monitor and Adjust
Once you’ve set your macro targets, the next step is to put them to the test: eat, train, gather data, and adjust based on results.
MONITOR:
Weigh yourself daily (or as often as possible) under similar conditions, then calculate a weekly average.
Track your daily food intake with an app (you can find some of our favorite macro tracking apps here) and calculate your weekly average intake.
Using the results from this set of data, you can adjust your nutrition to support your training.
ADJUST:
Weight trends down → you’re in a calorie deficit → you need to increase calories
Weight trends up → you’re in a calorie surplus → you could decrease calories
Weight steady → you’re eating at maintenance → you can keep macros the same
When adjusting macros, here’s a simple rule of thumb: change calories up or down by about 10%. Where those calories come from (or go to) depends on your needs, but also on your preferences. Some athletes feel better with more carbs, others prefer to raise or lower fats a bit, some want to eat more protein. Experiment within the guidelines above and find what feels best for you.
Example adjustment:
Our 150 lb athlete starts at 2550 cals - 125 P / 341 C / 76 F.
For four weeks, they track their weight and their daily caloric intake.
On average, they eat about 2500 calories a day.
Their average body weights across the four weeks are 149.2, 148.4, 147.9, 147.1.
This is a clear trend down in body weight and indicates a calorie deficit, so they raise calories by ~10% and start eating new macro targets of: 125 P / 395 C / 80 F (2800 cals).
They would then continue to track their bodyweight and macros in order to see if this puts them back at maintenance, then adjust as needed.
Bonus Step: Make It Sustainable
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned over the years as a coach is this - the best plan is useless if you can’t stick to it. All of the above are guidelines, not rigid rules.
If hitting your macro targets feels impossible, then allow yourself to be flexible in order to better fit your preferences while keeping total calories consistent.
Example athlete adjustment: Say our example athlete was struggling to consistently eat 125 grams of protein. They could adjust their macro targets from
125g protein
341g carbohydrates
76g fat
to
105g protein
361g carbohydrates
76g fat
This is the same amount of calories, their protein is still in the the range of “enough protein”, and if it helps them be more adherent to their nutrition plan, then it’s a better plan.
KEY TAKEAWAYS FOR HYROX NUTRITION
Training for a Hyrox race is demanding, and your nutrition needs to meet those demands. Start by calculating a calorie target, then break it down into protein, carbs, and fat based on your training volume. Monitor your progress, adjust as needed, and remember that the goal is performance. When you eat enough to recover, adapt, and show up strong, you give yourself the best shot at crushing your race and enjoying your training along the way.
Macros, carb targets, protein goals… This can feel like a lot to juggle on your own. That’s where we come in. Apply to work with a KLN coach and get the support you need to crush your next race.
