Guide
How often per week should you train for HYROX?
Train at least 2 times a week, and ideally 3 to 5 times. Under the ACSM guideline, fewer than 2 times usually gives too little stimulus. In a 6-week study, at 1 session per week 69% did not improve, at 4 or 5 sessions everyone did. At 3 days you train a threshold run, a sim and strength. Total volume counts more than the number of days.
In short
- Fewer than 2 times a week is usually too little for your fitness.
- At 4 or 5 sessions per week, everyone improved in research.
- At equal volume, how you spread it over the week matters little.
- Strength and endurance go together; ideally keep explosive work and running 3 hours apart.
What is the minimum number of sessions per week?
Two sessions a week is the lower limit. The guideline of the American College of Sports Medicine (1998) says that endurance training on fewer than 2 days per week usually gives too little stimulus to build your fitness.
A study by Montero and Lundby (2017) shows how that plays out in practice. Groups trained for 6 weeks, 1 to 5 times 60 minutes per week.
| Sessions per week | People with no measurable improvement |
|---|---|
| 1 | 69% |
| 2 | 40% |
| 3 | 29% |
| 4 | 0% |
| 5 | 0% |
Those who didn't improve did so after another 6 weeks with 2 extra sessions per week. So not responding to training is mostly a matter of too small a dose.
Does the number of days count, or the total volume?
Mostly the total volume. Tripp and colleagues (2025) had 28 adults train for 8 weeks, 2 or 4 times a week, with the same volume and the same intensity. VO₂max rose about equally in both groups. The same goes for strength: in the meta-analysis by Grgic and colleagues (2018), frequency made no difference when volume was equal.
That doesn't mean 2 long days are always as good as 4 shorter ones. HYROX preparation needs different kinds of training: threshold, sim, strength and easy volume. With more days you can spread those better and have less fatigue per session.
How many interval sessions per week?
Two per week is a good starting point. Lenk and colleagues (2025) compared 1, 2 and 3 times a week of 4 × 4 minute intervals in recreational runners. The biggest effects on VO₂max came at 2 and 3 times a week, with no clear extra benefit from the third session. It was a small, exploratory study with 26 participants. For HYROX, the sim often counts as the second hard session next to the threshold run. How to build one is covered in build a HYROX simulation.
How do you spread 2 to 7 days?
Start with the sessions that give the most and fill in with easy volume. This is how Benchmrk fills the week for a chosen number of days:
| Days per week | Sessions |
|---|---|
| 1 | Sim |
| 2 | Threshold, sim |
| 3 | Threshold, sim, strength |
| 4 | Threshold, sim, strength, long run |
| 5 | Threshold, sim, strength, long run, easy run |
| 6 | As 5, plus a second easy run |
| 7 | As 6, plus a recovery day |
The threshold run and the sim get priority, because running is the biggest part of the race. In the study by Brandt and colleagues (2025), more than 60% of race time was running and endurance training volume was strongly related to finish time. You set your pace for those sessions with find your threshold pace.
How do you combine strength and running?
Ideally at separate times. A meta-analysis of 43 studies (Schumann and colleagues, 2022) found that endurance training alongside strength does not slow the growth of maximal strength and muscle mass. Explosive strength did grow a little less, especially when both were in the same session. With at least 3 hours in between, that effect was not there.
The researchers of the first HYROX study also recommend separating strength and endurance training where possible. If that isn't possible, do first the part that matters most to you.
Busy period? According to a review by Spiering and colleagues (2021), you hold your strength for up to 32 weeks with 1 strength session per week and 1 set per exercise, as long as the weight stays heavy. You hold your fitness for up to 15 weeks with 2 sessions per week, if intensity stays the same.
What does an example week of 4 days look like?
This is an example for someone with a job and little time, in the threshold phase.
| Day | Session |
|---|---|
| Tue | Threshold run, for example 4 × 1600 m just under your threshold pace |
| Thu | Strength for your two weakest stations |
| Sat | Sim: 8 × (500 m + station at 50% of race volume) |
| Sun | Easy long run |
Hard days are not back to back. If you only have 3 days, the long run drops out in Benchmrk. For the weeks just before your race, read HYROX taper. What the whole 16 weeks look like is on HYROX training plan.
How Benchmrk does it
You choose how many days you train, from 1 to 7, and on which weekdays. The app fills those days with the sessions from the table above and keeps hard days apart. If you train fewer than 4 days a week, the prediction uses less improvement. If you log an extra workout, the app takes it into account.
Frequently asked questions
Is training 3 times a week enough for HYROX?
For many people yes, although in one study 29% did not improve at 3 sessions per week. Then do a threshold run, a sim and a strength session, and don't make them shorter than needed.
Can you also go to a HYROX race on 2 sessions per week?
You can, but it is tight. In a study with 4 × 4 minute intervals, 2 sessions per week gave a clear effect on VO₂max; 1 session per week did not.
Is training every day better?
Not necessarily. More volume usually gives more effect, but every extra day also needs recovery. At 6 or 7 days the extra days in Benchmrk are easy run or recovery days.
How often should you do strength training?
A meta-analysis found that frequency makes no difference when volume is equal. To maintain strength, a review says 1 session per week is already enough, as long as the weight stays heavy.
Can you do strength and running on the same day?
Yes. Maximal strength and muscle growth don't suffer from it, explosive strength does a little if you do both in one session. With at least 3 hours in between, that effect was not there.
Sources
- Pollock et al. (1998), ACSM Position Stand, Med Sci Sports Exerc (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Montero & Lundby (2017), Refuting the myth of non-response to exercise training, J Physiol (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Tripp et al. (2025), Low-frequency vs high-frequency training matched for volume, Scand J Med Sci Sports (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Lenk et al. (2025), Weekly frequency of HIIT in recreational runners, Physiol Rep (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Grgic et al. (2018), Resistance training frequency and strength gains, Sports Med (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Spiering et al. (2021), Maintaining physical performance – minimal dose, J Strength Cond Res (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Schumann et al. (2022), Compatibility of concurrent aerobic and strength training, Sports Med (accessed on 22 October 2026)
- Brandt et al. (2025), Frontiers in Physiology (accessed on 22 October 2026)