Match the recovery effort to what the session actually cost
Not every session needs a protocol. A technique-heavy strength class and a 90-minute race simulation are not the same withdrawal from the same account, and treating them identically means either overcomplicating the easy days or under-supporting the hard ones.
| Session | What it costs | What recovery looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Technique or strength class | Low fluid and fuel cost | Normal meal, normal fluid, normal sleep. |
| Standard conditioning class | Moderate | Drink to replace what you lost, eat a proper meal with carbohydrate. |
| 90-minute SIM-ilar race-prep session | High on all four | Weigh the fluid loss seriously, include sodium, get a substantial carbohydrate and protein meal in reasonably soon. |
| Two sessions in one day | High, with a short turnaround | This is the one case where the fast refuelling numbers genuinely apply. |
What a sustainable week looks like
We run CrossFit seven days a week, and 15+ weekly HYROX race-prep classes, 3 of which are 90-minute SIM-ilar classes. That is a lot of available training, which is exactly why choosing what not to do is part of the skill.
- Anchor the hard sessions first, then fill in around them. Do not let three hard days end up stacked by accident.
- Keep protein and sleep constant across the week. They are the base layer, not a response to a hard day.
- Put your easiest day next to your hardest one, not two hard days back to back.
- Leave one day a week genuinely light. Not a secret hard session labelled as active recovery.
If you want a coach's eye on how your week is actually laid out, that is a conversation worth having in person. Come and try three classes free and bring the question with you.
Race week
Race week is not a training week with a race at the end. The fitness is already in the bank. The job is arriving rested, fuelled and hydrated, which usually means doing noticeably less than feels comfortable.
- 1Reduce volume, keep some intensity so you do not feel flat and unfamiliar on the day.
- 2Keep carbohydrate intake steady or slightly higher through the last few days.
- 3Front-load your hydration across the days rather than drinking enormous volumes the night before.
- 4Protect sleep the two nights before, because the night immediately before a race is often poor and that is normal.
More on how we prepare athletes for race day sits on the HYROX programme page.
The signs you are under-recovering
Not soreness. Soreness is noisy. The signals worth acting on are duller and easier to rationalise away.
- Numbers sliding across a block on sessions that used to be comfortable.
- Waking unrefreshed several days in a row.
- Losing interest in training you normally enjoy.
- Getting ill more often than usual.
- Little niggles arriving and staying.
When two or three of those show up together, the answer is almost never a new supplement. It is a lighter week, earlier nights, and more food.
