Wall balls technique for HYROX

Set-up and stance

Stand facing the target, roughly an arm's length or slightly more from the wall. Too close and the ball comes back into your face or forces you to lean back. Too far and you have to throw forwards as well as up, which wastes energy and makes the catch awkward.

Feet a little wider than hip-width, toes turned out slightly, as you would for a comfortable squat. Hold the ball at chest or chin height with your hands under and slightly to the sides of the ball, elbows under the ball rather than flared out.

Find your spot in the first few reps and then stay on it. Moving your feet between reps is a sign that your throw is drifting, and every adjustment costs a little rhythm.

The rep, broken down

The wall ball exercise guide covers the movement in general. For HYROX racing, focus on this sequence:

1. Keep your chest up and sit down into the squat until your hip crease is below the top of your knees.
2. Drive up hard through your whole foot, extending your hips and knees together.
3. As your legs straighten, let that drive carry into the ball. Your arms guide the ball to the target rather than doing all the work.
4. Aim for the middle of the target so small errors still count.
5. Catch the ball high, at about face height, with your arms still up.
6. Ride the ball straight down into the next squat without pausing at the top.

The catch is where most wasted effort hides. If you let the ball drop to your chest, stand still, then squat, you are doing extra work on every rep. Catching high and absorbing it into the squat turns the movement into one continuous rhythm, a bit like a thruster with a throw on top.

Breaking up 100 reps

Very few age-group athletes should try 100 unbroken. Going as long as you can until failure usually leads to a long rest, then short sets with even longer rests. A planned set structure is faster for most people.

Common approaches include:

• Even sets: 10 sets of 10 with 3 to 5 breaths between. Simple, predictable and good for first timers.
• Descending sets: for example 25, 20, 20, 15, 10, 10. Uses fresher legs at the start and gives shorter targets at the end.
• Fixed time: a set every 30 seconds, whatever the number. Keeps rests honest.

During rests, most people are better off holding the ball at the chest or resting it on the floor between their feet only briefly. Picking it up from the floor over and over adds up. Count your breaths, not the seconds, and start the next set when you reach the number you planned.

Common mistakes and no-reps

• Shallow squats. The most common no-rep. As you tire, depth creeps up. Make every rep deliberate.
• Throwing with the arms. Your shoulders fade fast. The throw comes from the legs.
• Missing low. Aim for the centre of the target, not the bottom edge.
• Heels lifting. Weight on the toes makes you fall forwards. Stay flat-footed.
• Looking down. Eyes on the target keeps your chest up and your throw accurate.
• Holding your breath. Breathe out on the throw and in as you catch and squat.

Listen to your judge. If you hear no-rep, fix it immediately rather than arguing or repeating the same mistake. A couple of extra reps is annoying; ten is a disaster.

How to train wall balls for HYROX

Wall balls respond well to frequent practice. Two short exposures a week in the build-up works for most people, and at least one of those should be on tired legs.

• EMOM: 12 to 15 reps every minute for 8 to 10 minutes at race standard.
• Lunge pairing: 25 m sandbag lunges straight into 25 wall balls, 3 to 4 rounds.
• Race finish rehearsal: 1 km run, 50 m lunges, 1 km run, 100 wall balls with your planned sets.
• Strength support: front squats and presses to build the base for each rep.

The front squat is particularly useful because it builds the upright torso position you need. For endurance, the guide to leg endurance for lunges and wall balls shows how to combine the last two stations in training.

The mental side matters here more than anywhere. Our guide to the mental side of HYROX covers how to keep going when every part of you wants to stop. At Lycan Strength, the Engine and Lycan Shred sessions build the conditioning that keeps wall ball sets going late in a race.