Which HYROX Stations Matter Most for Performance?

Training for HYROX can be overwhelming. There’s running. Aerobic base work. Anaerobic efforts. Muscular endurance. Eight unique stations. And to make it more confusing, social media often spotlights the most “Instagrammable” exercises — not necessarily the ones that matter most on race day (looking at you, SkiErg).

At RoxOpt, we wanted to answer a question we hear all the time:
“How important is each HYROX station for reaching your peak performance?”

How We Found the Answer

If you’re familiar with RoxOpt, you know we provide performance predictions for HYROX athletes — not just for overall race time, but for each individual station. After each race, we compare the actual results against those predicted ranges. This often reveals where athletes exceeded expectations and where things fell apart.

This comparison helps identify smart places to push and moments where being conservative is actually a better strategy. In a race like HYROX, going all out on every run and every station is a guaranteed way to blow up. The key is knowing where effort matters most.

What the Data Shows

We analyzed thousands of HYROX races, comparing predicted potential to actual performance. Here’s what stood out.

Running is by far the most important factor for HYROX success.
It’s not even close. The athletes who consistently beat their projections almost always do so by improving their run segments. HYROX is fundamentally a running race. The best training focus? Building your aerobic engine.

Some stations don’t move the needle as much.
Stations like the SkiErg and Row are often overemphasized in training. Yes, they look good on social media, but data shows that athletes rarely win races because of these stations. More often, they lose time elsewhere after burning themselves out trying to save a few seconds here. That doesn’t mean you should skip them entirely — they’re useful for low-impact aerobic training — but pushing hard on them during a race is usually a mistake.

Train Smarter, Not Just Harder

If you want to see where you might be overexerting or leaving time on the table, check your RoxOpt Race Report — specifically the Performance vs Predicted Potential section. It’s a powerful tool to fine-tune your strategy, train with intention, and make the most of every rep and run.