Which Is Harder to Train For: Hyrox or DekaFit?

This past weekend I participated in two races (solo and team) at the DekaFit event in North Carolina, USA. A question popped into my mind, "Which is harder to train for, Hyrox or DekaFit?" This article is as much my process of trying to determine the answer as it is an actual answer. You may disagree with my conclusion, but I think my points are valid.

*An important point of note for this comparison is that there are no "Pro/Elite" weights at DekaFit. Everyone uses the same weights as are appropriate for their gender. Hyrox, however, has considerably heavier weights for their "Pro/Elite" racers. For this reason, we'll be comparing training for a DekaFit with an Open category Hyrox event.*

PART ONE: The zones/stations.

DekaFit events have 10 zones (hence the name "deka"). Hyrox events have 8 stations. I've listed them below for comparison.

DekaFit:

Zone 1: 30 RAM Alternating Reverse Lunges (Men: 55lb RAM, Women: 33lb RAM)

Zone 2: 500 Meter Row

Zone 3: 20 Lateral Box Overs

Zone 4: 25 Medicine Ball Situps + Throw (Men: 20lb Ball, Women: 15lb Ball)

Zone 5: 500 Meter Ski

Zone 6: 100 Meter Farmers Carry (Men: 60lbs Dumbbells, Women: 40lb Dumbbells)

Zone 7: 25 Calories Assault Bike

Zone 8: 20 Sand Bag Over Bar Reps (Men: 60lb Sand Bag, Women: 40lb Sand Bag)

Zone 9: 100 Meter Tank Push & Pull

Zone 10: 20 RAM Burpees (Men: 44lb RAM, Women: 22lb RAM).

Hyrox:

Workout Station	Men’s Open Weight	Women’s Open Weight
Ski – 1000m	–	–
Sled Push – 50m	152 kg / 335 lbs	102 kg / 225 lbs
Sled Pull – 50m	103 kg / 227 lbs	78 kg / 172 lbs
Burpee Broad Jumps – 80m	–	–
Row – 1000m	–	–
Farmer’s Carry – 200m (each hand)	24 kg / 53 lbs	16 kg / 35 lbs
Sandbag Lunges – 100m	20 kg / 45 lbs	10 kg / 22 lbs
Wall Balls – 100 reps	6 kg / 13 lbs	4 kg / 9 lbs

The first thing to note is the number of stations/zones. Deka has 10, Hyrox has 8. Because they are all different movement patterns (though some are similar to each other), if one desires to perform well at either event, one must train for each zone/station specifically. 8 stations are easier to train for than 10, so DekaFit gets 1 point for being more difficult in the number of exercises one must master.

Next, DekaFit has less common stations. Zones 1 & 10 both include RAM Rollers, but of different weights. Most gyms don't have RAM Rollers, so that makes it harder to train the specific movement; though substitutes can be made to train those movements similarly. DekaFit also utilizes Tanks instead of Sleds. Particularly, the 3-wheeled tank they now use is very uncommon in the average gym. While you won't find a sled in every gym, you'll find them fairly often. You are not likely to see Tanks nearly as often. Finally, DekaFit uses both a 60lb & 40lb Slam Ball (or Dead Ball as it is also called) and a 60lb and 40lb Pancake Sand Bag in two of their zones. Slam Balls/Dead Balls are very common, but I don't find them over 25-30lbs in most gyms I've visited. Pancake Sand Bags aren't in virtually any gyms. Because of the difficulty in gaining access to the specific equipment needed for DekaFit, DekaFit gets 1 more difficulty point.

Next, let's look at the weights/distances for each zone/station. Both the Row and Ski at Hyrox are double the length of the Row and Ski at DekaFit. While the Pro weights at Hyrox are heavier for the Farmers Carries, the Open weights are not. However, the distance that you must carry the weight is twice as far as the DekaFit distance, and that is certainly more difficult. While the Sled Push & Pull at Hyrox are the same distance (when combined) as the Tank Push & Pull at DekaFit, the Sled at Hyrox is more challenging. I would also argue that, if you aren't well trained for the Sled Push for Hyrox, it will have a much greater negative affect on your race than the Tank will at Dekafit. This is partly due to where these zones/stations are placed in the race (2nd and 9th respectively), but also because the weights on the sled at Hyrox are enough to completely blow up your legs, whereas the Tank can be pushed slowly without a great deal of energy and only becomes much harder if you try to push it quickly. Finally, the rep counts are much higher at Hyrox...100 Wall Balls for example. Hyrox gets 1 difficulty point.

PART TWO: The Running

For Hyrox, the running portion of the event is 8 Kilometers (5 miles), whereas DekaFit only requires 5 Kilometers (3.1 miles) to complete their event. You may think this is a simple comparison of distance, but I would argue that it's not as simple a comparison as you may think. I would argue that REAL SPEED is much more important at DekaFit than at Hyrox. At DekaFit, you are more likely to be at a higher percentage of your top speed than you will at Hyrox. Speed is not easy to obtain or maintain. But, then again, 5 miles is much further than 3 miles, and becoming fast at completing 5 mile (assuming the same completion pacing) will take longer to train for than completing 3 miles at the same pace.

It's pretty tricky really. However, if we are only looking at Open categories for this comparison, I think we have to side with Hyrox due to the distance and overall fatigue build-up from events like the Sled Push, Sand Bag Lunges, and so on. You'll simply need to be in better running shape to do well at Hyrox. 1 more difficulty point goes to Hyrox.

PART THREE: Completability

I've been thinking about this a bit...which of these events, if you took 1,000 average people and had them try them, would more of those 1,000 people be able to complete? I think about DekaFit and I think that all of the weights and distances are manageable. I think the average person could struggle through RAM Reverse Lunges and RAM Burpees. I think the average person could push & pull the Tank. I think they would struggle, and it would take them a long time, but I don't think there are any zones at DekaFit that the average person couldn't complete if they had to. Now for Hyrox. The average person could complete the Farmers Carry, the Lunges, the cardio machines, and even the Broad Jump Burpees. Again, they would be hurting, and it might take them a long time, but they could do it. Same goes for the run. I don't know, however, if the average person could complete the sled push. I think maybe they could...but I don't know. If we took 500 average men, could all of them complete 50 meters pushing a 335lb sled? I hope so, but I don't know. My gut tells me that maybe 1, 2, or a handful of them might not be able to push the sled that far. For this reason, and this reason only, I give Hyrox one more difficulty point.

PART FOUR: The Conclusion

While I could dive much deeper into the subject, I'll stop here for the sake of the readers; thank you to whoever made it this far! We've hit all the major comparisons and have enough data to make a reasonable claim.

The Final Score:

Hyrox: 3 Difficulty Points

DekaFit: 2 Difficulty Points

Hyrox is more challenging to train for than DekaFit.

Here's the thing: no matter which one you like more, or which one you are planning on trying, you need to train. You should train so that you can put forth a strong effort on race day. An effort that you can be proud of and where you can see the results of your hard work come to life in a challenging environment. We'd love to help you take on that next challenge, so visit our Hybrid Program page and sign up now so we can crush the next challenge together!

Train hard, train smart, and let us know if you have any questions:

Text: 610-222-7155

Email: info@triofitlife.com

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