HYROX Abu Dhabi – Heat, Humility & a Whole Lot of carbs

What a weekend! HYROX Abu Dhabi – the race, the chaos, the glory, the humidity... all wrapped into one big, slightly sweaty adventure.

About a week before the race, we got the news that HYROX Global had officially taken the reins. Cue sigh of relief – we knew we were in for a slick, well-run event. And that’s exactly what we got. Hats off. Smooth check-ins, tidy arena, and water stations at just the right moments (hydration was key – especially when the venue started feeling like a sauna by 8pm).

Team Spirit Level? Oh, we showed up. Over 40 of our crew lined up and absolutely sent it. Proud doesn’t even cut it – they put on a serious show. There were some PBs, a few dramatic collapses at the finish line (the good kind), and enough post-race photos to clog Instagram feeds for days.

The night before, we kicked things off in true endurance athlete style – with carbs. Around 25 of us packed into Dino’s Italian, absolutely demolishing every plate of pasta in sight. There’s something about seeing an entire team casually eating their bodyweight in rigatoni that just screams we mean business.

Now, my race?
Utter disaster. Tried something new. Regretted it immediately. You know it’s a rough day when you're already questioning your life choices mid-sled push. From that point on, it was less “compete” and more “just survive.” By the time 8pm hit, I wasn't sure if it was the heat or the fact I’m usually halfway through my evening chamomile by then – either way, it was spicy.

But silver linings! I got the chance to sit down with one of the big dogs from HYROX Global on Saturday morning. Had a great chat about what’s brewing in the region, offered up my support (because let’s be real, I’m fully obsessed with this sport), and got some juicy updates.

The hot gossip?
No, there won’t be a HYROX Dubai race at Expo this November (sorry, rumour mill). But don’t stress – the Middle East is firmly on the map. HYROX Global is working to bring races to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Jeddah, Riyadh, Bahrain and Cairo. Music. To. My. Ears. And hopefully yours too.

Even better, I learned how much effort goes into these events behind the scenes. They’re constantly testing, improving, tweaking (and probably not sleeping much) to make the races better and more consistent across the globe. They’re even working on regulating arena temperatures – yes, really – to make each race feel the same whether you're in Manchester or the Middle East.

They’re also addressing the sled turf drama (yes, they know it’s a bit wild) and improving tech like the wall ball counters – which, I was told, are now laser-accurate. “Do people think we spent all this money on new sled turf to make it worse?” he said. Good point. Painful… but fair.

So next time you’re about to shout “MY SLED WAS HEAVIER,” just remember: these folks are working their butts off to make this sport better. And honestly, they’re doing a cracking job.

Massive thanks to the HYROX team for building something this epic. We're lucky to have it, and I can’t wait to see what this next Middle East season brings.

Catch you on the start line (hopefully on a faster sled lane),

George

I started training at SL around July 2023 and entered as part of a doubles team to the Hyrox race in Dubai, September 2023. Although I was humbled by this event, I couldn't help but want more of it.

My training at SL classes continued and I also signed up for personalised online coaching with George. My strength and endurance, and general knowledge of training overall have improved significantly.

I usually attend two classes per week at SL and attend the track session on a Monday morning. Since I started training at the gym, the community has grown massively and its great to meet so many awesome people with such diverse backgrounds.

The selection of classes has expanded and we have the opportunity to learn from great coaches who have amazing experience competing in Hyrox and other competitive sports.

The target for me is to get myself signed up for one of the Hyrox events abroad that the SL team are travelling to!

Matty Devine

Some of my thoughts after Hyrox Sharjah

Recently i put out a poll on my instagram page asking my followers what mental state do they perform best under when racing Hyrox. The poll options where:

I perform when im racing angry

I perform when im racing for fun

I perform when im racing with pressure

The reason i did this poll was to try and figure out what makes people tick and what could be causing problems for people.

For me i seem to underperform when im angry, i can sometimes perform when im under pressure but i tend to have my best performances when the pressure is off and im just out there living my best life having fun. Some of my best race results have come from races where ive put zero pressure on myself, not really cared about the result and then sometimes walked away with the win.

The results back from my poll where very clear (remember this is just based off my instagram following alone)

65% of people who answered said they perform best when having fun

35 % of people said its when they are under pressure

0% said when they are angry.

My question to these results is this. Why do people get so angry when racing? Why do we allow the pressure to creep in when we know we dont perform at our best with it being there. How do we practice just enjoying ourselves when racing? afterall, we are paying actual money to put ourselves through the tough times of a Hyrox race.

In Hyrox its now very easy to search anyones name and look up their results. You can see every detail of the race someone has completed within a few taps on your phone. Hyrox have made the sport so easily trainable by giving everyone their race breakdown, however, does this add to the pressure? The fact that anyone with internet connection can go and see your results and how you performed? It’s interesting to me, should Hyrox make these results private? Should Hyrox give the options for athletes to have this information private? Maybe this would help those who do not perform under pressure feel a bit more relaxed on race day and help them get their best performances.

What do you think?

Cheers, George

The Difference a Coach Who Cares Makes

Just over 15 years ago my wonderful grandmother passed away. We were so close and I absolutely adored her. I was fortunate enough to be with her in some of her last days and her final words to me in her sweet thick Yorkshire accent were, “Take Care of Everyone, won’t you?”

That felt heavy. She - the matriarch of our family was passing that baton to me. But life took me physically away from my extended family and I can’t say I was able to hold everyone together the way I thought she meant at the time.

Today - after 10 years of coaching and the last 3 as a Hyrox coach - I can say with confidence that using my knowledge and applying it with care, to help people live happier lives is MY life’s purpose and I’m here for it.

Training for Hyrox can feel intense, many of us dive in, all guns blazing, filled to the brim with enthusiasm only to reach race day physically or mentally burned out and still unprepared - or worse - injured. If you’re training for a Hyrox it’s usually because you want to prove something to yourself, make yourself feel proud or accomplished and you deserve to be handled with care as you work hard for that.