4-Week SkiErg Plan for Hyrox

What this example covers

In HYROX^® Singles 26/27, SkiErg is station 1: 1,000 m after run 1. Another run comes before Sled Push. This block is machine practice, not preparation for every demand of the race.

The schedule is an optional editorial example for someone already familiar with the movement and able to judge whether its volume fits their training. Repeat, shorten or omit sessions as appropriate. If this is your first time on the machine, Concept2 instead suggests short initial attempts of 3–5 minutes, with breaks and further repetitions only if you feel good.

HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1 · Concept2 · First Workouts on the SkiErg

Set up the machine and monitor

Concept2 suggests trying damper 3–5 for training and adjusting with experience and goals. The Singles race preset is 6 and may be changed. The damper controls airflow; it does not guarantee a particular drag factor or an optimum for everyone.

Use the PM5 interval menu to set work distance and rest. You do not have to manually reset the entire monitor between every repetition. Record pace, work time and settings. Watts and pace are linked by Concept2’s formula, so watts are not an independent measurement of an efficiency gain hidden from pace.

Concept2 · Getting Started · HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1 · Concept2 · Damper Setting · Concept2 · PM5 · Concept2 · Pace-to-Watts Calculator

Use the current movement guidance

Start approximately shoulder-width apart, with knees slightly bent and arms bent around 90 degrees, hands just above eye level. Lead with the trunk, hinge at the hips, then coordinate arms and knees. Bring the handles alongside the thighs rather than forcing them far behind the hips. Stand up during the return.

The manufacturer uses a longer return than drive as a rhythm cue. It does not establish a 5–10% penalty for a shorter finish or diagnose faulty technique whenever cadence exceeds 38. Its beginner examples include higher rates. Use its demonstration to review the movement rather than relying on those numerical rules.

Concept2 · SkiErg Technique · Concept2 · First Workouts on the SkiErg

Week 1: repeat manageable efforts

Possible session A: 3 × 500 m with two minutes between repetitions. Possible session B: 3 × 500 m with two minutes between repetitions. Work total if both are completed: 3,000 m. Choose a controlled effort and record each result.

This first week does not guarantee an aerobic foundation on which every later adaptation depends. A ten-second change across repetitions is an observation to review, not proof that you crossed an aerobic threshold. Prepare with easy movement appropriate to the session and include any warm-up or cool-down separately in your record.

Concept2 · PM5 · Jamnick et al. (2020) · abstract · Concept2 · Beginner programme (2018)

Week 2: vary the work distance

Possible session A: 4 × 500 m with two minutes between repetitions. Possible session B: 1 × 1,500 m at a manageable effort, shortened or divided if needed. Combined work total: 3,500 m.

The second week changes the format; it does not require an improvement of three to five seconds per 500 m. Calling an interval “threshold” or assigning an RPE number would not establish your physiological threshold. Seiler’s 2010 review of endurance training distribution did not test this four-week SkiErg plan.

Concept2 · PM5 · Jamnick et al. (2020) · abstract · Seiler (2010) · abstract

Week 3: review longer repetitions

Possible session A: 2 × 1,000 m with four minutes between repetitions. Possible session B: 4 × 500 m with two minutes between repetitions. Combined work total: 4,000 m.

Review the record before deciding whether to progress. No source cited here establishes a mandatory five-to-ten-second gain by this week or says that missing it proves excessive earlier intensity or insufficient base training. Repeating an earlier format is a planning option, not a diagnosis. A two- or four-minute rest also does not guarantee the same recovery in everyone.

Concept2 · PM5 · Concept2 · Beginner programme (2018) · Seiler (2010) · abstract

Week 4: reduce the example work volume

Possible session A: 2 × 500 m with three minutes between repetitions. Possible session B: an optional controlled 1 × 1,000 m, not an all-out test. Combined work total: 2,000 m, half the example week-3 work distance. It replaces session B; there is no extra test day.

This reduction excludes warm-up, cool-down and all other training, so it is not automatically a 50% reduction in your total training load. If a race falls in this week, adapt or omit the practice within your overall taper. Bosquet’s 2007 meta-analysis addressed tapering across studies; it did not validate this exact HYROX^® schedule or a hard session two days before every race.

Concept2 · PM5 · Bosquet et al. (2007) · abstract

Calculate pace and rehearse the sequence

A total of 3:45 for 1,000 m requires an average of 1:52.5 per 500 m. That is arithmetic, not a recommended beginner time. Distinguish the average from the current pace displayed on the PM5. The pacing guide gives further examples.

For a partial race rehearsal, account for run 1 before SkiErg and run 2 afterwards. SkiErg followed directly by a sandbag movement or by Sled Push after a fixed 90-second walk is not the prescribed full sequence. There is no requirement to empty the tank in the final 100 m: seven stations still follow.

Concept2 · PM5 · HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1

Fit the block into your wider preparation

This example has two possible SkiErg sessions per week, not an additional three to five sessions on top of everything else. Adjust it alongside running, strength and other stations; it does not establish an optimal frequency or a universal overuse threshold at session three.

Do not treat a claimed three-week gain, a four-week readiness promise or improvement at every other station as verified outcomes. The cited Ribeiro study concerns pacing in CrossFit, not this training block. Rowing is a race station; the Roxzone is a transition area, not a substitute exercise. See the overall training guide for wider context.

HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1 · Ribeiro et al. (2024) · abstract · Seiler (2010) · abstract

FAQ

How many sessions are in this example?

Two possible SkiErg sessions per week. The optional 1,000 m in week four is session B, not an added third session. Adapt the example to your whole training plan.

Concept2 · Beginner programme (2018)

Can I start here without ever using a SkiErg?

Begin with familiarisation. Concept2 suggests short first attempts of 3–5 minutes with breaks, repeating only if you feel good. A compulsory week of continuous 10–15-minute efforts is not required by that guidance.

Concept2 · First Workouts on the SkiErg

What damper setting applies in a Singles race?

The 26/27 preset is 6 and athletes may adjust it. Concept2’s training suggestion of trying 3–5 is a different context and is also adjustable.

HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1 · Concept2 · Getting Started

What if I miss a session or do not get faster?

Reassess the next session in the context of the whole week; repeating or reducing the example is an option. The plan does not guarantee a time gain or diagnose why a result changed.

Concept2 · Beginner programme (2018) · Seiler (2010) · abstract

Will this block improve every HYROX^® station?

The cited sources do not establish that outcome. SkiErg practice does not remove the need to prepare for running and the other stations, and four weeks is not a guaranteed readiness deadline.

HYROX^® Singles 26/27 · §1 / §8.1 · Seiler (2010) · abstract · Ribeiro et al. (2024) · abstract