Doubles is the fastest-growing Hyrox category and the most strategically interesting. You and your partner share one clock, one set of stations, and one running route. Whatever advantage you gain over solo finishers comes from the splits, the way you allocate work to play to each partner's strengths without forcing handoffs that break rhythm.
Most first-time doubles teams approach the race like two solo Hyrox athletes in the same gym. They run at the faster runner's pace, hit stations together at full effort, and discover at station 4 that "half the work, twice as often" is actually harder than the full distance. The strategy below is what we coach Doubles programme members through.
The four station split patterns
Every Hyrox station can be split four ways. Knowing which split is best for your partnership is half the race strategy.
Pattern 1: Alternating reps. Burpee broad jump is the classic, partner A does rep 1, partner B does rep 2, alternating until 80 m is covered. Pro: forced recovery between every rep. Con: requires constant attention and clean tagging.
Pattern 2: Alternating sets. Wall balls split 25-25-25-25 with partners alternating sets. Pro: longer working blocks, lower attention cost. Con: heart rate spikes higher during each block.
Pattern 3: Continuous halves. Farmers carry split 100 m + 100 m. Each athlete does half the distance continuously. Pro: simple, predictable. Con: the second athlete starts cold from a stop.
Pattern 4: Strengths-based. One partner does the full effort on stations they're disproportionately strong at; the other absorbs more of the work on the alternative. Pro: optimises pace per athlete. Con: requires brutal honesty about strengths and weaknesses.
For most teams, the right pattern per station looks like this:
| Station | Default split | |---|---| | SkiErg (1000 m) | Alternating 250 m chunks | | Sled push | Alternating reps (full lane each) or full effort to the stronger sled pusher | | Sled pull | Alternating reps | | Burpee broad jump | Alternating reps | | Rowing (1000 m) | Alternating 250 m chunks | | Farmers carry | Continuous halves (100 m each) | | Sandbag lunge | Alternating laps | | Wall balls | Alternating sets of 25 |
The pacing trap
The most common doubles mistake is running at the faster partner's pace.
If one partner runs 4:00/km solo and the other runs 4:30/km solo, the doubles team should run at 4:30/km, never faster than the slower runner can hold for eight kilometres. The faster runner has to discipline themselves to hold the pace; the slower runner has to be honest about what they can sustain.
What goes wrong when teams ignore this:
- Km 1-3: Faster runner sets pace at 4:10 (compromise). Slower runner hangs on.
- Km 4-5: Slower runner's heart rate creeps above sustainable. Stations start to slow.
- Km 6-8: Slower runner is fading. Team pace drops to 4:50. The compromise pace cost both partners.
The honest version:
- Km 1-3: Both run at 4:30. Faster runner feels easy.
- Km 4-6: Both at 4:30. Slower runner stable.
- Km 7-8: Slower runner has gas to pick up; pace can drop to 4:20.
End result: faster overall race because the slower runner never blew up. The strategic discipline is harder than the running, but it's the difference between a 90-minute doubles finish and a 105.
The handoff: 0.5 seconds, every time
Doubles handoffs (especially on alternating-rep stations like burpee broad jump) lose more time than most teams realise. A 1-second handoff × 50 reps = 50 seconds.
What a fast handoff looks like:
- Partner A finishes the rep. Tags partner B with one clear touch on the shoulder.
- Partner B is already in position, feet set, knees soft, eyes on the lane.
- Tag → start. 0.5 seconds maximum.
What a slow handoff looks like:
- Partner A finishes the rep, stands up, says "go".
- Partner B is standing back, hands on hips. Takes two steps forward.
- Sets up, then starts.
3-5 seconds. Over the burpee broad jump alone, that's 90 seconds of leaked time.
The rehearsal: practise handoffs in training. Pair up for sled work or burpee broad jump and time your handoffs explicitly. Sub-1-second tags become muscle memory within two sessions.
Doubles teams that train together for 8 weeks beat better-matched teams that meet at the start line every time. The handoffs are choreographed. The split decisions are settled. There's no negotiation on the floor.
The partner conversation
Before race day, two conversations need to happen explicitly.
Conversation 1: Which stations are you stronger at?
Be honest. Run the diagnostic in training, both partners do each station solo at race weight, time it. The athlete with the better solo time on a station does the harder set in the doubles split. If athlete A is 20 seconds faster on the sandbag lunge, athlete A does the extra lap.
The mistake teams make is "fairness". Doubles isn't fair, it's optimal. The total race time is what matters, not whether each partner did exactly 50% of every station.
Conversation 2: The blow-up signal.
What does each partner say when they're cooked and need the other to absorb more? Agree on a phrase ("you've got it" or "I'm dropping back"). Agree on what happens, the stronger partner steps in for two extra sets, the slower partner does a planned 30-second recovery walk on the next run.
Without this conversation, the blow-up turns into silence, panic, and a race that derails for both partners.
A typical doubles race plan
For a target 80-minute doubles finish (mid-pack for a fit pair):
- Pre-race: Joint warm-up (same 90-minute protocol as solo, but you do every station rehearsal together).
- Km 1-2: Run at 4:50/km (slightly conservative). Both partners breathing easy.
- Stations 1-2 (SkiErg, sled push): Split as planned. Both arrive at km 3 not redlined.
- Km 3-4: 4:45/km. Faster than km 1-2 but still controlled.
- Stations 3-4 (sled pull, burpee broad jump): Alternating reps. Eyes on tags.
- Km 5-6: 4:40/km. Building.
- Stations 5-6 (rowing, farmers carry): Split halves. Recovery during run-up.
- Km 7-8: 4:35/km. Lift if you have it.
- Stations 7-8 (sandbag lunge, wall balls): Strongest partner takes the heavier set on lunge. Wall balls alternating 25s with strict counting.
- Final sprint: Both partners run side-by-side. Cross the line together.
How Suth Performance programmes doubles
The Doubles programme assumes you're training as a pair (most of the time). Sessions are designed for two athletes, paired intervals where one runs while the other does a station, then swaps. Calibration is two-fold: each athlete's individual loads, plus the team's combined targets. The Sunday recalibration looks at both partners' logged sessions and adjusts next week's targets so the weaker partner isn't dragged into work they can't sustain.
For teams that can't always train together, the programme has solo-mode sessions twice a week that simulate doubles patterns (you do the work as a solo, but at the doubles split distance and intensity). Means the partnership can train apart most weeks and meet for the weekend long sessions.
The short version
Doubles isn't half a Hyrox. It's a different race with different demands: paired running, split station work, fast handoffs, and a partner conversation that needs to be explicit. Teams that approach it strategically, choosing splits based on strengths, running at the slower partner's honest pace, choreographing handoffs, beat better-matched teams that wing it. The fitness is half the race. The strategy is the other half.
[ FAQ ]
Frequently asked
How do you split stations in Hyrox doubles?
Each station has its own rule. Sled push and sled pull are continuous-rep splits, partners alternate sets within the lane. Burpee broad jump alternates after each rep. Wall balls are typically split 50-50 with one transition. The strategy is choosing splits that play to each partner's relative strengths.
Do both partners need to run together in doubles?
Yes. The race format requires both athletes to be on the running track for every kilometre. The split happens at the station, not the run. Both partners cross every checkpoint.
Should doubles partners have similar fitness levels?
Helps, but it isn't required. A bigger spread (one athlete materially faster than the other) requires more strategic station splits, the stronger athlete absorbs more of the load on their stronger stations. The weaker athlete still has to run the running pace, which means partner pace is set by the slower runner.
Written by
The Suth Performance teamCoaches and editors
The Suth Performance programming team, led by HYROX Elite 15 athlete Ben Sutherland.
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