Full Power Through the Pain — Hyrox World Champion Linda Meier
She runs, jumps, lifts weights, and throws medicine balls into the air: Linda Meier. And she’s one of the best. In the relatively new fitness sport of Hyrox, Linda ranks among the absolute world elite—she even won the world championship title in 2025 in phenomenal fashion! We spoke with the business IT specialist about what it takes to successfully complete a Hyrox competition, what her secret to success is, and how she manages the dual demands of a full-time job and top athletic performance.
The air crackles with tension, the large hall is dark, music booms from the speakers, and muscular men and women are everywhere. One of them is Linda Meier. She’s standing at the starting line of a Hyrox competition—full of motivation and with a good dose of adrenaline coursing through her body. Because she knows: it’s about to begin. An hour of going full throttle—with lactic acid, pain, joy, happiness, and fulfillment. And time and again, before a competition, she finds herself thinking:
“What on earth am I doing here!?”
That’s Hyrox!
But what exactly is Hyrox? Hyrox—a portmanteau of the words “hybrid” and “rocks”—was invented in 2017 by Hamburg entrepreneur Christian Toetzke and former German hockey player Moritz Fürste. In this fitness sport, athletes must alternate between running one kilometer and completing a strength-endurance station. There are eight strength stations in total. At the first station, participants must cover a distance of one kilometer on a ski ergometer. At the second station, a weighted sled is pulled for 50 meters, and at the third, it is pushed for 50 meters. This is followed by 80 meters of burpees, one kilometer of rowing, 200 meters of carrying kettlebells, 100 meters of lunges with a sandbag on the shoulders, and, last but not least, a medicine ball must be thrown 100 times against the wall. After a total of eight kilometers of running and the eight stations—the Roxzones—the pain is over. The fittest men take just over 50 minutes to complete the competition, while the top women finish in just under an hour.
An Hour at Full Speed
Linda ranks among the world’s top women; she competes in the Elite-15 Races, where the 15 best women in the world rankings face off against each other, and placed 3rd at the European Championships and 5th at the World Championships. Her personal best is a few seconds over an hour, so her goal is clear: “Next season, I want to break the magic one-hour mark,” says Linda.
Strength + Endurance Wins
Linda has been competing in Hyrox races since 2019. Friends at the gym asked her if she wanted to join, and Linda spontaneously said yes. Of course. After all, the young woman from Duisburg is a sports enthusiast through and through. She practically can’t live without it. As a teenager, she was in a swim club, played basketball and soccer, did track and field, and went jogging regularly. On top of that, she spent a lot of time at the gym even as a toddler, since her mother—now a HYROX athlete herself and vice world champion in her age group—did strength training. Strength and endurance are practically in Linda’s blood. And that’s exactly what you need for a Hyrox race. Linda won the competition in her age group right on her debut and was hooked—on the atmosphere, the fitness exercises turned into a competitive format, everything. “I’ve actually never heard anyone who’s participated in a Hyrox competition say afterward, ‘That wasn’t fun, I’m never doing that again,’” says Linda with a smile on her face.
Trend Sports / Event Sports
No wonder that last year alone, 90,000 sports enthusiasts in cities like London, New York, Madrid, Hamburg, and Amsterdam took part in Hyrox competitions. And Hyrox continues to grow worldwide. Every year, new cities and countries are added, and records are broken: With 12,500 participants in London, Hyrox is the world’s largest fitness race.
For anyone who wants to give HYROX a try, Linda advises having a solid running foundation. “You should be able to run at least ten kilometers consistently,” Linda recommends. You should also have a certain level of strength. “If someone really just wants to get a taste of it, there’s also the option to compete as a tandem, in a relay race, or in the Open, where lighter weights are used,” says Linda.
“I actually have to be held back”
Linda herself started right in the pro category thanks to her strength foundation. And she’s been a top athlete in the sport ever since. But the competition never sleeps—the races are getting faster, and the level of performance is getting more intense.
“These days, I train much more specifically, have a coach, and focus more on recovery,” says Linda, who, by her own admission, just wanted to go all out when she first started with Hyrox. “I never have to motivate myself to train—if anything, I have to be reined in,” Linda laughs.
But too much exercise—and Hyrox in particular—can easily lead to injuries if the fundamentals aren’t right. Linda herself has already suffered a stress fracture, periostitis, and shin problems. Today, Linda takes at least 10 to 15 minutes every day toroll out on aBLACKROLL® FASCIA ROLLER , massage herself with the FASCIA GUN, or refresh her tired legs in the COMPRESSION BOOTS. “Not having time for this is, in my opinion, always a bad excuse. Because a lot of it can be done on the side—at your desk or while scrolling through Instagram,” says Linda. These many small routines help her recover faster so she can go full throttle again.
Good Sleep as the Secret Recipe
Speaking of going full throttle: Linda can only smile wearily at the idea of the 5 a.m. Club. Her alarm goes off at 4:30 a.m. Then it’s off to training. And after 60 to 90 minutes of exercise, it’s off to work. Full-time, sometimes until late in the evening, and regularly commuting from Duisburg to Frankfurt. Sleep is therefore a precious commodity in Linda’s life. “Because of my job and the competitions, I spend a lot of time sleeping in hotels. The RECOVERY PILLOW from BLACKROLL® helps me sleep better and reduces my migraine attacks,” Linda reveals, sharing her secret to healthy sleep.
Success Through Fun
Despite all the effort and sacrifices, sports aren’t a chore, a burden, or a career goal for Linda. “For me, Hyrox is pure personal enjoyment; I do it because I enjoy it,” says Linda. This attitude is likely another secret to her success. After all, to complete a Hyrox competition quickly and successfully, you need the right mindset. When Linda’s at the starting line, she often thinks to herself—even though she sometimes wonders what she’s actually doing there:
“Awesome—I get to go all out today.”
And when that’s the case, there’s a pretty good chance that Linda will finish near the front and cross the finish line with a smile on her face. And that happens regularly.
With her long-term goal of staying healthy so she can still successfully compete in Hyrox races even at age 60, the foundation is set for us to see Linda crossing the finish line with a smile on her face many more times to come.
At the end of November 2024, Linda will be back in action for her first World Championship qualifying race. And one thing is already certain: Anyone who wants to beat her will have to get up early.
