From May 30th to June 1st, I found myself in the middle of Pier 76 in New York City, gearing up for my first HYROX race. Not to chase a podium. Not to go viral. But to try something new.
As a coach, I believe we should lead from the front—and sometimes that means signing up for something that makes your stomach flip a little.
The HYROX event felt more like a fitness festival than a competition. Music pumping, vendors everywhere, elite athletes brushing shoulders with first-timers. It was electric.
I registered for the Men’s Pro Division, solo, and suddenly I was toe-to-toe with some seriously fit humans—including the Buttery Bros and CrossFit Games athlete Alec Smith. That kind of environment has a way of making you sit up straight and ask, "What did I get myself into?"
But here’s the cool part…
Sled push.
Row.
Burpee broad jumps.
Wall balls.
Sound familiar? Yeah. It should.
Every station felt like an old friend. Not necessarily a welcome one (looking at you, burpees), but one I’ve trained with hundreds of times at CrossFit Rockland. I wasn’t learning new skills—I was just applying them in a different arena.
That’s when it really clicked: CrossFit prepares you for this.
It prepares you for the grind. For real-world strength.
For unexpected challenges—like when your hamstring locks up mid-race and you have to breathe through the pain and keep moving. (True story.)
I finished in 1:16:53—top 43%. Solid. Not elite. But that wasn’t the point.
The point was to show up.
To test what I’ve built.
To prove to myself that this training has legs outside the four walls of our gym.
And it does.
You don’t need to wait for perfection to try something new. You’re more ready than you think.
So whether it’s HYROX, a 5K, a Spartan Race, a GoRuck, or even a last-minute pickup soccer game—step in.
See what your training can do. Get out of routine.
Compete with strangers.
Be a beginner again.
Because at CrossFit Rockland, we train for life. And life is full of arenas worth stepping into.
You’ve already built the skills. All that’s left is to use them.
