What should I wear for my first HYROX?

Whatever you have trained in. Running shoes you know, crew socks, shorts or tights that do not ride up on lunges, and a light fitted top or none. Add gloves, knee sleeves or a belt only if you have trained in them. Nothing new on race day.

Can you wear headphones in HYROX?

No. Headphones are on the rulebook's forbidden list, along with phones, ear plugs, body cameras and smart glasses. Anything not on the permitted list can be confiscated, and you collect it after you finish.

Do I need special shoes for HYROX?

No. A running shoe you have trained in is right for most people. You run eight kilometers, but you also push and pull sleds, lunge and jump, so a stable shoe usually beats the softest racing shoe you own. Closed-toe shoes are required at all times except at the wall balls.

Can I take my shoes off in HYROX?

Only at the wall balls. You can take them off once you reach your target, they go under the rig, and you take them with you to the finish, because you cannot go back to the wall ball area afterward.

Where does the HYROX timing chip go?

On an ankle. It comes on a strap at check-in, and wearing it anywhere else can mean an incomplete or invalid time. A crew-height sock keeps the strap off your skin.

Can I carry gels or water during HYROX?

Yes. Any nutrition has to be on you from the start, and you cannot take food or drink from anyone except the aid stations. Hydration packs are on the permitted list. Water at the aid stations is for drinking only; pouring it over yourself is a 2-minute penalty.

What to Wear for HYROX: The Full Race Kit

Head to toe, what to race in, what the rulebook allows, and the things that get confiscated. Plus a checklist for the night before.

Wear what you train in. That is most of the answer, and the rest is knowing what the rulebook lets you bring onto the floor, because a few things people assume are fine get confiscated.

Here is the rules part first, then the kit head to toe, then a checklist for the night before.

What the rulebook says about kit

This is from the 2026/27 HYROX singles rulebook. It is short, and it is stricter than most people expect.

Closed-toe shoes, the whole way. The one exception is the wall balls, where you can take them off once you reach your target. They go under the rig and you carry them to the finish.
A short list of extras. You may wear or use knee sleeves, gloves (not grips), a weightlifting belt, wristbands, a hydration pack, and prescribed inhalers or respiratory devices. Anything not on that list is prohibited by default unless the race director gives you written permission before the start.
What you start with, you finish with. Anything from that list has to be worn or carried from the start to the finish. Nobody can hand you gloves before the sled pull or take your belt after the lunges. That is outside assistance, and it can get you disqualified.
Never on the floor: headphones, phones, ear plugs, GoPros or any body camera, VR headsets, smart or camera glasses, helmets, and breathing apparatus.
Timing chip on an ankle. You get it on a strap at check-in. Anywhere else and your time can come out wrong.
Food on you from the start. If you want a gel, carry it. You cannot take anything from a friend on the side, and the water at the aid stations is for drinking, not pouring over your head. That one is a 2-minute penalty.

Team uniforms are fine, and so are weight vests, as long as they do not get in anyone else’s way. Prohibited items are taken off you and can be collected at customer service once you finish.

Shoes

A running shoe you have already done long sessions in. You run eight kilometers, but you also push a sled, lunge 100 meters with a sandbag and do 80 meters of burpee broad jumps. A stable daily trainer usually serves you better than the softest, tallest racing shoe you own, which can feel vague under a heavy sled and on landings.

Whatever you choose, do the sled push in it in training. Some outsoles that grip fine on the road slide on the sled track.

Socks

Crew height or taller. The timing chip straps around your ankle, and a sock that reaches above it keeps the strap from rubbing your skin for an hour. You want a sock that stays up and does not twist or bunch in the shoe, because by the lunges you will feel every fold.

This is the problem we built The Updraft around: a six-inch compression cuff and an arch band so it stays where you put it, a mesh top, and a doubled heel and toe where sled pushes and lunges wear socks through. Pack a dry pair for afterward too, whatever you race in.

Shorts or tights

Whatever you have run in for an hour without chafing. Two tests before race day: a set of walking lunges, to check they do not ride up, and a run with anything you plan to carry in the pockets, to check nothing bounces. If you carry gels, you need a pocket that actually holds them.

Top

Less than you think. Race halls get hot, and you will be working hard for an hour or more. A light, fitted top or a sports bra, or nothing, is what most people end up in. Loose fabric catches on the rower and gets in the way of the wall ball.

Bring something warm for the wait before your wave, and a dry shirt for afterward. Ours is the Grip Wins Races Tee, which is what we wore around the Salt Palace at HYROX Salt Lake City.

Gloves

Allowed at every station, and on the permitted list by name, with one catch: gloves, not gymnastics grips. The full glove rules are here. If you wear them, you wear or carry them from start to finish.

Whether you should is a separate question. Do you need gloves for HYROX goes through who they help, and best gloves for HYROX covers what to look for. Chalk, if you were counting on it, is only allowed at two stations and has to be the event’s: the chalk rules. Our own full-finger race glove, the Stonegrip Glove, is coming soon.

Knee sleeves and a belt

Both are on the permitted list. Knee sleeves are the more useful of the two for most people: your trailing knee has to touch the floor on every sandbag lunge, and a sleeve takes the sting out of that. A lifting belt is rarely worth wearing for an hour of running, but if you train your lunges in one, you can race in it. Either way, it stays on from start to finish.

On your head

A cap is not on the permitted list, and the rulebook says anything that is not on the list is prohibited by default. It does not mention caps by name, and we have not seen a ruling either way. If you want to race in one, ask at check-in. Otherwise save the trucker for the stands.

What stays in your bag

Your phone, your headphones and anything that records. The venue has changing rooms and a bag drop, though the organizer does not take responsibility for what is in it, so leave valuables at home if you can. Your bag should also hold dry socks, a warm layer and something to eat after.

Nothing new on race day

The oldest rule in endurance racing, and the one people still break. New shoes, new socks, new gloves, a gel you have never tried. Each of them is fine in isolation, and any of them can cost you ten minutes when you find out at kilometer five that it rubs, slides or does not sit well in your stomach.

The night-before checklist

Government photo ID and your registration confirmation, for check-in
Shoes you have done long sessions in
Crew socks, plus a dry pair for after
Shorts or tights and a top you have raced or trained hard in
Gloves, knee sleeves or a belt, only if you have trained in them
Gels, if you use them, in a pocket that holds them
A warm layer for the wait and for after
A water bottle for before the start
Food and a change of clothes for afterward

Rulebooks change between seasons, and this page reflects 2026/27. Check the current one for your own race and division before you go. If you want the training side sorted too, the free HYROX Trainer builds an eight-week plan around your race date.