Drill library · Sled push

Strength endurance · Skill

Sled push drill.

The HYROX sled push is a 50m push at race load. Most form failures aren't strength failures, they're posture failures under repeated load. By rep 3 of a sled set, shoulders creep up, forward lean disappears, and you end up pushing upright with arms locked. Lower back wrecks for hours afterward.

Race load + format

Men Pro 152 kg · Men Open 102 kg · Women Pro 102 kg · Women Open 52 kg

Targets: Compromised running after lower-body fatigue

SLED PUSH · BODY POSITION FORCE VECTORS · 45° LEAN · FOOT PLACEMENT SLED · 102KG (MEN PRO) 45° FORCE FOREFOOT DRIVE KEY CUES → 45° forward lean → Hands LOW on handles → Push through forefoot → Short, fast steps → Eyes 2m ahead

Technique cues

Four cues that fix most issues.

Open this page mid-session. Cycle through the cues across reps. Don't try to fix all four in one set, pick one, dial it, then add the next.

Read the theory

Article · Race-weight sled at a 75kg gym →

Forearm contact, not palms

Drive through the forearms against the handles, not the palms. Palms-only pushes turn into arm-only pushes by rep 3. Forearms keep the upper body engaged and the chest down.

Fix chest-to-handle distance

Mark where your chest is relative to the handles on rep 1. Hold that distance through every rep. Shoulders creeping up = you've shortened the distance = back about to wreck.

Short steps, high cadence

Long steps lose drive. Short, fast steps maintain ground contact and forward momentum. Cadence target: more steps than you'd expect.

Heels in contact each step

Pushing only on the balls of the feet drains the calves fast. Get the heel down at each step, recruits glutes, takes load off the calves.

Common faults

What it looks like when it's going wrong.

Each fault has a diagnostic. The diagnostic tells you what to change, load, posture, cadence, rest interval, or skill cue.

Shoulders shrugged toward ears

Posture has collapsed. Drop the load 20% and reset for 2-3 weeks before re-loading.

Upright torso, arms locked

You're pushing with arms instead of legs. Re-set chest distance, lower the load.

Lower back fatigue dominates

Load was too heavy for current sled durability. Drop 10-20%.

Pace dropping rep-to-rep

Rest interval is too short. Try 2:30 between reps for 2 weeks while dialling posture.

Modifications

If equipment, injury or level is the constraint.

Substitutes that train similar capacity. None are perfect mirrors, most are 80-90% of the demand. That's enough for week-to-week progress.

No sled available

Bear crawl 30 m + 30 m + 30 m (3 sets). Targets similar bracing and forward drive pattern.

Sled feels too heavy

Drop to 50% bodyweight load. Posture and pattern matter more than load right now.

Hamstring/lower back issue

Substitute with sled pull instead, different mechanics, similar conditioning.

Suggested rep scheme: 3-4 × 50 m at 60-70% bodyweight on sled. Rest 2:00-2:30 between reps. Quality > load every time.

Related drills

What pairs with this.

→ Compromised running → Sandbag lunges
Training only. Pain that doesn't resolve within 2-3 days needs a physiotherapist, not another drill. We're a training platform, not a medical service. → Get help finding a physio

Find out what's actually costing you minutes

Is sled push your race-day limiter?

Sled push power is one of 8 systems we measure. Take the 3-minute assessment to find out if sled work should anchor your block, or if your time is leaking from a different station.

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Related tools

Sled Push Drill: next training move

Use this drill page with the calculator, readiness, article, and playbook pages so technique work connects back to race execution.

Race calculatorTurn drill work into station splits and a target race plan. Threshold pace calculatorSet a running anchor that survives station fatigue. Training articlesRead deeper pacing, sled, wall ball, threshold, and recovery guides. First Race PlaybookDownload the free PDF, checklist, worksheets, and audiobook. Race readiness checkCheck whether training should focus on running, stations, durability, or race execution.