As her England team-mates returned home after the 2024 Copenhagen Half Marathon last September, Holly Archer – who had just clocked her second-fastest ever time for the distance (72:59) – flew directly to South Africa to make her solo Hyrox debut in Cape Town.
Hyrox isn’t for the faint-hearted. Participants run 1km followed by a functional exercise station and repeat that eight times. Every course is different, but Archer’s cumulative run time was the fastest ever recorded in the women’s open and professional categories and her total time of 65:54 was good enough to win the women’s open division on the day. Her immediate response was one of pride – it was no mean feat to deliver two strong sporting performances in outrageously contrasting events within six days – but she could also see room for improvement.
Excited by her potential and inspired by new goals, the 31-year-old, who has personal best times of 4:07.20 (1500m), 16:12.29 (5000m), 15:50 (5km), 33:27 (10km) and 72:47 (half marathon), is now training for February’s Hyrox Open European Championships in Vienna before making her marathon debut in London in April.
“I just don’t feel like one single event has ever fitted me,” explains the 2021 European indoor 1500m silver medallist. “I remember when I turned pro I was so excited [Archer was sponsored by Under Armour from 2021-23]. I thought that putting everything into the sport would make me a better athlete with greater focus, but I’ve since learned that, for me, it’s not about focusing on one single thing.
“I care about my education and my professionalism and how I grow in other areas, not just my athletic performance, and it mattered to me that I was climbing the ladder in the corporate world [she’d previously worked in pharmaceutical marketing]. When I turned pro all of that just went; it was like stepping away from real life into a fantasy.
“Being a professional athlete is an amazing world to be in but I just felt like something was missing. I didn’t feel like I could perform because my fire wasn’t constantly lit. I think that explains why I do Hyrox and why I always say ‘yes’ to giving things a go. It’s about keeping me excited and experiencing new things.”
It is said that happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order, rhythm and harmony. To some extent that is what Archer seeks, but she is not deluded. She understands that with a dual focus comes compromise, and it’s a price she’s willing to pay.
“I do think I’m a bit nuts,” says the Cambridge & Coleridge athlete. “I think a lot of people will look at me from the outside and think I’m doing things wrong, and in a lot of ways they’re probably right, but I’m not trying to be the best at one sport, I’m just trying to be the best version of me.
“I’m building strength, endurance and resilience in a way that keeps things exciting and sustainable. I’m transparent about what I do and I’m okay at not being number one. I’m still aiming to perform at a very high level at the London Marathon – it would be disrespectful as an elite not to turn up ready – but I want to see what I can do as a strong marathon runner who still does Hyrox.”
Typical training week
Archer is coached by James Thie. She is currently running 70-plus miles per week and doing three to four gym sessions per week as she balances training for February’s Hyrox European Championships in Vienna with April’s London Marathon. Her existing Saturday Hyrox session will be replaced with a running session post-Vienna as she gradually increases her mileage to 90-95 miles per week. Every alternate Friday – or as/when she needs it – is a day off.
“Training has been going great so far and it’s such an exciting challenge,” she says. “The shift in training has been a fun [and sometimes chaotic] learning experience, but I’m really just doing what I enjoy rather than following a traditional marathon plan.
“The way I see it, in a Hyrox solo you come off the run then you hammer an exercise station and your heart rate goes ‘bang’, so in running terms it’s like doing tempo and hills, tempo and hills. I think if my body is able to do exercises like 50m each of sled push and pull, 100m sandbag lunges and 100 wall balls, because it’s constant, surely that’s going to help me at 18 or 19 miles when I’m pounding on the roads? I might be horrifically wrong but I’m here to find out.”
Monday: (am) 8-10 miles easy run (run to feel) plus gym – upper body workout; (pm) 5-6 miles easy run
Tuesday: (am) 35 minutes easy run; (pm) road session e.g., 6 x 1 mile or 10 x 1km (recovery is usually 60-90 seconds for 10km work and 45-60 seconds for half marathon pace sessions) plus gym (leg day)
Wednesday: (am) 60-70 minutes easy run (increasing to 90 minutes over the next couple of weeks)
Thursday: (am) 35 minutes easy run; (pm) hard interval session with a focus on speed (max 6-7km volume at 5km or 10km pace)
Friday: (am) 8 miles easy run; (pm) full body/mobility routine
Saturday: “I’ll either do a Hyrox session in the gym and an easy run, or I’ll do a hard running session and no Hyrox, it depends on the week I’ve had,” says Archer. “Both sessions are draining but the Hyrox drains my body more for the Sunday long run, so if I’ve got a hard Sunday run I’ll probably do a running session on the Saturday instead.”
Sunday: (am) 17 miles (approx.) “My Sunday run mileage will increase over the coming weeks alongside a mix of Hyrox competitions and local road races. I want to make sure my body is used to the mileage and I’ll put some hard intervals in there when I can.”
Favourite session: “A confidence-booster session, so something with lots of rest for me! Anything under 1km with a bit more rest, e.g., 20 x 400m on the track with 45sec recovery. My favourite Hyrox sessions are SkiErg and rowing. My arms are getting stronger so it’s good to see the progress.”
Least favourite session: “In running, it’s any tempos without stopping! Coming from a 1500m background, if it’s anything that’s continuous like a four, six or eight-mile tempo I think: ‘What on earth?! For Hyrox it’s anything with wall balls, I find that really tough.”
