HYROX Without a Sandbag: Lunge Substitutes, Ranked
By Threshold
You can train for HYROX without a sandbag. The Threshold engine swaps the sandbag lunges for a substitute matched for time: for the sandbag lunges (100 m) the closest is db front-rack walking lunge, rated closest, which needs dumbbells, then wall-ball-hugged walking lunge. The app picks the closest match for your kit, and the race estimate still uses the real station.
Stations that need a sandbag
Substitutes ranked, closest first
| Station | Rank | Substitute | Match | Needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandbag lunges | 1 | DB front-rack walking lunge | closest | dumbbells |
| Sandbag lunges | 2 | Wall-ball-hugged walking lunge | closest | a wall ball |
| Sandbag lunges | 3 | Walking lunge | good | nothing but floor space |
- DB front-rack walking lunge for the sandbag lunges: a closest match at 80% engine fidelity, ranked 1 of 3, needing dumbbells.
- Wall-ball-hugged walking lunge for the sandbag lunges: a closest match at 70% engine fidelity, ranked 2 of 3, needing a wall ball.
- Walking lunge for the sandbag lunges: a good match at 50% engine fidelity, ranked 3 of 3, needing nothing but floor space.
"Closest" means the movement taxes the same system in roughly the same way; "rough" keeps the time and the effort but not the pattern.
Sandbag lunges: 100 m
What it taxes. Late-race leg endurance with a bag on your shoulders, and the station that most brutally audits your strength reserves. By now you have pushed and pulled the sleds and run seven kilometres; the lunges ask the same legs for a hundred more loaded steps.
Technique that survives fatigue. Bag high across the shoulders behind the neck, hands holding it in place, chest up and eyes forward. A long step, the back knee touching the floor every rep, and a drive straight up through the front heel into the next step without pausing at the top. Find a cadence in the first ten metres and hold it; the rhythm is what gets you to a hundred.
Where the seconds go. Shallow reps, which the judges no-rep, and the stalls when the bag slips and has to be re-set. A knee that touches every time at a steady pace beats a fast start that turns into standing still at 60 m with the bag sliding off.
How the app trains it. Half-distance lunge pieces in normal circuit rounds and a final round that grows to the full 100 m by Peak; the lunge is also a benchmark piece, timed with full rest, so the plan sees whether it is your limiting station. The front-rack walking lunge with dumbbells is the engine's closest substitute, followed by a wall-ball-hugged lunge.
What to do about the load
The race load is 10 kg Women Open, 20 kg Men Open, 20 kg Women Pro and 30 kg Men Pro. The substitute is matched for time rather than kilograms, so work for as long as the 100 m sandbag lunges takes you, and keep the movement honest before you add weight.
Where to go next
The full race order and every station section live in our HYROX stations and weights guide. For sled loads on your own sled, use our HYROX sled weight calculator. To put the substitutes into a week, follow our free HYROX training plan, week by week, and if you train mostly at home, read our HYROX at-home substitutes guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best HYROX substitute without a sandbag?
For the sandbag lunges: db front-rack walking lunge, rated closest.
What equipment do the substitutes need?
DB front-rack walking lunge: dumbbells. Wall-ball-hugged walking lunge: a wall ball. Walking lunge: nothing but floor space.
Which station needs a sandbag in HYROX?
Sandbag lunges (100 m). Every other station can be trained without it.
How heavy is the sandbag lunges in HYROX?
10 kg Women Open, 20 kg Men Open, 20 kg Women Pro and 30 kg Men Pro.