Wall Balls
100 reps
TL;DR
Wall balls is the last station before the finish, and it has the widest spread of finish times between similarly-fit competitors of any station in the race, per multi-time competitor Rich Ryan's stated view. Every division does 100 reps: Open Men use a 6 kg ball to a 3.00m target, Pro Men step up to a 9 kg ball at the same 3.00m target; Open Women use a 4 kg ball to a 2.70m target, and Pro Women step up to a 6 kg ball at that same 2.70m target. Reps don't change between Open and Pro for either gender — only the ball weight does. Across 224,008 recorded races, the median time is roughly 6:28 for Open Men and 6:08 for Open Women. The gap between a good finish here and a bad one isn't fitness — it's pacing the entire race around this station, having a fixed break plan, and not getting no-repped for depth or for restarting from the wrong position.
Hyrox Wall Balls Race Day Strategy
You don't start 'kicking' in Hyrox until wall balls — like the last minute of a distance race, pace the first seven stations conservatively enough to arrive with something left. A useful frame: give back roughly two minutes across the race to gain two and a half at the end. Athletes who attack the middle arrive here with nothing, and that's where most time gets bled — not from weaker wall-ball ability, but from bad timing. On breaks: if you can hold sets of 50+ unbroken, do it — front-loading a big set makes the back half easier. If not, pick a number you know you can hit every time (25s, 20s, 15s) and rest the same amount each round rather than improvising. A stricter alternative some athletes use as a non-negotiable rule: never pick the ball up for fewer than 10 reps, never rest more than 10 breaths, using a descending chipper — 16, 15, 14 … down to 9 (sums to 100) — merging the last two sets into one final push near the finish. Breathe out on release and in on the catch (the reverse of a typical heavy-squat pattern), and don't lock arms overhead waiting for the ball — bring them down or swing them out between reps to delay the shoulder burn.
Median Race Times (real data, 82,000+ athletes)
Overview
The movement: catch the ball at chest height, drop into a squat below parallel, drive up through the heels, and throw it to hit a target above you, then repeat — 100 reps, for every division, both genders. There's no forward motion and no meters ticking over — just reps, which is part of why it feels harder than the distance suggests. Ball weight follows a three-tier system by division (4 kg / 6 kg / 9 kg) that doesn't map 1:1 to gender: Open Women use 4 kg, Open Men and Pro Women both use 6 kg, and Pro Men use 9 kg. Target height is gender-based, not division-based: 3.00m for men, 2.70m for women. Reps stay at 100 across every tier — only the ball and target height change.
Hyrox Wall Balls Weights
| Division | Weight / Format |
|---|---|
| Open Men | 6 kg / 14 lb ball — 100 reps — 3.00m target |
| Pro Men | 9 kg / 20 lb ball — 100 reps — 3.00m target |
| Open Women | 4 kg / 9 lb ball — 100 reps — 2.70m target |
| Pro Women | 6 kg / 14 lb ball — 100 reps — 2.70m target |
| Doubles Men | 6 kg — 100 reps total, self-selected split between partners (You-Go-I-Go), target 3.00m |
| Doubles Women | 4 kg — 100 reps total, self-selected split between partners, target 2.70m |
| Doubles Mixed | 6 kg ball for both partners (Men's Open weight); target 3.00m for the male partner, 2.70m for the female partner; 100 reps total, self-selected split |
Step-by-Step Technique
- 1
Stand roughly an arm's length from the wall (half a step back if short-armed) — close enough to stay upright, not so close the rebound crowds you.
- 2
Hold the ball under your chin, hands spread underneath (not on the sides), elbows tucked under; squat by pushing the knees forward so your torso stays upright.
- 3
Drive up explosively through the heels, extend the hips fully, and press straight into the throw, finishing with a wrist flick toward the target — without that flick the ball goes straight up instead of forward and is a no-rep.
- 4
Catch the ball under your chin (not overhead) and absorb it like a trampoline — bend into the next squat immediately rather than stopping dead, which wastes time and burns out shoulders.
- 5
If you break a set, stand fully upright before dropping into the next rep — restarting from the bottom of the squat instead of standing first is a no-rep risk under current judging standards.
Training Tips
- 1
Catch the ball and immediately drop into the squat - no pausing
- 2
Use your legs to generate the throw, not your arms
- 3
Aim for the center of the target consistently
- 4
Break it into sets: 25-25-25-25 or a descending chipper (16-15-14-13-12-11-10-9)
Top 5 Mistakes (and Fixes)
✕Mistake 1: Throwing with the arms instead of the legs
Fix: The squat should generate roughly 80% of the power; arms just guide and release. Arm-throwers are cooked by rep 40.
✕Mistake 2: Resting with the ball held at chest height
Fix: Still an active load on tired shoulders. If you need to rest, put the ball down.
✕Mistake 3: Catching on the sides of the ball instead of underneath
Fix: You lose the wrist-flick, shoulders burn out faster, and a sweaty ball slips more easily — keep fingers spread, hands under, thumbs close.
✕Mistake 4: Restarting from the bottom of the squat after a break instead of standing first
Fix: A movement-standard violation judges specifically watch for, especially after cluster sets around rep 30-50 when fatigue causes shortcuts.
✕Mistake 5: Going out too hard in the first 20 reps
Fix: Wall balls come after seven other stations — start at 60-70% effort and build, rather than sprinting into a wall you can't recover from.
Common Mistakes
- ✕
Using arms to throw instead of leg drive from the squat
- ✕
Resting with the ball at your chest - put it down if you need to rest
- ✕
Shallow squats - go below parallel for a good rep
4-Week Training Progression
| Week | Session |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | 4 × 20 wall balls at race weight and height, 90s rest. Focus on squat depth and unbroken sets. |
| Week 2 | 3 × 30 wall balls at race weight and height, 2min rest. Target consistent throw accuracy. |
| Week 3 | 2 × 50 wall balls at race weight and height, 3min rest. Practice your chosen break strategy (e.g. 25-15-10). |
| Week 4 (peak) | 1 × full 100-rep count at race weight after sandbag lunges — the race sequence for the final two stations. |
Grip Training for Hyrox Wall Balls
Hands spread wide underneath the ball — not gripping the sides — thumbs close together, elbows pointed down. This keeps the ball stable in the 'goblet' position and sets up the wrist flick that sends it forward instead of straight up. Catch under the chin, not overhead — reaching up wastes time and fatigues shoulders faster. Late in a race the ball gets sweaty, exactly when a side-grip is most likely to slip; hands underneath is a durability choice as much as a technique one.
Sample Workout
For time: 100 wall balls at your division's race weight and target height (all divisions do 100 reps — the ball weight and target height are what change, not the count). Use a fixed break plan rather than improvising — either even sets (e.g., 25-25-25-25) or a descending chipper (16-15-14-13-12-11-10-9, which totals 100). Cap every rest at roughly 10 breaths and commit to a minimum of 10 reps once you pick the ball back up. Log total time and whether you held the plan or broke early.
Equipment
The Wall ball — three-tier system by division (4 kg / 6 kg / 9 kg) + gender-based target (2.70m women / 3.00m men) is what you'll use on race day. If you're training seriously, having access to race-day equipment makes a real difference in your preparation.
[AFFILIATE:wall-ball](URL)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many wall balls are in Hyrox?
100 reps for every division — Open and Pro, men and women. Women's Open used to be 75 reps, but HYROX moved it to 100 (along with Women's Doubles) back in September 2024, and that's been the standard for two seasons now. It's the final station before the finish line.
How high is the Hyrox wall ball target?
The target is gender-based, not division-based: 3.00 metres (about 10 feet) for men, Open or Pro, and 2.70 metres (about 9 feet) for women, Open or Pro.
What weight is the Hyrox wall ball?
It's a three-tier system by division, not a flat men's/women's split: Open Women use 4 kg, Open Men and Pro Women both use 6 kg, and Pro Men use 9 kg (20 lb). Reps stay at 100 across every tier — only the ball gets heavier.
What's the best pacing strategy for 100 wall balls?
Pick a fixed break plan before race day rather than going unbroken until failure — big sets (50+) if you can hold them, otherwise consistent smaller sets like 25s or a descending chipper. Just as important: pace the seven stations before it conservatively enough that you arrive with a 'kick' left, since the biggest time losses here come from arriving depleted, not from wall-ball ability itself.