In this episode of the HYROX Coaching Podcast, Aaron and Chris are joined by HYROX coach Phil Mataj.

Phil talks through his route into coaching, from bodybuilding and CrossFit through to HYROX, starting a run club in Bristol, and eventually building a coaching system around movement quality, athlete belief and proper training structure.

The conversation covers what makes good HYROX coaching, why movement standards matter from the start, and how athletes can make big improvements simply by becoming more efficient at the basics.

Aaron, Chris and Phil also discuss how to identify an athlete’s main limiter, why every training block needs one clear focus, and why trying to build everything at once usually just creates fatigue rather than progress.

There is also a big section on doubles racing, including why doubles is still heavily aerobic, how much changeovers matter, and why the best pairs are not just fit but efficient, calm and well-drilled.

The episode also touches on threshold work, heat, heart rate, pacing, adding volume for the sake of it, and why the first 15 minutes of a HYROX race often set up the rest of the day.

Topics covered include:

Phil’s background in CrossFit and HYROX coaching
Starting a run club and building a coaching community
Coaching Charlie and Lauren
Why you do not need to be a great athlete to be a great coach
Movement standards and efficiency
Burpees, wall balls and lunges
Testing athletes and finding limiters
Aerobic base, threshold and VO2 max
Why each block needs one clear signal
Race-specific training and sharpening before HYROX
Why doubles is still an aerobic race
Changeovers, communication and partnership in doubles
Pacing the first 15 minutes of a race
Using heart rate as feedback
Training in the heat
Why more volume is not always the answer
Coaching relationships, trust and environment