If you’ve ever lined up for a Hyrox race, you’ll know the sled pull has a way of humbling even the fittest athletes. At first glance, it looks simple: grab a rope, pull a weighted sled toward you. But once you’re halfway through, grip burning, quads shaking, and heart rate sky-high, you realise this is one of the most complete full-body workouts you can do.
Every muscle gets called into action. Your upper body does the heavy hauling, your core keeps you braced, and your legs anchor you against the resistance. Add in the cardiovascular demand of dragging a heavy sled across the floor, and you’ve got strength, endurance, and pure grit all rolled into one station.
So whether you’re training for your first Hyrox or just looking to add sled pulls to your hybrid workout sessions, here are our top tips on how to perform the sled pull and strengthen your technique.
What Is The Sled Pull?
The sled pull is a full-body strength and conditioning exercise that involves pulling a weighted sled toward you - usually with a rope, harness, or straps. It trains your upper body, lower body, and core in one dynamic movement, combining strength, grip, and endurance under load.
Unlike traditional lifts, the sled pull focuses on concentric muscle contractions, where your muscles shorten under tension rather than lengthen, making it a powerful tool for building explosive force, acceleration, and total-body conditioning. Studies have also shown that resisted sled training can improve sprint performance, power output, and even fat loss.
In recent years, the sled pull has gained major visibility thanks to Hyrox, the global fitness race series. It appears as the third workout station, where athletes pull a loaded sled across a 50-metre distance using a thick rope. The challenge? The combination of resistance, fatigue, and the infamous Hyrox Perform Turf, a thiick carpet which adds serious drag and makes every pull feel twice as heavy.
Sled Push Vs Sled Pull
Both the push and pull are brutal in their own right, but they challenge the body differently. Unlike a sled push, where you can dig your legs into the ground and drive, the pull demands patience, posture, and raw pulling power.:
The sled push is lower-body dominant. You’ll feel it in your quads, glutes, and calves as you drive forward. It’s explosive, high-intensity, and tests your heart-rate max.
The sled pull brings the upper body to centre stage. Your lats, biceps, rear delts, and grip are under constant tension as you haul the rope. But don’t be fooled, your legs still work hard, bracing you against the pull and stabilizing your body.
Think of them as two sides of the same coin: push = power forward, pull = power back. Train both, and you’ll be ready for anything a hybrid workout throws at you.
How To Do The Sled Pull
There are a few main ways to approach the sled pull, each of which you’ll see swapped in and out during Hyrox training and on race day. Each one challenges your body slightly differently, and knowing how to transition between them is key to staying efficient when you begin to fatigue.
The first is the hand-over-hand sled pull - a heavy sled dragged across the floor while you haul it in, bit by bit. Your entire body has to work as one unit to stay stable and efficient. You’ll grip the rope and reel it in toward your chest, keeping your posture tall and your core braced in slow, deliberate pulls, with your back, biceps, and forearms driving the movement, while your legs and core act as anchors to stop you from being pulled forward with every tug. It’s a grind, but one that builds serious pulling power and full-body control.
Then there’s the step-back variation, where you use your whole body to create momentum. You’ll walk backward as you pull, using your legs to drive and your upper body to guide the rope in. Once the sled reaches the end of your line, you walk forward to reset and repeat - moving front to back across the box until the sled crosses the finish line.
You can also practise the hip drive pull, a power-focused movement that builds speed and efficiency when your grip starts to fade.
In training, it’s worth experimenting with all styles. Start with the hand-over-hand pull to build control, switch to hip drive to develop power, and finish with backward walks to simulate race-day endurance. On race day, being able to move fluidly between techniques can be the difference between stalling and finishing strong.
Hand-Over-Hand Rope Pull Technique (Hyrox Style)
How to do the hand-over-hand rope pull:
Start standing tall with your feet firmly planted hip-width apart and the rope between your legs - soften your knees to stop your lower back from taking the strain.
Take the rope in both hands, stacking one hand over the other, brace your core and maintain a neutral position with your head.
Hinge at the hips, driving your glutes backward so that you’re standing in a slight squat position and begin to pull the rope towards your body, keeping your elbows high and close to your ribcage. Each pull should finish with one hand close to your chest, whilst the other reaches out to ‘climb’ forward further down the rope.
As you pull the rope, anchor your body with your legs and lean back slightly, keeping your core braced so that you’re always looking forward. Imagine you’re rooted into the floor - your quads and glutes are bracing just as much as your arms are working.
Breathe with the movement. Exhale as you pull, inhale as you reset for the next reach.
Key tip: Short, controlled pulls are more efficient than dramatic, long reaches. If you overextend, you’ll burn energy and lose momentum, and energy. The more you involve your core and legs in bracing, the longer your upper body will last.
Benefits:
This technique builds pure pulling strength and grip endurance, improving the upper-body force and control you’ll need for steady pacing across the full 50 metres.
Downsides:
Because the hand-over-hand pull relies so much on the upper body, grip and forearm fatigue can kick in quickly, especially if you’re new to the movement or don’t brace your core effectively. If your form slips and your back rounds, it can place unnecessary strain on your lower spine, so it’s important to keep your core tight and shoulders retracted throughout.
Fatigue in the forearm flexors significantly reduces pulling force and coordination, suggesting that building grip endurance is essential for maintaining power through each repetition.
The Hip Drive Pull Technique:
How to do the hip drive pull:
Start in a deep half-squat with your feet flat and knees bent. The sled should be directly in front of you with a taut rope.
Grip the rope firmly with both hands, stacking one over the other, and lean slightly back to create tension.
As you pull the rope toward you, extend your hips and drive through your heels, using your glutes and hamstrings to generate power.
Once you’ve completed one pull, quickly “walk” your hands forward along the rope and reset into the hinge position for the next drive.
Keep your chest lifted, shoulders back, and avoid rounding your lower back as fatigue sets in.
Benefits:
The hip drive technique mimics posterior chain movements like the Romanian deadlift, strengthening your glutes, hamstrings, and erectors while still requiring your upper body activation. It also improves intermuscular coordination (the ability for multiple muscle groups to fire in sequence ), and promotes efficient power transfer through your hips, meaning you can generate more force with less upper-body fatigue - key to efficient sled pulling.
Compared to the hand-over-hand technique, which relies heavily on grip and arm endurance, the hip drive pull spreads the effort more evenly across the body, making it a smart option for athletes who want to maintain pulling power without fatiguing their upper body early. It’s also faster and more rhythmical once you find your groove, helping you conserve energy across the 50-metre pull.
Downsides:
It’s easy to over-rely on your hips and lose tension through the arms or rope. If you rush the movement or fail to brace your core, you’ll start jerking the rope, wasting energy rather than transferring it efficiently into the sled.
The Backwards Walk Technique
How to do backward sled drags (rope in hand):
Start facing the sled with the rope gripped firmly in both hands—one stacked over the other—arms slightly bent. Take a few steps back to create light tension in the rope.
Plant your feet shoulder-width apart and lower into a quarter-squat, keeping your knees soft, chest up and core engaged. Your shoulders should stay over your hips, not leaning too far back.
To pull, step back one foot at a time, dragging the sled toward you. Each step should be short, quick, and controlled-think of driving through your midfoot while keeping the rope close to your body.
As the sled moves closer, feed the rope through your hands with small, continuous pulls; don’t let slack build. Keep your elbows tucked in and your wrists firm to maintain control.
As the rope piles up near your feet, flick or step it aside with small shuffles between steps to stop it tangling or tripping you. This technique, seen in most Hyrox prep videos, helps maintain rhythm and safety.
Continue until the sled crosses the finish line or designated distance. Keep tension until the very end, it’s easy to lose power here due to fatigue, but maintaining control all the way to the end ensures the sled doesn’t rebound or slow prematurely.
Once finished, walk the rope back to the start position while keeping it taut and organised. This not only keeps the area tidy for your next set or rep but also mimics race conditions where you’ll often have to reset quickly for another pull or transition.
Tips for control:
Keep your chin level and your gaze forward; looking down breaks posture and power.
Lead with your legs, not your arms. The rope is there for connection, not to “yank” the load.
Focus on breathing: exhale with each backward step to maintain core pressure.
Benefits:
This version builds serious lower-body strength and anaerobic endurance, mirroring the demands of Hyrox competition. It lights up your quads, glutes, and calves while still taxing your arms and back for stability. Backward sled drags are an effective conditioning tool to add to your training regime, as they provide higher quadriceps activation and metabolic demand than forward variations, primarily due to the quadriceps' role in generating force for knee extension against resistance (the sled).
In a hybrid race setting, the backward walk technique is often the most sustainable choice. It’s slower in pure speed but wins on consistency, allowing for steadier pacing and smoother transitions between pulls, which can make a huge difference over longer distances.
Downsides:
The backward walk pull is energy-intensive and requires practice to coordinate the footwork with the rope pull. If your rope management slips, it’s easy to lose rhythm or trip. Start with lighter loads and shorter distances before building toward race-day weights.
How To Train For The Sled Pull
It’s tempting to think the sled pull is just “upper body strength + rope”… but it’s harder than it looks - especially when you begin to add weight and perform the movement under fatigue.
In reality, it’s a synergy of full-body muscle action, grip strength, and aerobic conditioning - often seen as one of the longest stations within a Hyrox race. Here’s how to prep for it.
Strength Building
Your lats, traps, rear delts, and biceps do the bulk of the pulling, but a strong base in your lower body and core keeps you efficient. Any weighted exercise that consists of pulling and works your core will be beneficial for hybrid training and getting ready for race day. Rows, pull-ups, and lat pulldowns will build back power, while deadlifts, RDLs, and squats strengthen the foundation that stops you from toppling over under tension.
Key exercises:
Single-Arm Row: Build unilateral pulling strength and help correct imbalances for overall strength.
Heavy Sled Pulls: Mimic race conditions by practising with a heavy sled, pulling it backwards with a hand-over-hand grip.
Seated Rows: Use a cable machine to simulate the pulling motion and strengthen your back and biceps.
Deadlifts: Build lower back and glute strength with deadlifts, which provide the foundational power needed for pulling the sled.
Weighted Pull-Ups: Add resistance to a pull-movement to improve grip, lat power, and core bracing.
Grip Strength
If you’ve ever felt your hands give out before your muscles, you’ll know how vital grip is. The sled pull is only Station 3 in a Hyrox race, and with farmer’s carries, wall balls, and running still to come, depleting your grip early can make the rest of the course feel brutal. That’s why training and preparing your forearms and hands is key.
Rope pulls rely on crushing grip and forearm endurance. Farmer’s carries, towel pull-ups, and even simple plate pinches replicate that strain. Research shows grip strength directly links to pulling performance and fatigue resistance - one 2023 study found that athletes with higher maximal handgrip strength were able to sustain rope pulling for longer and with less drop-off in power, highlighting its importance in multi-station functional competitions.
Grip builders:
Farmer’s carries: with heavy dumbbells or kettlebells
Towel pull-ups: (loop a towel over a pull-up bar to mimic rope thickness)
Plate pinches: (holding weight plates together with just your fingertips)
Technique Practice
The sled pull rewards efficiency, but mastering it requires more than just perfect form; you need race-specific preparation.
To simulate race conditions:
Train with heavier sleds than race day: Adding 10–20% extra weight builds strength, resilience, and power endurance, so your actual race pull feels smoother and less taxing.
Practice under fatigue: Combine sled pulls with other exercises in circuits or after a run to mimic mid-race fatigue. This ensures your form stays solid even when your muscles are tired.
Lock down your pulling technique and posture: Instead of yanking the rope with momentum, think smooth and consistent small pulls. Keep your posture stacked, anchor through your legs, and let the rope travel in short, sharp cycles.
Footwork matters: Many experienced Hyrox athletes use a “stomp and shuffle” style. Plant your feet firmly into the floor, almost like stamping the ground, before resetting quickly for the next pull. This keeps you stable and stops your legs from sliding, especially on slick competition surfaces.
Shoe choice: Not all running shoes perform well on turf or mats, especially those with high foam soles. Find shoes that give you grip without compromising your stride. We recommend lightweight, springy shoes with a smaller sole.
Practice until it feels automatic; on race day, fatigue makes technique slip, and that’s where wasted energy creeps in. You can only do as much as you can, but prep give the the best fighting chance.
Can I Train For A Sled Pull Without A Sled?
Not every gym has sleds, but you can still get race-ready without one.
Cable machines with a rope attachment → sit down, plant your feet, and start hauling, hand over hand until your lats, biceps, and grip are on fire. It mimics the pull almost perfectly, forcing you to stay braced and smooth under steady resistance.
Battle ropes → instead of neat little ripple-like rope waves, heave on the rope and make big waves. The constant motion challenges your grip and shoulders, acting as a sneaky stand-in for the rope pull and challenging your endurance.
Backward treadmill walking → crank the incline, step back, and let your quads take the hit. This will create an intense quad burn, just like they will mid-drag, and it builds the kind of lower-body strength that carries you through the pain cave.
Sandbag pulls or drags → no glide, no wheels, just friction fighting you with every step. Dragging a sandbag works your posterior chain and core, and although it’s low-tech, the friction is similar to carpet sled pulls.
4 Tips To Improve Your Sled Pull Form
Stack your posture
Keep shoulders down and back, chest proud, and core braced. A tall, stable torso spreads the effort evenly across your muscles, preventing strain on the lower back. Think of your body as a solid plank from head to hips as you pull.
Don’t lose the rhythm
Keep your pulls short, sharp, and consistent, and tie your breathing to each cycle. Smooth, rhythmic pulls maintain momentum and prevent wasted energy, while long, uncontrolled reaches can break your flow and fatigue you faster.
Anchor with your legs
Planting your feet in a slight quarter-squat stance locks you into the ground and stops your lower back from overcompensating. Engage your quads and glutes, and resist sliding or leaning back - your lower body should act like a spring, transferring force efficiently to the rope while protecting your spine.
Train with a sled pull weight heavier than race day weight
Overloading your training weight (by around 10–20%) builds the strength and resilience you’ll need when fatigue hits mid-race. It forces your posterior chain, grip, and core to adapt to higher tension, so when you return to your competition load, it feels faster and more controlled. This method is known as supramaximal or overload training and has been shown to improve force output and power endurance in pulling-based movements. Just make sure to balance these heavier sessions with lighter, faster pulls to keep your training efficient.
Mistakes To Avoid
Leaning too far back/dumping tension into the lower spine
When the pull becomes too heavy or your core gives way, it’s easy to pitch your torso back and let your lower back take the load. But that robs your glutes, quads, and core of involvement - and puts your back at risk. Stay anchored, keep your torso braced, and don’t let your hips sag.
Forgetting to breathe
This might sound too simple, but it’s surprisingly common. Under fatigue, people clench their core and stop breathing efficiently. That cuts your endurance. Keep a steady inhale/exhale rhythm tied to each pull or reset. Oxygen is your best friend in a full-body sled pull.
Overreaching with straight arms (wasteful pulls)
Stretching too far before pulling often feels impactful, but it’s inefficient. When your arms are fully extended, you lose leverage, leave slack in your rope, and set yourself up to reset. Shorter, controlled pulls keep momentum smoother and energy cost lower.
Stepping out of your “box” or poor rope management
Especially in competitions, you must keep within a designated lane or box. Letting the rope drift outside your lane, stepping over boundaries, or creating rope tangles behind you are common mistakes flagged by Hyrox guides. Always control where your rope lands and keep your steps legal.
Pulling with slack in the rope/not pre-tensioning
Some athletes begin pulls while there’s slack (i.e. rope not fully tight). That wasted space costs time and energy. Hyrox training tips often emphasise pulling only once the rope is taut. Pulling slack means losing momentum before you even begin.
Sled Pull FAQs
How Much Does A Hyrox Sled Pull Weigh?
In official Hyrox competitions, the sled pull weight varies by division:
Men’s Open: 103 kg / 227 lbs
Women’s Open: 78 kg / 172 lbs
Men’s Pro: 153 kg / 337 lbs
Women’s Pro: 103 kg / 227 lbs
These numbers don’t include the sled itself, so always check your local event guidelines. The official Hyrox sled weighs 50kg. Other brands vary in weight but usually around the 30-40kg range
What Are The Benefits Of Doing The Sled Pull?
The sled pull is one of the best examples of a true functional exercise. Benefits include:
Full-body strength → Upper body pulls, lower body stabilizes, core braces.
Grip endurance → Builds forearm strength you’ll use across all lifts.
Cardiovascular conditioning → Dragging a heavy sled for distance spikes your heart rate like an interval workout.
Race readiness → If you’re training for Hyrox, it’s non-negotiable.
What Muscles Does The Sled Pull Work?
The sled pull is a full-body workout, but the primary muscles targeted are:
Upper body: Lats, traps, rhomboids, rear delts, biceps, forearms
Core: Abdominals, obliques, erector spinae
Lower body: Quads (especially in backward drags), hamstrings, glutes, calves
This is why it’s a total-body workout hidden inside one movement.
Is The Sled Push Or Pull Harder?
It all depends on your strengths and weaknesses, but most people find the sled pull harder because of grip fatigue and the need for constant rhythm, but both will push you to your limits [5].
How do they compare?
The sled push demands more raw lower-body power and core drive.
The sled pull tests grip, back endurance, and total-body coordination.
How Much Weight Should You Sled Pull?
If you’re training outside of Hyrox, start lighter than race weight and build up gradually. A good rule of thumb:
Aim for 50-70% of bodyweight when learning the technique.
Progress to 80-100%+ of bodyweight as you get stronger.
Always focus on smooth pulls and posture before piling on plates.
The Takeaway
The sled pull isn’t just about raw power; it’s a showcase of full-body strength, patience, and efficient movement. Not to mention pulling technique and foot stance. Train your muscles, toughen your grip, and practise good form, and you’ll not only crush the Hyrox station but also build one of the most functional, all-round fitness skills in the gym.
And if you’re building your Hyrox toolkit? Lock in your technique with our guide to the sled push, because mastering both will give you a serious edge.
Master your Hyrox training with our range of strength and functional workouts which you can find on our Training App.
References:
Bishop, D., Turner, A., & Read, P. (2020). Effects of resisted sled sprint training on sprint performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 34 (5), 1501-1515.
Cahill, M. J., Oliver, J. L., Cronin, J. B., Clark, K., Cross, M. R., Lloyd, R. S., & Lee, J. E. (2020). Influence of resisted sled-pull training on the sprint force-velocity profile of male high-school athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 34 (10), 2751–2759.
Roper, J. L., Brasher, J. A., Musci, R. V., Lin, J., & Rovetti, R. J. (2023).
Sled-pull training improves maximal horizontal velocity in collegiate male and female soccer players. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 55 (9), 836.
Lockie, R. G., Moreno, M. R., Lazar, A., Orjalo, A. J., Giuliano, D. V., Risso, F. G., & Davis, D. L. (2017). The effects of sled towing on sprinting kinetics and kinematics in athletes. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 31 (5), 1134-1141.
Cahill, M. J., Cronin, J. B., Oliver, J. L., Clark, K., & Lloyd, R. S. (2020).
Resisted sled training for young athletes: When to push and pull. Strength & Conditioning Journal, Publish Ahead of Print.
Maroto-Izquierdo, S., Martín-Rivera, F., Nosaka, K., Beato, M., González-Gallego, J., & de Paz, J. A. (2023). Effects of submaximal and supramaximal accentuated eccentric loading on mass and function. Frontiers in Physiology, 14, 1214567.
