- The official HYROX Singles Rulebook states that a movement deviating from the standards may result in either a no rep or a time penalty depending on the station (section 8).
- Wall balls are the only HYROX station whose rulebook section applies the term no rep to its own movement standards, and its penalty protocol states plainly that no warnings are given, it is either a rep or a no-rep (Singles 8.8).
- At HYROX Stations 1 to 7 a racer receives one warning per station for not meeting movement standards, and the associated time penalty applies from the second infringement onward, although certain violations may be penalised immediately without warning (Singles Rulebook 12.2).
- HYROX wall ball targets are set by gender rather than division, at 2.70 m for women and 3.00 m for men, and every division completes 100 repetitions.
- Putting the kettlebells down to rest during the HYROX farmers carry is permitted, provided they do not move forward as they are placed on the ground (Singles Rulebook 8.6, item 4).
What HYROX no reps actually are, and what they are not
A no rep is a repetition the judge does not count. The official HYROX Singles Rulebook defines it as any execution that deviates from the movement standards, is unusual or uncommon, or results in a time advantage (12.5). The section 8 preamble adds the part almost every explainer drops: such actions "may result in either a no rep or a time penalty, depending on the station."
That last clause is the whole article. The race is the same everywhere: 8 stations, always in the same order. The consequence for bad form is not. At one station a fault kills the repetition outright. At the rest it starts a warning-and-penalty ladder that never uses the words "no rep" at all. Standards below are quoted from the Season 26/27 HYROX rulebooks, with the section number attached to every rule so you can check it yourself.
No rep, warning, penalty, extra rep, DQ: five different things
Forums and reels collapse all of this into one word. The rulebook produces five distinct outcomes.
| Outcome | What it means | Where the rulebook establishes it |
|---|---|---|
| Formal warning | Your first movement-standard infringement at Stations 1 to 7. Nothing is added to your clock. | 12.2, and the penalty protocol boxes under 8.1 to 8.5 and 8.7 |
| Time penalty | The second and every subsequent infringement at Stations 1 to 7. Some violations skip the warning entirely. | 12.2 and its Note |
| No rep | The repetition is not counted and has to be done again. | 8.8 item 10, 8.8 penalty protocol item 1, and generally at 12.5 |
| Mandatory extra repetition | Not a no rep and not a penalty. You simply owe one more. | 8.4 item 11, landing on the burpee finish line |
| Disqualification | Leaving an erg or the wall balls early, missing a run or station, or using the wrong weight and not repeating it. | Section 8 preamble, penalty codes 02, 07, 08, 09 and 14 |
The one-warning rule almost nobody states correctly
Section 12.2 reads: "For Stations 1-7, racers will receive one warning per station for not meeting movement standards. On the second infringement, regardless of type, the repetition is deemed invalid and the racer will receive the associated time penalty. Any further violations within the same station will incur additional penalties."
Then, immediately beneath it, the qualifier that gets lost every time the rule is repeated: "Certain violations may result in immediate penalties without warning, depending on their severity." Quoting 12.2 without its Note overstates the rule and gives racers a free first mistake the rulebook never promised. The warning is not a right. It is a default that a judge can skip.
Note the scope too. It is one warning per station, not one per race, and the second infringement counts "regardless of type", so a sloppy lunge after a sloppy line-cross is your second, not a fresh first. Most people hear "one warning" and bank it for the whole race. It is not that. For what each penalty adds to your finishing time, see the HYROX penalties guide; this page is about what you did, not what it costs.
One honest caveat on that table. The penalty protocol box under the farmers carry (8.6) does not print the warning-then-penalty ladder that the boxes under 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5 and 8.7 all print; it lists only the return penalty and the wrong-weight disqualification. That is an absence in the station box, not an exemption. Section 12.2 covers Stations 1 to 7 generally, and the farmers carry is one of them.
Why wall balls are the only station with true HYROX no reps
Read the Singles rulebook end to end and the phrase "no rep" appears in four sections: the section 8 preamble, the explanatory paragraph at 12.2 whose worked example is a wall ball squat, section 12.5, and section 8.8, the wall ball station itself, which carries it in three separate places (item 10, the Digital Wall Ball Target Protocol, and the penalty protocol). No other station section applies the term to its own movement standards; 8.1 through 8.7 specify formal warnings and time penalties instead.
That is a claim about where the rulebook uses the word, not a claim that form goes unjudged elsewhere. Movement standards are enforceable everywhere, and 12.2 is what enforces them. The difference is the machinery: at Stations 1 to 7 a bad repetition still counts toward your total and the cost lands on your clock, while at wall balls the repetition itself evaporates. You do it again or you do not finish the station.
There is no free first mistake at wall balls. The station's penalty protocol says it in one line: "No warnings are given, it is either a rep or a no-rep" (8.8 penalty protocol item 1). And 8.8 item 10: "If the racer breaches any of these requirements, that repetition will be deemed a 'no rep'." Every division completes 100 wall ball repetitions, and the counter only moves when the judge says it does.
The HYROX no reps map, station by station
The order never changes: SkiErg, Sled Push, Sled Pull, Burpee Broad Jump, Rowing, Farmers Carry, Sandbag Lunges, Wall Balls. You run 8 times, once before each station. Below is what the judge is watching at each one, the fault that gets called, and what it costs. The full race walkthrough lives in the HYROX stations guide.
SkiErg
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Your feet on the base plate | Either foot touching the floor rather than the base plate (8.1 item 2) | Formal warning first, then a time penalty per the 8.1 penalty protocol |
| Your hands against your feet at the start | Touching the handle before your feet are on the base (penalty code 06) | A time penalty per infringement. The code table prints no warning stage for this one, unlike the 8.1 penalty protocol above it. |
| Whether you left before the judge confirmed | Stepping off before the judge's confirmation of completion (8.1 items 3 and 4) | Leaving the SkiErg early is a disqualification (code 07) |
Heels may hang over the edge of the base, and a jumping ski motion is allowed provided the feet land back on the base plate (8.1 item 2). More on the stroke in the SkiErg technique guide.
Sled Push
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| The white line before you start | Sled or racer not completely behind it (8.2 item 2) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your lane boundaries | Sled or racer straying into a neighbouring lane (8.2 item 3) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| The far mark on each length | Turning before the whole sled has passed it (8.2 item 4) | Warning, then a time penalty |
That last row is stricter than it sounds. The sled must fully pass the 12.5 m mark before you turn, so cutting the corner as the front of the sled reaches the line is an infringement. See the sled push technique guide.
Sled Pull
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Your feet against the Racers Box lines | Stepping on the solid line at either end of the box while holding the rope (8.3 item 3a) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your body position | Pulling from a seated or kneeling position (8.3 item 6) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Where your rope lies | Rope impeding a neighbouring lane (8.3 item 7) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| The far mark | Turning before the sled fully passes it (8.3 items 4 and 5) | Warning, then a time penalty |
The pull uses the same 12.5 m lane length. The rope may extend out of the back of your lane (8.3 item 7); only impeding a neighbour is the fault. Box discipline is covered in the sled pull technique guide.
Burpee Broad Jump
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Your chest at the bottom | Chest not clearly touching the ground on any burpee (8.4 item 7); on a section's first burpee the standard is the nipple line making clear contact (8.4 item 2a) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your two feet on take-off and landing | Feet staggered beyond the small permitted variance, or any extra step or shuffle (8.4 item 3) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your hands relative to your front foot | Hands planted further forward of the front foot's toes than the rulebook permits on a subsequent burpee, measured from the base of the palms (8.4 items 6 and 5a), or moved forward once planted (8.4 item 5b) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your feet relative to your fingertips | Feet going beyond the fingertips when jumping or stepping out, known as overstepping (8.4 item 5) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your feet at the finish line | Either foot landing on the finish line (8.4 item 11) | Not a no rep and not a penalty: one more burpee broad jump |
The rulebook puts the burden on you rather than the judge: "It is the racer's responsibility to make it clear for the Judges that they are meeting all movement standards" (8.4 item 11). Rhythm work sits in the burpee broad jump guide.
Rowing
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Whether you are still on the seat | Standing up or leaving the seat before the distance is complete and a judge has confirmed it (8.5 items 2 and 4) | Leaving the rower early is a disqualification (code 08) |
| Your feet before you touch the handle | Feet not on the footplates before touching the handle (penalty code 06) | A time penalty per infringement |
Stopping is not the fault; leaving the seat is (8.5 items 3 and 4). Split work is in the rowing technique guide.
Farmers Carry
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Both bells, every step you take | Moving while carrying only one bell (8.6 item 2) | Warning, then a time penalty per 12.2 |
| Your arms | Bells not carried with both arms extended by your sides (8.6 item 3) | Warning, then a time penalty per 12.2 |
| Where the bells end up | Not returned to the correct box, or not left with the handles upright (8.6 penalty protocol item 1) | A time penalty, unless you go back and correct it |
That last row carries the most useful escape clause in the rulebook. If you walk away leaving a bell in the wrong place or lying on its side, the penalty is not automatic. Fix it before you leave the ROXZONE and the penalty is not applied (8.6 penalty protocol item 1). Breaking the carry is covered in the farmers carry technique guide.
Sandbag Lunges
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Your trailing knee | Knee not clearly touching the ground (8.7 item 3) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| The top of each rep | Not standing tall with knees and hips fully extended (8.7 item 4) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Which knee | Lunges that do not alternate (8.7 item 5) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your feet between reps | Any step or shuffle between repetitions (8.7 item 7) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| Your front foot at the line | Front foot not completely crossing the lane-end line, or restarting a section without two feet behind it (8.7 items 8 and 9) | Warning, then a time penalty |
| The bag itself | Resting the bag on the ground, a barricade or your feet to take the load off (8.7 penalty protocol item 5) | A time penalty per infringement |
Stopping is fine, stepping is not (8.7 items 6 and 7), and the distinction is worth drilling before race day. The sandbag lunges guide covers the reset.
Wall Balls
| What the judge watches | The fault | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Your hips at the bottom | Hips not descending lower than your knees (8.8 item 6) | No rep |
| The ball against the target | Not striking the designated target in the strike zone (8.8 item 4) | No rep |
| Your first rep | Throwing straight from the floor without standing tall first (8.8 item 2) | No rep |
| What you do after a bounce | Catching the ball after it bounces and continuing into the next repetition (8.8 item 5) | No rep |
A HYROX wall ball counts only when the racer's hips descend lower than their knees at the bottom of the squat and the ball strikes the designated target in the strike zone (Singles Rulebook 8.8, items 4 and 6). Leaving the wall balls early is a disqualification (code 09). Technique detail sits in the wall balls guide.
The things you are allowed to do that racers think are no reps
Half the faults racers police in themselves are not faults at all, and the anxiety costs more time than the rule ever would.
- Kettlebells may come down. Putting them on the ground to rest is permitted, provided they do not move forward as you set them down (8.6 item 4).
- The sandbag may not. It must remain fully supported by the working athlete and must not be placed on the ground, barricades, feet, or any other surface to remove the load (8.7 penalty protocol item 5). The two stations have opposite resting rules.
- You may stop rowing. Place the handle back in the holder and rest with your feet on or off the plates (8.5 item 3).
- You may stop between lunges, with both feet parallel on the ground (8.7 item 6).
- You may use a knee coming out of the bottom of the burpee (8.4 item 4), and jump whatever length suits you (8.4 item 9).
- Your heels may hang off the SkiErg base, and a jumping ski motion is legal as long as the feet land back on the base plate (8.1 item 2).
- Your sled-pull rope may run out the back of your lane (8.3 item 7). Only impeding a neighbour is the fault.
The screen is not the judge
Where digital wall ball targets are in use, the screens count reps and flash no-reps, and racers treat them as the verdict. The rulebook does not. Digital wall ball screens at HYROX events are a visual aid only, and the official HYROX Singles Rulebook states that the physical target and judge confirmation remain the official standard for all repetitions (8.8, Digital Wall Ball Target Protocol). In its own words: "These displays do not determine the validity of repetitions."
Squat depth boxes work the same way: used at the judge's discretion to assess depth, never requested by a racer, and not there to sit on (8.8 Attention item 2). Where no digital targets are in use, you may only move on once your judge confirms the required valid repetitions are done (8.8 item 7).
Know your own target before you get there. The women's target sits at 2.70 m and the men's at 3.00 m. Target height tracks gender: 2.70 m for Women Pro as well as Women Open. Pro changes the ball weight, not the height. Check your division's ball and target in the weight standards tool, which returns your exact load for every station rather than making you read a table sideways.
What a missed repetition actually costs you
Strict judging looks pedantic until you see what a shallow squat saves. Men's Health UK reported on a study by sport scientist Gommaar D'Hulst, who used body-worn motion sensors to measure how much mechanical work and time an athlete avoids by cutting depth on wall balls, and who compared the saving to biomechanical doping. The wod-science channel walks through the measurements below.
The practical read is not "train to cheat the tolerance". It is that the gap between a legal repetition and a shallow one is large enough to matter on a leaderboard, which is exactly why judges are told to call it, and why the wall ball station has no warning stage at all.
Doubles adds two more HYROX no reps
Two wall-ball rules exist in the Doubles rulebook and have no counterpart in Singles. The resting partner must stay in the marked area underneath the rig without obstructing other racers, and failing to do so results in no reps for as long as the infringement continues (Doubles 8.8 item 7). Second, a flying transition, where one partner throws the ball at the target and the other catches it in the squat and keeps moving, is not permitted and is a no rep (Doubles 8.8 item 8). The transition has to happen either by letting the ball go to the floor or by handing it over.
How to keep your reps clean
- Squat below your knees on every wall ball, from the first one. There is no warning here (8.8 penalty protocol item 1), so the first shallow rep is already gone.
- Stand tall before your first wall ball throw. Lifting the ball off the floor and firing it straight at the target is a no rep (8.8 item 2), and it is the easiest one to make when you arrive out of breath.
- Let a bounced ball settle. Catching it on the bounce and rolling into the next repetition is a no rep (8.8 item 5).
- Push the whole sled past the mark, not just the front of it (8.2 item 4).
- Touch your chest on every burpee, not just the first. Item 2a sets the standard for the first burpee of a section, item 7 extends it to all of them (8.4).
- Check the kettlebells before you walk away, and correct them before you exit if you got it wrong (8.6 penalty protocol item 1).
- Keep the bag on your shoulders the whole way (8.7 penalty protocol item 5), and stop rather than shuffle (8.7 items 6 and 7).
- Wait for the judge's confirmation on the ergs. Stepping off early is a disqualification, not a penalty (codes 07 and 08).
Read the section numbers above against the rulebook for your own event before you race, then drill the two or three faults that apply to you. The wider rule set these standards sit inside is covered in the HYROX rules explainer.
Frequently asked questions
What is a no rep in HYROX?
A no rep is a repetition the judge does not count. The official HYROX Singles Rulebook defines it as any execution deviating from the movement standards, unusual or uncommon, or producing a time advantage (12.5). The rulebook applies the term to a station's own standards only at wall balls (8.8).
Do you get a warning before a no rep in HYROX?
At Stations 1 to 7, yes: one warning per station for not meeting movement standards, with the associated time penalty from the second infringement onward (Singles Rulebook 12.2). Certain violations may be penalised immediately without warning. At wall balls there is no warning at all (8.8 penalty protocol).
How many wall balls are in HYROX and how high is the target?
Every division completes 100 wall ball repetitions. Target height tracks gender rather than division: 2.70 m for women and 3.00 m for men. Pro divisions change the ball weight, not the target height.
Does the digital wall ball screen decide whether a rep counts?
No. The official HYROX Singles Rulebook states the screens are a visual aid and do not determine the validity of repetitions. A rep is valid only when the movement standard is met and the ball contacts the correct physical target, and judge confirmation remains the official standard (8.8, Digital Wall Ball Target Protocol).
What happens if you land on the burpee broad jump finish line?
Landing with either foot on the finish line of the HYROX burpee broad jump is not scored as a no rep: the racer must simply complete one more burpee broad jump (Singles Rulebook 8.4, item 11). The station is complete once the racer jumps over the line.
Can you get disqualified for a no rep in HYROX?
Not for the no rep itself. Leaving the SkiErg, the rower, or the wall balls before the station is complete is a disqualification rather than a time penalty under the HYROX penalty code table (codes 07, 08 and 09). Missing a run or a station, and completing a station with the wrong weight without repeating it, are also disqualifications.
Check your event's rulebook before you race. Section numbers, penalty codes and movement standards can move between seasons and between the Singles, Doubles and Relay rulebooks. Everything on this page was read from the current official HYROX rulebooks, but the version your judge is working from on the day is the one that counts. RoxTribe is an independent community resource and is not affiliated with HYROX.
References
- Official HYROX Singles Competition Rulebook (PDF) – the authority for every movement standard, penalty protocol and penalty code quoted on this page, including sections 8.1 to 8.8, 12.2 and 12.5.
- Official HYROX Doubles Competition Rulebook (PDF) – the only source for the two doubles-only wall ball rules, section 8.8 items 7 and 8.
- HYROX official race-format page – the race structure these station standards sit inside.
- Men's Health UK on the no-rep wall ball motion-sensor study – used here only for what a missed repetition saves an athlete, never for a movement standard.
- wod-science explainer of the same study – the embedded video above, walking through the measurements directly.