HYROX Burpee Broad Jump — The Complete Technique and Training Guide for Station 4

Station 4 of every HYROX race is where the middle of the race meets the point of maximum accumulated fatigue — and where athletes who haven't trained the movement specifically start to unravel.

The HYROX burpee broad jump station requires 80 meters of continuous burpee broad jumps — a full burpee followed immediately by a forward horizontal jump, repeated across the entire distance. By the time you arrive here, you've already run 4 kilometers, pushed and pulled a heavy sled, worked 1,000 meters on the SkiErg, and your legs are carrying the residual fatigue from all of it.

What happens at Station 4 often sets the tone for the back half of your race. Athletes who execute it efficiently — with controlled rhythm, efficient technique, and a sustainable pace — carry their fitness into Stations 5–8 intact. Athletes who blow up at the burpee broad jumps spend the rest of the race fighting accumulated fatigue they created themselves.

This complete guide covers the movement standards, the technique that makes it efficient, the rep math that changes your strategy, and the specific training that builds race-ready burpee broad jump performance.

The Movement Standards

Before technique — know exactly what the rules require:

You must start from the bottom position — chest to floor, hands behind the starting line for each rep.

When standing, feet cannot pass the previous position where your hands were placed. This rule prevents athletes from taking a large forward step before their jump, ensuring the jump distance is generated from the burpee position rather than from a running start.

Two legal technique variants: Most athletes either hop both feet forward simultaneously (jump variation) or step one foot forward at a time (step variation) when transitioning from the plank to the standing position. Both are legal. Elite athletes in fatigued late-race conditions frequently switch to the step variation to preserve energy — it uses slightly less explosive power per rep at the cost of marginally slower individual rep time.

The jump must be primarily horizontal. There's no specific angle requirement, but the purpose of the station is forward distance coverage. Jumping vertically instead of horizontally is the most common technical error at this station and it directly costs you distance per rep.

The Rep Math — Why Jump Distance Changes Everything

This is the data point that most athletes don't know before their first HYROX race, and it changes how you approach the station strategically.

Your total number of reps across the 80-meter station is determined entirely by how far you jump on each rep:

• 1.5m jump distance: approximately 53 reps
• 1.7m jump distance: approximately 47 reps
• 2.0m jump distance: approximately 40 reps
• 2.2m jump distance: approximately 36 reps
• 2.5m jump distance: approximately 32 reps

Every 10 centimeters of additional jump distance over 80 meters saves approximately 3–4 reps. At a rate of 5 seconds per rep, that's 15–20 seconds saved per 10cm improvement in jump distance.

The practical implication: a 20-centimeter improvement in your average jump distance across the 80-meter station saves you roughly 6 reps and 30 seconds — without doing a single additional rep. Jump efficiency is the primary performance lever at this station.

Average completion time for the burpee broad jump station across all 2026 HYROX competitors is 3–6 minutes depending on fitness level and division.

The Optimal Burpee Broad Jump Technique

Phase 1 — The Burpee Descent

From a standing position, descend into the plank by placing your hands on the ground in front of you and stepping or jumping your feet back. Keep your core engaged throughout the descent — a loose core creates unnecessary energy expenditure and slows the transition.

Chest contacts the floor. Hands remain behind the start line for the rep.

Phase 2 — The Press-Up

From the chest-down position, push up to plank. Some athletes perform a full push-up; most competitive athletes use a more abbreviated press-up that maintains forward momentum rather than a slow, controlled push-up.

At this stage, do not fully straighten your body. Stay in a low, semi-crouched position after the press-up rather than standing fully upright. Standing fully upright is the most energy-wasting mistake at this station — it adds unnecessary vertical movement and slows your transition into the jump.

Phase 3 — Loading for the Jump

From a semi-crouched position with feet hip-width apart, load into a quarter-squat position. As you load, swing your arms backward to generate the countermovement that powers the forward arm drive during the jump.

Phase 4 — The Jump

Drive your arms forward and upward aggressively as your legs extend. The arm swing contributes approximately 10–15% of horizontal displacement — it is not optional, especially under fatigue when leg power is degraded.

The jump should be as horizontal as possible — projecting forward, not upward. Think "long and low" rather than "high." Athletes who jump vertically waste the energy from their leg drive on height rather than distance.

Phase 5 — The Landing

Land with both feet simultaneously, knees soft and slightly bent. A soft landing absorbs the impact efficiently and positions you immediately for the next descent. Landing with straight, locked knees creates impact stress and a slow, awkward transition into the next burpee.

Immediately after landing, flow directly into the descent for the next rep. The transition from landing to descending should be as fluid as possible — athletes who pause fully upright between reps add seconds of wasted time that compound across 32–53 repetitions.

Step Variation vs Jump Variation — When to Use Each

The step variation — stepping one foot forward at a time when transitioning from plank to standing — is a legal and widely-used modification among competitive athletes.

Use the jump variation (both feet hop forward simultaneously) when:

• You're in the first half of the station and your legs are relatively fresh
• You want to maximize jump distance per rep
• Your conditioning is sufficient to sustain the more explosive movement

Switch to the step variation when:

• You feel your leg power degrading mid-station
• Maintaining the jump-up is causing you to shorten your forward jump distance
• You're in the second half of a long race and energy preservation for remaining stations matters

The step variation uses slightly less explosive energy per rep. For many athletes in longer Open division races, using the step variation from the start produces a faster total station time because it prevents the mid-station blowup that the jump variation can cause under accumulated fatigue.

Pacing the Burpee Broad Jump Station

The burpee broad jump rewards rhythm over speed. Athletes who find a sustainable pace and maintain it across all 32–53 reps consistently outperform athletes who start aggressively and slow dramatically in the second half.

A useful internal cue: find a rhythm you could sustain for 10% more reps than you actually need. If it feels comfortable at Rep 5, you're probably paced correctly. If it feels like you're racing at Rep 5, you'll pay for it at Rep 35.

Breathing is the most important pacing tool at this station. Hyperventilation at the burpee broad jump is common — the combination of chest-to-floor position and explosive repeated movement creates significant respiratory demand. Establish a breathing pattern before the first rep and maintain it: typically one breath per rep cycle, inhaling during the jump phase and exhaling during or after the descent.

Training the HYROX Burpee Broad Jump

Measure your jump distance in training. Put tape marks every 0.5 meters and practice landing consistently at your target distance. Most athletes don't know their actual average jump distance until they measure it — and most discover it's shorter than they thought.

Train it fatigued. The burpee broad jump station at Station 4 comes after 4km of running and three demanding stations. Practice your burpee broad jumps at the end of hard conditioning sessions — after rowing intervals, after sled work, after running — so your body adapts to executing the movement when already taxed.

Practice the transition from landing to descent. The flow from landing directly into the next burpee descent is a skill that requires specific repetition. Drill it until it's automatic rather than practiced fresh and then improvised fatigued.

Build your standing broad jump distance. Plyometric training that specifically develops horizontal jump distance — standing broad jump practice, banded hip extensions, single-leg box jumps — translates directly to the jump phase of the burpee broad jump.

Race the Burpee Broad Jump at the North Texas Strength Expo

The HYROX event at the North Texas Strength Expo in Mesquite, Texas puts Station 4 in front of 5,000+ fans inside the most energetic strength expo atmosphere in Texas. The crowd energy at the expo does something to race performance — athletes who have raced in both standalone and expo environments consistently report performing better when the atmosphere is charged.

Come prepared. Know your technique. Know your rep math. Race with rhythm.