HYROX’s cofounder and CEO Christian Toetzke says the only sustainable “work-life balance” is loving the work so much it becomes life—and he’s built a $140 million fitness-racing brand on that ethos while keeping the company lean and singularly focused on one product.
TL;DR
- HYROX CEO Christian Toetzke believes true work-life balance means loving your work so much it becomes life.
- He built the $140 million HYROX fitness-racing brand on this ethos, keeping the company lean and focused.
- HYROX is a consistent worldwide fitness competition with eight 1-km runs followed by functional exercises.
- The brand projects $140 million revenue in 2025 from events, gym memberships, and merchandise.
Yahoo Finance interview
During a recent discussion on Brian Sozzi’s Opening Bid Unfiltered podcast, Toetzke characterized “balance” as achieving alignment via passion, noting his drive stems from constructing HYROX instead of dividing time into segments. This perspective aligns with his extensive background in coordinating large-scale events and his preference for swift action over excessive red tape.
“I’m a massive believer in work-life balance, but the question is always how we look at this. And, I’m a very privileged person because I don’t consider what I do as work.” Toetzke said. “I do what I really love. It’s also my hobby. For me, work is not a punishment. It’s almost kind of a reward.”
He also highlighted HYROX’s bootstrap mentality and discipline in a single category, which underpins rapid growth without outside funding and positions the format for mainstream moments.
What HYROX is
HYROX is a consistent worldwide fitness competition where participants tackle eight 1-km runs, each immediately followed by a functional exercise. These events are held in large indoor arenas to ensure results can be compared globally. The brand provides various divisions, including Open, Pro, Doubles, and Relay, aiming to broaden the sport's appeal while maintaining a common standard. This allows fitness enthusiasts to train for a uniform challenge regardless of their location or the time of year.
HYROX is projected to generate approximately $140 million in revenue in 2025 through event ticket sales, affiliate gym memberships, and merchandise.
CEO background
Before co-founding HYROX in 2017 alongside Olympic field hockey champion Moritz Fürste, German entrepreneur Toetzke had established and divested endurance-event companies. He leveraged insights from triathlons, cycling, and marathons to create a singular, tech-driven operating model. Toetzke prefers experienced, self-directed teams, limited management layers, and in-person teamwork, adopting strategies from major tech firms to speed up decision-making and maintain company culture as the race series expands worldwide.
Commitment is key
Coins2Day’s recent reporting shows many high-profile leaders reject “balance” in favor of harmony or all-in commitment—Amazon founder Jeff Bezos prefers “work-life harmony,” Zoom CEO Eric Yuan says “work is life, life is work” with family first in conflicts, and founders like LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman and Cerebras’ Andrew Feldman argue greatness demands far more than a 40-hour week.
Lucy Guo, cofounder of Scale AI echoes, echoed this feeling, suggesting that when work becomes a passion, the conventional notion of balance disappears. This perspective aligns well with Toetzke's view on the ideal role of making intense effort manageable.
For this story, Coins2Day generative AI assisted in creating the preliminary draft, which an editor then reviewed for factual accuracy prior to publication.