Men’s Health Fitness Editor Andrew Tracey Takes on 24 Hero WODs in 24 Hours

Photo Credit: Callum Tracey (IG: @sportsdaymedia)

Men’s Health fitness editor Andrew Tracey is about to take on a monumental task. He will complete 24 CrossFit Hero WODs in a 24-hour timeframe for the fourth year, but he will add in an ultra-marathon as an extra challenge, according to a profile originally published in Men’s Health.

The details: Tracey will start the Herculean endeavor in rural Essex at 10 a.m. local time on Saturday, November 20. He will complete all 24 Hero WODs by 9 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 21. Tracey will tick off miles between each of the CrossFit workouts to reach his ultimate goal of completing an ultra-marathon. 

• Tracey will not simply complete these workouts in a gym. Each portion of the ultra-marathon will continue a journey between Stansted and Stratford. His Hero WODs will take place at different locations along the route. 
• Tracey’s final workout — Murph — will take place in East London’s Olympic Park. 

Tracey will start with the 100 muscle-ups of James Prosser before taking on Nate, which includes even more muscle-ups. The schedule continues with Hidalgo, Jerry, DT, Ricky, Mead, Bert, Joseva, Oz, Burgess McLaren, Bolger, Smudge, and Jordan.

Tracey will complete nine more Hero WODs on Sunday to cap off the schedule. The list is The Chief, Heidi, Jones, Jay, Sham, Jenny, Randy, Joseph Grzelak, and Murph. 

Raising money for charity: Tracey will complete this task to raise money for Pilgrim Bandits, the organization whose motto — “Always a little further” — originally inspired this task in 2018. Those who want to support Tracey as he takes on the Hero WODs can donate directly to Pilgrim Bandits.

Pacing is critical: Tracy’s past efforts to complete 24 Hero WODs in 24 hours have always included a mix of longer workouts and shorter, intense ones. The mix would provide him with extra time every few hours to refuel and recharge. The 2021 iteration is a different beast.

• Tracey will have to complete two or three miles between each workout to chip away at the ultra-marathon distance. If a Hero WOD takes 50 minutes, he will only have 10 minutes to get this distance in before starting the next workout. 

“Discomfort is not found within the four walls of a gym,” Tracey told Men’s Health. “That’s just a little bit of hard work… This is about putting myself in an unknown situation where I can’t stop. And this year, more than ever, will reflect that, because there’ll be real consequences to slowing down. It’s s— or bust. You either make it to the next one, or you don’t.”

The WODs and schedule: Courtesy of Men’s Health.

10am: James Prosser

11am: Nate

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  2 muscle-ups
  4 handstand press-ups
  8 kettlebell swings

12pm: Hidalgo

• 2-mile run
  20 cleans
  20 box jumps
  20 walking lunges
  20 box jumps
  20 cleans
  2-mile run

1pm: Jerry

• 1-mile run
  2000-metre row
  1 mile run

2pm: DT

• 5 rounds:
  12 deadlifts
  9 hang cleans
  6 push jerks

3pm: Ricky

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  10 pull-ups
  5 dumbbell deadlifts
  8 push-presses

4pm: Mead

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  30-foot rope climb
  100-metre partner carry

5pm: Bert

• 50 burpees
  400-metre run
  100 push-ups
  400-metre run
  150 walking lunges
  400-metre run
  200 air squats
  400-metre run
  150 walking lunges
  400-metre run
  100 push-ups
  400-metre run
  50 burpees

6pm: Joseva

• 15-12-9 @ bodyweight:
  Bench press
  Deadlift
  Power clean

7pm: Oz

8pm: Burgess

9pm: McLaren

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  3 thrusters
  5 box jumps
  7 press-ups

10pm: Bolger

• 5 rounds:
  400-metre run
  25 air squats
  Carry sandbag

11pm: Smudge

• 3 rounds:
  5 muscle-ups
  10 squat cleans
  20 sit-ups

12am: Jordan

• 100 kettlebell swings
  100 sit-ups
  100 air squats
  100 push-ups

1am: The Chief

• 5 x 3-minute AMRAP:
  3 power cleans
  6 push-ups
  9 air squats

2am: Heidi

• 23-minute AMRAP:
  23 air squats
  23 push-ups
  23 kettlebell swings
  23 lunges
  23 sit-ups
  23 box jumps

3am: Jones

• 30-minute AMRAP:
  400-metre run
  30 air squats
  400-metre run
  15 push-ups
  400-metre run
  30 burpee broad jumps

4am: Jay

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  22 air squats
  12 toes-to-bar
  9 burpees

5am: Sham

• 7 rounds:
  11 deadlifts
  100-metre sprint

6am: Jenny

• 20-minute AMRAP:
  20 overhead squats
  20 back squats
  400-metre run
  *run with barbell

7am: Randy

8am: Joseph Grzelak

• 100 kettlebell swings
  EMOM perform 2 burpees

9am: Murph

• 1-mile run
  100 pull-ups
  200 push-ups
  300 squats
  1-mile run
  * wear weighted vest