HYROX athlete made frank confession about exercise that triggered diarrhoea incident
I don’t doubt you’ll have seen the pictures by now (whether you’ve wanted to or not) of the HYROX athlete who suffered an unfortunate case of faecal incontinence.
Joanna Wietrzyk was competing in Beijing when she soiled herself during the exercise she apparently hates the most but continued with it, going on to win her event.
That’s the burpees, something the Puma ambassador has spoke out about particularly wanting gone.
And while what happened has been slammed as a biohazard incident with the fitness company making a rulebook update and facing a whole lot of criticism, it’s not the most unusual thing to happen in sport.
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I mean, it’s a pretty common fear for those running marathons and long-distance events so it’s not entirely surprising to see it in HYROX which puts a lot of demand on the body.
Wietrzyk’s Burpees comments
It’s said that the Aussie champ was completing the burpee section of the HYROX race when disaster struck.
And she’s said in previous interviews that she has a particular dislike for that part of the event.
Speaking on the Abnormal podcast back in 2024, she was asked if there was anything she wished she could change about HYROX.
“Could I say get rid of the burpees? I would definitely get rid of that station,” Wietrzyk said.
She went on to add that she really ‘dislikes’ them and would trade hem for an extra run.
And then in April, she doubled-down that she would ‘most definitely change the burpees’.
“And I will always answer that question to be the burpees. I just would remove it, full stop.”
Why the likes of HYROX and marathons can trigger diarrhoea
Also known as the likes of ‘runner’s trots’ and ‘runner’s runs’, it’s something that strikes plenty of marathon runners.
A study published by the National Library of Medicine found out of the 109 long-distance athletes who participated, 12 percent suffered faecal incontinence while running. Plus, 62 percent said they’d stopped to go the toilet during training, 43 percent experienced ‘nervous’ diarrhoea before a race and 51 percent said they’d experienced diarrhoea after a race.
It’s fairly understandable too – their putting their body under a fair bit of pressure.
And there’s a number of possible reasons why it happens, because when you gotta go, you’ve gotta go (even if you try and stop it).
Common causes include dehydration, a potential laxative effect of any caffeine consumed beforehand and some high-carbohydrate gels and drinks.
There’s also the reduced gut blood flow as blood is instead diverted to the working muscles.
Motility and physiology GI specialist and gastroenterologist, Dr. Magnus Halland, told Man of Many: “When you exercise hard,” Dr. Halland says, “the body diverts blood away from the gut towards the muscles, heart and skin. At very high intensities the reduction in gut blood flow can be substantial, and that can cause cramping, urgency and diarrhoea.”
And there’s also the anxiety and nerves athletes and runners may be experiencing that has an impact on gut motility.
When you’re doing something like HYROX, there’s an intense sensation of the bowels being ‘jolted’ and an increase of abdominal pressure. Halland added: “If somebody suddenly develops very loose stool and severe urgency, the pelvic floor and anal sphincter simply may not be able to hold it.
“That doesn’t necessarily mean there is anything wrong with their pelvic floor. Even somebody with completely normal continence can lose control if the stool is liquid enough and the urgency is severe enough.”
LADbible has contacted Wietrzyk for comment.
Jess Battison