Fitness
Pro tips: How to stay safe when lifting heavy
Want to lift heavy weights without wrecking your form or your body? World champ Laura Horváth shares simple, smart tips anyone can use to stay strong and safe under pressure.
Maintaining perfect form while lifting heavy is tough, especially when fatigue kicks in. According to functional fitness champion Laura Horváth, mastering your technique could be the difference between a breakthrough and a breakdown. We spoke to the 'Fittest woman on Earth' to learn how to lift smart, stay safe and push your limits – no matter how heavy the weight or how high the stakes.
Horváth helped design a fitness competition called Red Bull Gym Clash, where gym goers can compete against each other in demanding workouts. Horváth focused on creating balanced, varied routines. However, every time you push yourself in the gym, lifting heavy, its not all about power to succeed. "When you're pushing yourself an efficient technique is a must," says Horváth. "Not only to get the best time possible or move the most weight, but to be safe as well."
So, how can athletes keep good form when they're tired, be it in an individual workout, at a fitness competition like Gym Clash or even the trendy HYROX? "Practice makes perfect!," Horváth believes. She advises to lift on fresh legs as well as on compromised ones. "It's important to practice and refine your technique when you're fresh, but then to also practice lifting under fatigue." She also says to practice lifting as a part of an interval. This means lifting weights during a structured workout where time is divided into work and rest periods. For example, lifting for 40 seconds and resting for 20 seconds. It mimics the conditions of competitive events.
Joining workout classes at your gym with friends might be fun, but according to Horváth there's also benefit in lifting alone. It can allow you to focus entirely on your own technique, tempo and form. You're not trying to keep up with someone else or rush through reps. "Video yourself so you can see, not just feel, the movement," Horváth suggests. That way, you can review your form later on.
In a nutshell: Laura Horváth's rules for keeping good form when lifting heavy:
Laura Horváth trains at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Center
© Leo Rosas/Red Bull Content Pool
- "Practice makes perfect! It's important to practice and refine your technique when you're fresh, but then to also practice lifting under fatigue."
- "Practice your skills alone."
- "Practice lifting as a part of an interval."
- "Video yourself so you can see, not just feel, the movement."
What is Red Bull Gym Clash?
Red Bull Gym Clash 2025
© Joerg Mitte
Red Bull Gym Clash is a high-stakes global fitness competition where elite gym teams go head-to-head to prove they've got the best mix of power, precision and teamwork. Each four-person squad – two men and two women – takes on four intense challenges designed to test endurance, strength, coordination and mental grit. The goal? Represent your gym, push past your limits and compete for the title of the Greatest Gym on Earth. It's not just a competition – it's a proving ground for the world's fittest.
Who is Laura Horváth?
Laura Horváth is a fitness powerhouse
© Leo Rosas/Red Bull Content Pool
Laura Horváth is nothing short of a fitness icon. After her dominant victory at the 2023 CrossFit Games, she earned the title of 'Fittest Woman on Earth' – and she’s not slowing down. Raised in her family's climbing gym in Budapest, Hungary, Horváth grew up in a world of grit and gravity-defying challenges. She transitioned from elite climber to functional fitness powerhouse and she's on a mission to redefine what it means to be strong, skilled and unstoppable as a woman. "I think everyone should be able to do a pull-up," Horváth said in an interview with Red Bull. "My mum hadn't been able to do a pull-up in years, but she started doing CrossFit and now she can do pull-ups. I think that's amazing."
Horváth is inspiring a new generation of athletes, especially women, to lift with pride, power and purpose. Lifting is more than muscle building, according to Horváth. It's about the bigger outcome of independence. "Why can only guys do all these things? I think for women to be strong and move their body, or to lift heavy things up, pull themselves up or do a push-up, these things are just very empowering. Yes, it's nice to have men and help you change the light bulb – but if I want to, I can do it."