Road Bike Racing - Warm up routine for crits

to this point ive just kind of done whatever for warm up and i think that might be affecting my racing. So what do you recommend? I always bring a trainer but I dont always use it. What is the importance of warming up? I know what can happen if you dont warm up but why does it happen?

I cant get my HR up if I dont warm up my legs just dont have it in them.

My routine is 20-25 minutes at 60% on the rollers, enough to get me sweating and breathing a little. then get on the course and get into the 85-90% HR range in a couple of sprints.

If your going OTB in crits warm up is the least of your issues.

ive only went off the back twice and both times i didnt warm up at all so it could very well be the problem.

also, what does going OTB have to do with this thread anway?

to this point ive just kind of done whatever for warm up and i think that might be affecting my racing.

I guessed you were having troubles, and I linked that to OTB. I dont know I just made to corelation in my head. If your having trouble in the sprint your warm up is not the problem.

stop ASSUMING because you obviously have no idea what "problem" im talking about. In any case, what im asking about has nothing to do with going off the back or sprinting.

stop ASSUMING because you obviously have no idea what "problem" im talking about. In any case, what im asking about has nothing to do with going off the back or sprinting.

haha, are you joking?

No seriously now, is the problem ED?

I'm trying to offer advice and you yell at me, I mean come-on you should formally apologize.

stop ASSUMING because you obviously have no idea what "problem" im talking about. In any case, what im asking about has nothing to do with going off the back or sprinting.

Don't be so touchy. Maybe your post-crash meds are affecting your mood. Or you need more meds.:)

In any event, here is a warm-up my coach gave me: Spin easy for about 20 minutes, then do 2 minutes at about 200 watts, follow that up with 5 minutes of easy riding. At this point, if there is anything you need to do, go do it (pin your number, get more water, go to the bathroom, etc). Then get back on your bike and ride for another 10 easy minutes, followed by 2x 2 minutes at 225 watts, with a couple minutes between them, and 2x 30 seconds at 300 watts. Then just roll easy before the race.

haha, are you joking?

No seriously now, is the problem ED?

I'm trying to offer advice and you yell at me, I mean come-on you should formally apologize.

you are advising me that warming up isnt my problem. How is that useful?

you are advising me that warming up isnt my problem. How is that useful?

Ok, what exactly is your problem, 'performance' is a broad term.

I think everyone have their own warm up that works, recommended by coach, found on internet, etc. Most of them follow the general trend of some easy spinning to get "blood flowing", some moderate intensity, easy spin, then some intervals to get HR up. Usually I do 40-50 minute warm up. Seems to do the trick. Although last saturday I only had about 15 minutes to warm up and it was one of the best crits I have ever done (not counting a crash with a lap to go). The advice seems to be shorter more intense race the more warm up you need. For road races not so much unless there is a climb that makes or breaks the race right in the beginning.

I never said I had a problem. I said i think not having a warm up routine may be affecting racing. the only thing i asked for is what kind of warm up is appropriate for crits and how and why are they important.

I think everyone have their own warm up that works, recommended by coach, found on internet, etc. Most of them follow the general trend of some easy spinning to get "blood flowing", some moderate intensity, easy spin, then some intervals to get HR up. Usually I do 40-50 minute warm up. Seems to do the trick. Although last saturday I only had about 15 minutes to warm up and it was one of the best crits I have ever done (not counting a crash with a lap to go). The advice seems to be shorter more intense race the more warm up you need. For road races not so much unless there is a climb that makes or breaks the race right in the beginning.

OK this is what im asking for here. How high should I be trying to get my hr in the warm up?

OK this is what im asking for here. How high should I be trying to get my hr in the warm up?

Your HR in warm up should get to the level that you will be using in the race.

I've suggested this DVD to other people. (http://www.realrides.tv) It's done by Robbie Ventura and for novice crit riders, it's a good way to see how things are done and how a crit works. The race on the DVD is the Downer's Grove US Masters, and it takes you through the warm up and the race.

If you click on the link you'll see a box at the top, "See and Hear" and there are short pieces on several parts of the program. One is warm up.

Like others, I'm warmed up to the level of the workout. The best warm ups I've used are the warm ups I've also found are ones that work for VO2max interval days, but race day warm ups last longer. At least half an hour. UmneyDurak pretty much hit the nail on the head.

10-15 minutes easy spinning warming into L1, I usually go 4-5 minutes L2, 4-5 minutes of SST area. From there I get 3 30-45 seconds @ VO2max area, finish with another 10-15 minutes of very light zone R time ending with rolling up to the finish line. Might add in a couple big gear roll up to a sprint, but sub maximal. (stern zones)

Warm ups are pretty individual. I've got a crit warm up album on my ipod, it lasts 47 minutes and change. For true crits, not industrial park type crits, I generally do 20' in Z1/2 into 2 minutes of 10"on/10"off surges. 5 mins. Z2, then 4x1.5 mins. build to Z4/LTHR w/3' rest between, then spin whatever is left until the music ends. Sometimes I get bored and mix it up some, but the above is what I try to do.

Industrial park crits - I just warm up on the course going in the opposite direction of the race so I'm out of the way, I usually just ride and get some hard efforts and sprints in.

Road races - warm up in Z2 for like 20 minutes, I'm usually ready after that.

Your HR in warm up should get to the level that you will be using in the race.

I've suggested this DVD to other people. (http://www.realrides.tv) It's done by Robbie Ventura and for novice crit riders, it's a good way to see how things are done and how a crit works. The race on the DVD is the Downer's Grove US Masters, and it takes you through the warm up and the race.

If you click on the link you'll see a box at the top, "See and Hear" and there are short pieces on several parts of the program. One is warm up.

Great video!!!

But Robbie's warm-up routine is different from the one my coach recommends, and different from any I've seen recommended in the numerous training and racing books I've read over the years.

Basically, Robbie's routine involves starting at about 50% effort for a couple of minutes, then steadily cranking up the effort every couple of minutes until you are doing a short all-out effort, and then you begin slowly decreasing your efforts every couple of minutes until you are back down to 50%. The whole routine takes about 15 minutes. A graph of your effort would have a long straight line ascending to one peak, then descending in the same manner.

The conventional warm-up recommended by most others involves multiple efforts with recovery periods in between each effort. A graph of this warm-up would have multiple peaks and valleys.

I've tried both, and frankly Robbie's works best for me, personally. But I think everyone should experiment with both to see what works best for them.

Bob

I do 5 minutes of easy spinning then go through all the gears making sure the bike is working properly. Then I do several jumps of 30 seconds followed by around 80% PE for 5 minutes... 2 min cooldown spinning easy then remove the bike from the trainer. Ride around for a minute or more making sure everything is working ok then head to the starting line.

All this depends on how I feel that day. If its stage 3 of a GC ill prob not hit the trainer at all or just spin lightly.

Here's the one my coach gave me:

15-20 minute easy spin.
5 minutes tempo,
5 minutes spin
5 minutes tempo
5 minutes spin
2 minutes steady state,building to all out in the last 20 seconds
2 minutes spin
2 minutes steady state, last 20 seconds all out
5 minutes spin
Race

Obviously you can vary the warm up, given time available, and personal preference. But the key for a short crit is that you have do some 100% efforts in warm up.

awesome. thanks everyone

I just spin for a while, and take some 1-minute jumps every so often. I'm warmed up when I can get over LT during one of the jumps.