Anyone Else Require a Long Warmup Period?

[Ted B]

It seems that in comparison to my cycling partners, I require more time to get fully warmed up. While everyone seems to be good to go after maybe 5-10 minutes into a training ride, it takes me more like 10 miles before I start feeling really good. After that, I can pour it on like a freight train and keep on going, but until then I feel like I am suffering a bit.

Anyone else feel this way??

 

[neilkod]

Originally posted by Ted B
It seems that in comparison to my cycling partners, I require more time to get fully warmed up. While everyone seems to be good to go after maybe 5-10 minutes into a training ride, it takes me more like 10 miles before I start feeling really good. After that, I can pour it on like a freight train and keep on going, but until then I feel like I am suffering a bit.

Anyone else feel this way??

For what its worth, I seem to suffer the same fate when mountain biking! What does everyone do in order to warm up?

 

[wardie2000]

i have the same problem with the warm up.

if i only have a short warm up(5-10mins) then i have to really have to hang onto the bunch.
But on club runs after cycling from my place to meet everyone else, i can average around 40kmh.

The only advice i can give is either get to the race 30mins earlier or leave your house earlier so you can do some more miles before meeting the others.

 

[Fixey]

I need a good 20km to warm up, I also must hit my Lactate thresh-hold, I find if I push to max then recover I can start much faster and Lactate is less of a problem. I have the same problem in other sports, I play much better in the second half of a football game...

 

[Blackie]

Ted, I believe this is quite common, and to an extent age-related, though there are other factors. Personally I need a good 30min warmup before I can do anything (I'm 31). Recently did a race where only had a 5min warmup and my legs were full of lactic acid after 5min of racing, had to pull up.

Wouldn't worry about it - its normal.

 

[elrohwen]

I'm in a spinning class now where we get about 5-10 minutes to warm up, but I find that I need more like 20 minutes (that's how long it usually takes me when riding outside). I asked a friend about it (he reads all sorts of things about fitness and works out 2-3 times a day) and he told me that people who are more in shape sometimes take longer to warm up (so maybe we shouldn't be worried too much about it). Of course, age can be a factor, but since I'm only 20 I don't think that's my particular problem.

His suggestion was that I try working harder during my warm up. My spinning instructor just recommends easy spinning for 10 minutes, but my friend said that if I do some intervals or something that I'll warm up faster. I've definitely noticed a difference in the amount of time it takes me to stop feeling that pre-warm up pain and get into a rhythm.

 

[epheme]

Originally posted by Ted B
It seems that in comparison to my cycling partners, I require more time to get fully warmed up. While everyone seems to be good to go after maybe 5-10 minutes into a training ride, it takes me more like 10 miles before I start feeling really good. After that, I can pour it on like a freight train and keep on going, but until then I feel like I am suffering a bit.

Anyone else feel this way??

I think I may be like this...went for a ride today and felt sort of sluggish, but then suddenly about 15 miles out, I felt amazing...thought maybe i had the wind at my back or something but I was riding into the wind!

 

[c_record]

i suffer a similar fate. if i dont warmup correctly i will suffer a significant drop in performance. not completely sure on the science behind it, but i now follow a plan which works for me.

if for example i am racing a tt at about 2 pm i wil get up and have breakfast at about 8am. On the bike at about 9am for one hour easy at about 125hr (my rec zone), usually riding over the course if it is mostly flat. when i come back i eat my final pre race meal. eg pasta or what ever you prefer. This gives you time to change out of your cycling clothes and shower into casual clothes, leave the hotel or house and head to the race.

At the race about an hour out from start time, head out for 20 mins at e1 on the road. When you get back jump on the rollers or trainer to get a precise warmup. its hard to do it correctly on the road due to traffic, wind and hills etc.

The idea of a warmup before a TT is to get all of your energy systems working at maximum BEFORE you start. But to avoid putting heaps of lactic acid into your legs you must progressively warmup.

The time spent at each hr can be tailored around your own personal preferences but as an indication the warmup basically involves increasing your hr until you start to feel lactic and then recovering. I would first raise my hr to 150 and hold it for 2 mins before dropping to 130 for 3, then 160 for 2 mins and back to 130 for 3 etc. continue in this fashion until you reach AT then have 5 min recovery. Then i normally just do a 15 second sprint to make sure the anaerobic system is on. Spin for a few more minutes then it should be your start time.

this routine is time consuming but one that i will follow for really important races, as it really makes a difference.

 

[Karp]

20k is a good warm-up for me

 

[scottmoroschan]

Another important factor to consider is the time of day. Personally, I feel like **** first thing in the morning, but in the afternoon or early evening I seem to be ready to go.

This all has to do with circadian rythms. Basically, the body's muscle tissues and core temperature is going to be more optimal later in the day than early in the morning. Therefore, it doesn't take as along to get warmed up.

I am very lucky, because my prefered event cyclocross usually starts at one o'clock in the afternoon over here in the UK. If I had to deal with early morning starts it would probably take me two hours to get warmed up....And, by then I would be completely dead before the start of the race.

Scott

 

[pikus]

everybody is different ,I need at least 30 minutes of warm up to feel good ,but sometimes I don't have time for such a long warm up ,and then I can suffer a bit but when I forget about it ,I can overcome this feeling after 15 minutes

 

[stone61cm]

Jeez...you poor buggers....maybe it is an age thing. I'm 21 and all I need is a nice 1/2 mile all out sprint to blow out the tubes and I'm set.

 

[wardie2000]

i'm 20 and i have the same problem as mentioned in my reply

 

[tanggoman]

Originally posted by wardie2000

The only advice i can give is either get to the race 30mins earlier or leave your house earlier so you can do some more miles before meeting the others.

Exactly!

 

[Doctor Morbius]

For me it seems that after about 20 to 25 minutes everything falls into a groove. My breathing is less labored and pedaling seems more efficient. After about an hour my heart rate goes up a good bit but I find my breating less difficult than when I've just started. I'm drinking plenty of water too so I don't think much of this "cardiac drift" is related to dehydration.

 

[edd]

I'm 55 and I need 20 min to warm up, It has not always been this way, the older you get the longer it takes to get into the groove. So I'm wondering about you young folk who need 30 min to warm up. What are you going to be like at my age.

Recommend gradually building intensity in the warm up.

 

[shokhead12]

Two and ahalf mile warmup keeping my cadence under 80 and a mile or more cooldown under 80 cadence.

 

[wardie2000]

As you may have noticed earlier i said that i'm 20.
I need a long warm-up if i haven't ridden for a day or so.

But if i have a hard training session or 1st day of a stage race the day before i just need to turn the legs over for 10-15mins and i can cruise quite happily with the pack and split them up on the hills.

Can't seem to work out why this happens

So now trying different methods with my coach to get the best out of single stage races.

 

[shokhead12]

Why did'nt you just ask your "coach"?

 

[wardie2000]

because i have only recently got a "coach"