Using commute as TR warm-up?

Training
1

Being a bit time-crunched, my evening schedule is:

  1. Ride home from work (25 minutes, 60% FTP normalised with a 1-2 minute push into threshold to get up the last hill).
  2. Quickly get into lighter shorts, set up laptop, fill water bottle etc (takes about 5 minutes)
  3. Get on turbo trainer and do my weekday TR session (60-75 minutes)
  4. Shower, sort out dinner.

Having done the commute, is there any reason not to save some time by skipping the warm-up and starting the Trainer Road workout a minute or so before the first work interval?

2

Sounds to me like you’d be thoroughly warmed up and ready to work. If you listen to your body you’ll know soon enough if you are ready.

However, it sounds like you are really time crunched if you are considering this. It can’t be much fun having to rush around as soon as you get home just to save a few minutes on the turbo.

1 Like
3

If time crunched…why not have water bottle filled and ready to go next to trainer and why bother getting changed - just jump straight on trainer?

4

Because (right now anyway) I commute in thermal bibs, thick castelli jacket, base layer, thick socks, shoes with thermal liner and mtb cleat.

My trainer is indoors and I wear summer bib shorts, thin socks, shoes with road cleat.

But I could probably be a bit more organised with water bottle.

5

If it was just me, I’d be happy just to rush around less and just have dinner later. But I need to make dinner for other people in the house too.

1 Like
6

Yeah, you’d overheat in that gear and not be able to perform. I think your plan is fine, albeit a little stressful

1 Like
7

The only way to find out if it works for you is to try it.

Sounds like a relatively typical TT warm up to me. You’ve got a 25 minute ride with a few efforts, ride to the start and wait 5 mins before the off!!

2 Likes
8

One of the best times I ever got in a TT was when I turned up late, AND took a wrong turning on the way to the start, so my warm up was a 15 minute ride over partly gravel roads at a NP of 92% FTP, getting two top10 Strava segments on the way, and arriving 45 seconds before my allotted start time.

Not sure that’s necessarily a protocol to follow in every scenario, though.

2 Likes
9

Funnily enough I watched ‘race,eat,win’ the other night and the Orica Scott team were nailing themselves in the TT warm up. Right up to threshold.

2 Likes
10

Good series, I just finished that as well.

1 Like
11

It’s funny how things work out sometimes. I PB’d over 100 this year having had my PM battery die in the car on the way up and rode on speed and HR. Who knows whether that would have happened or not if I had a power number to stare at :thinking::grinning:

A similar story to yours a few years ago with a less happy outcome riding a course new to me

Me: Which way is the start?
Rider: Back up the road you came in on, turn left and you can’t miss it.
Me: Thanks

Me: assumes we came in the same direction, heads off the wrong way, gets lost, misses start by 15 minutes, doesn’t get a ride.

Only in hindsight is it an amusing anecdote :blush::cry:

1 Like