Ask a pro: Maghalie Rochette on warming up for a ‘cross race
Tips on how to get set for your next event from the multiple national champion
Canadian cyclocross star Maghalie Rochette is having a great start to her season, with six wins in the USCX series, and a solid fourth at the first UCI World Cup of the year in Waterloo. Her 2022 season was not ideal after sickness and fatigue took a toll on her fitness. But in 2023, she seems to be ready to go and take on the world’s best.
Cyclocross racing is a short and intense event, so that means you need to be fired up and ready to go from the second the whistle goes.
To have better consistency, Rochette says she prefers to do her warm-ups on her Feedback Sports Omnium Trainer Overdrive.
There was a time when she would warm up on the road, but that’s no longer the case. “In the past, when it was hot I would go on the road to do my warm up,” she says. “While I like the idea of going on the road, it’s not always ideal around each race venue, and it adds a stress factor that something might happen while out on the road.”
Her typical warm-up consists of:
10 minutes easy
5 minutes build up to race pace
2 minutes easy
3 x 20 seconds on/20 seconds off
2 minutes easy
Finally, she will do two starts.
If it’s warmer out, she will modify her pre-race routine. The Sainte-Adèle rider will wear an ice vest when she’s on the trainer, and have a bottle of cold water or ice to splash on herself to keep her temperature down. As far as the warm-up, she will also change it slightly. That means a shorter build-up: 2.5 minutes, with less rest in between, 1 minute and then she will do 3 x 20 seconds on and off versus 30.
“That way, my legs get warmed up and activated, but I don’t get my core temperature as high,” she explains.
So if you’re looking for a good way to get ready for your next ‘cross race, why not try the workout from one of the best female ‘cross riders in the world?
