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Ask a pro: Derek Gee on warming up for time trials, and Zwift races

The IPT rider shares how he gets ready to give ‘er

Derek Gee riding a time trial in Australia Photo by: Sirotti

Derek Gee knows how to get his legs warm and loose for races, seeing as he’s the reigning national champ in the time trial. Making sure you’re ready to go from the start is crucial in any time trial, whether it’s at the pro level or your local weekly club TT.

Gee has also had quite a bit of success on the track, with multiple titles at the national championships in the pursuit, as well as the Pan Am champs. The Ottawa-born cyclist has continued to progress, graduating from the Israel Cycling Academy team to the ProTeam, Israel-Premier Tech for 2023.

Keep the warm-up simple

Gee has already ridden some time trials this year, finising 19th at the Tour Down Under prologue. He says getting ready for a time trial or pursuit means getting your heart rate up so you won’t be shocked when you start your race.

“For a TT, I’ll usually spin for a bit just to get the legs moving, then do a gradual ramp of about 10 minutes, spin a little more, then do a hard minute and a few sprints to get the legs firing,” Gee says. “Super standard warm-up; I really don’t like to complicate it.”

Derek Gee and Paula Findlay new elite Canadian time trial champions

Work more than just the legs

But his warm-up isn’t limited to just riding. Given that he will be spending some time going full-gas in the aero position, he needs to be limber.

“I also like to get a bit of off-bike work in before I start that,” the Israel-Premier Tech rider explains. “That means some mobility and activation, mostly focused on the glutes and upper body, like the shoulder blades, just to get myself ready to sit in the TT bars for an extended period of time.”

His warm-up for indoor races is not quite as…elaborate.

“I usually Zwift race just for fun, so I typically just ride a little beforehand then nearly blow myself up when I inevitably have to sprint off the line to keep up, but that’s probably not recommended for best results!” he says.

So, yeah, maybe ignore that part.