r/Velo • u/Legitimate_Fly2792 • 7d ago
CrossFit
Hi, I’m a crit racer who does strength and functional strength training occasionally. I’d like to get more into CrossFit, though. Does anyone here also combine CrossFit with cycling and manage to maintain or even improve their cycling performance while making progress in both? I’d be really interested to hear about your experiences!
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u/SeaworthinessDry1704 7d ago
Are you telling me CrossFit is a real thing?
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u/Icy-Dealer-2001 7d ago edited 7d ago
CrossFit coach since 2010. This is my full time job in NYC. BAS in exercise science. Former cat2 cyclist and regional CF games athlete (not at same time lol).
The answer quality depends entirely on joint mobility of your shoulders and hips. Generally speaking, a good strength training program would be safer and as effective. But, CrossFit is fun and your general fitness will come way up. Will that translate to the bike? If you’re a beginner racer then yes but there definitely would be a point of diminishing returns. Specificity of training has the biggest impact on performance.
So CrossFit for general fitness? Yes. To become a better crit racer? Meh, yea sure, but with unnecessary risk.
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u/ChillinDylan901 7d ago
Seems like a very honest answer. I had been thinking about CrossFit as well - mainly for the competition/motivation - but I feel like it’s too risky because I can’t hold myself back sometimes
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u/Icy-Dealer-2001 7d ago
Heard. I’m a competitive guy but I’m 54 so there’s just no where to go competitively with CrossFit for me anymore. I’ve in fact come full circle to bike racing because I can fully apply my power/fitness on the bike without the joint risk. I strength train to stay posturally balanced.
It takes a very well integrated body to withstand high torque movement mechanics under cardiovascular duress. If you let your ego override, then it’s just a matter of time before you tweak something. So dose it correctly.
I’m a fan of the movement system of CrossFit. I am not a fan of people ignoring their faulty mechanics which is the bane of my professional life.
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u/deepstatedemon 7d ago
Good self-awareness. I stopped doing CrossFit because I couldn't compose myself once the timer started and kept getting hurt. I also realized that I was getting what I wanted out of it - strength. The WODs are fun and intense, and they improve your fitness, but they don't make you strong.
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u/06S2K 7d ago
Can someone explain the difference between strength and functional strength? Is that like the difference between a protein bar and a functional protein bar?
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u/Icy-Dealer-2001 7d ago
There should be no difference but some people misconstrue bodybuilding for strength training which then causes the overcorrection to functional strength training.
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u/Chance-Swordfish-426 7d ago
If you're building muscular imbalances through your training that's generally not functional. Compound movements, if done correctly so as to avoid injury, are 'functional' in the sense that you're training muscles to work together to perform common human movements (push, pull, squat, pullup etc). Good for longevity and mobility.
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u/06S2K 7d ago
...so you think that doing CrossFit is good for longevity and mobility?
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u/Chance-Swordfish-426 7d ago
probably not - a chiropractor I once visited had named his boat after it.
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u/chock-a-block 7d ago edited 3d ago
Quickest sharp ribbon roof complete vase
This post was anonymized with Redact
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u/Checked_Out_6 7d ago
To start off I want to advise you that I am not a racer, just a recreational cyclist who follows this sub to find good advice. I rarely comment here.
I regularly go to a crossfit gym but I do not participate in the prescribed (Rx) crossfit workouts. I perform my own custom workouts based on my needs, which is mostly core and mobility work. I focus on functional fitness.
Most of the crossfit workouts would likely be fun and beneficial to you in a general life sense. If you want to train for cycling, you should create your own custom workouts that target cycling performance, circuits, amraps, metcons, etc.
I would avoid participating in extreme events like Murphs and the Crossfit games. Use your races for your big efforts.
Your cycling performance can definitely improve with strength training. Perform cycling targeted exercises. You could see results in as little as 8 weeks. Crossfit is just way to gameify exercise, compress a workout into a shorter period of time with HIIT, and generally meet some like minded people in the gym.
One of the things about crossfit is it started as a more DIY garage type workout program. A lot of people still do that. Here is a basic beginner workout you could do before a ride without any specialty equipment or a membership:
Warmup
10 pushups
Hip Flexor Stretch
Quad stretch
Hamstring stretch
10 air squats
10 step ups
AMRAP 30
complete the circuit as many times as possible in 30 mins
30 shoulder tap planks
20 dumbell snatches (30 pounds)
20 reverse lunges
10 Romanian Deadlifts
20 step ups/jump ups
20 box dips
Then go do your ride
The only thing this workout requires is a step up box and 30lb dumbell available at your local sporting goods store vs a crossfit membership.
Alternatively, I have known people to ride 5 miles of their training. Stop and do some pushups and shit, then do that every five miles.
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u/Dhydjtsrefhi Cat 3 7d ago
If your primary goal is cycling performance, then the time and fatigue spent in the crossfit gym could probably be better spent on the bike. But this isn't your job, do what makes you happy. If you enjoy crossfit, then don't worry about it
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u/barbelle81 7d ago
I found it didn't work well with cycling for me.
The heavy leg days almost always conflicted with my hardest interval days, so one would suffer.
Since they change up the WOD every week, I also had DOMs all the time. I don't get DOMs when following a consistent program with progressive overload, but I do when the exercises always change.
In the end, I was doing upper body days and having to decide if I wanted sore legs for my races/hard intervals (usually the answer was no), so ended up cancelling the membership.
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u/PopularEngine4671 7d ago edited 7d ago
I was a Cat 2 road racer. I did CrossFit during an offseason when I was doing mostly base miles on the bike. I spoke with the coach ahead of time and told him my main goal was to build more upper body and core strength, but just wanted to make sure he could help hold me accountable and make sure I didn’t over do. The following season of road racing was my best ever, and probably the best shape I’ve ever been in my entire life. I put on about 5 pounds of muscle; went from 130ish to 135ish lbs (I’m 5’6”). Made a huge difference in crits.
I stopped once late winter and early spring rolled around. My performance on the bike suffered too much once I started intervals and harder workouts.
It was also pretty fun, and I enjoyed the community, which kept me motivated. I think it can be extremely beneficial for cyclists, just don’t overdo it or tell anyone about it.
Edit: I went to CrossFit 2 days per week, rode my bike 4 or 5 days per week. If I did CrossFit on the same day as a ride I made sure it was a shorter or easier ride. I worked a lot of 3rd shift at the time, so I’d typically do CrossFit before going into work.
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u/Forsythe0 7d ago
If you want to improve cycling performance, you have to focus on Endurance & Threshold for the most part. VO2 Max is next, right up there. Sprinting, depends on your event and winning strategy, may or may not be needed. The other support activities are there to help maintain your form and resilience, keep smaller structures like tendons & ligaments healthy, and improve core endurance (but not to actively add watts): Rehab, Core Work, Weightlifting
Introducing CrossFit/Hyrox is for functional strength, it overlaps with some VO2 Max work and Sprinting, and adds general resilience, but it's not specific enough to the bike.
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u/zazraj10 7d ago
I used to do CrossFit and people joke about the injuries, but I was always hurt during CrossFit. Certain WODs are just dumb, I remember doing like 10 backwards lunges with 185 lbs combined with an assault bike or maybe burpees AMRAP. Absolutely destroyed my quad.
Another time was 10 deadlifts @225lbs into 10 box jumps, again AMRAP, and I still have the 8” scar from missing the box jump on a later set.
I think doing actual lifting + cycling is going to do more for you long term than adding a sport like cross fit on top.
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u/rad_town_mayor 7d ago
I raced crits and track for like 20 years before starting CrossFit and now I own a CrossFit gym and have tied both at the same time a few times.
Here’s my 2c - if you do it in the off season your core and power transfer will get much better. You will also address imbalances from being an expert at basically one movement. It will be good for developing your overall athleticism.
During the season it’s tricky because CrossFit workouts often have a big intensity component and it’s hard to stack that with the intensity you do on the bike. Impossible maybe unless you have huge recovery capacity. I would recommend 4-5x/week offseason and 1-2x/week during the season or work with a box that will support you turning the intensity way down during the season. And you should probably cherry pick those workouts to focus on your deadlifts, cleans, and core exercises.
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u/SorryDetective6687 6d ago
There's a reason why pro athletes do plyometrics as opposed to gd crossfit
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u/Hazy_the_Kid 7d ago
Friends don't let friends do crossfit