Help ! Cycling positions up hill and technique uphill.
Comments
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Hmm... I've never found breathing any harder in different positions. In fact, I do all my indoor roller intervals on drops as it's what I find most effective.
As for out of the saddle on the drops and attacking the hills - not even professionals can sustain an attack for a long time, which is why it's an "attack". I used to die when going out of the saddle but it's because I would naturally go harder, so these days I tend to drop to an easier gear (if possible) when standing up so that I can up the cadence significantly to keep the same speed (with the increased power that you get from your body weight) but without risk of really blowing up because you're technically going "easier". Most people go up a gear, which means, as well as the increase in power/HR associated with standing up, you're also adding resistance, making you increase power output even more. The only advantage with this is so one can keep to a preffered cadence. Anyone can climb out of the saddle for a long time, but it takes practice to pace it properly. Generally, higher cadence means you can go longer. I'm still learning myself; it's really difficult to climb like this naturally without constantly having to re-assess your gear choice for the gradient.0 -
I try all the techniques except on the drops.
For iut of saddle if I go up a gear or two can only maitain this for about 100 revs, if I stay in same gear can sustain this for about 400/500 revs roughly a mile or so.
Some times I climb in very high gear 53/13,14 sat down for traiining, other times I use 39/21 to recover or just twiddle.
generally I just sit as much as possible but in a race I find I have to get out of the saddle more to keep up.
One thing I do is break the climb into sections. I can judge how many revs to reach a certain point in the distance so I look down just in front of bike and count the revs, then repeat this on the climb.
I sort of use that technique if doing intervals on clmbs, 100 revs hard, 30 easy etc
So may ways to climbs
different technique will suit different people. 0 -
A tip for climbing out of the saddle - even clicking up a gear or two, it's easy to start spinning the pedals faster, but you burn out quicker. Don't. Keep pedalling at the same rate you were when seated, and concentrate on pedalling smoothly and steadily. Support yourself on your arms so you're not throwing your whole weight down on each pedal stroke, makes for jerky and tiring pedalling. Same for your breathing - slow, deep breaths. Surprisingly easy to do, and you can keep it going longer.
And if you are struggling, pick targets to aim for (a particular fencepost, a grid in the road, a parked car, etc) and just concentrate solely on getting there. Just before you get to it, pick the next one, and so on. Then you're not thinking "oh my god, there's 2 miles of this".
IMO a tough climb never gets "easier" but with practice you get more confident in your ability to see it out. You know it hurts but you know you can cope with it, it's not impossible.0 -
totally agree its better to crank a bit higher gear out of the saddle. i balance the downward stroke by pulling up on the opposite pedal. ive just descovered the benefit of consciously noting my breathing habits rather than just leaving it to caveman reflexes. its a lot more effective.0
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I'm a sixty two year old woman with osteoporosis and a titanium femur head who enjoys cycling up cols. For me riding uphill on the drops is far more comfortable than on the hoods. It helps keep the upper body relaxed and prevents pulling back to increase force on the pedals.0
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wow - a nine year old thread...0
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spin up where possible. seated. if its a short climb where you can get out of the saddle, then do so if you can and the conditions allow it, so if its wet just turn over a lighter gear if you can. Generally, the best way is to on a medium gradient, turn the pedals over quickly (not sprinting).0
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Monty Dog wrote:FWIW Pantani had his frames specifically built with a longer headtube to allow him to ride that way - riding out the saddle on the drops is the most 'powerful' position but it needs strong core muscles - you'll need plenty of practise to sustain it for long durations.
And more importantly, he doped.0 -
I never understood how moving forward into the drops would possibly help traction at the rear wheel. It just doesn't. For 99.99% of people it is a stupid way to get up a hill. You may as well go the whole hog, grow a goatee and wear a bandanna.
Most people advise some position changes on long climbs, to give different muscle groups a rest. For me, this means riding mostly seated trying to keep upper body relaxed on the tops or hoods, with an occasional period out of the saddle. For long climbs, this doesn't involve pulling on the bars though (unless to get through a steep pitch) - instead more like a slow and fat version of Bertie, just using the arms as a support.
For short steep climbs, all bets are off. Do whatever you want, providing you maintain traction. If it is bumpy or slippery, some adaptations may be needed, but you figure that out soon enough by doing them.0 -
Take the saddle off for week, you'll soon get used to it and you might enjoy it too.0
