Newbie Question

bunker22

I have simple goals this year, one of which is to beat my cycling buddies up the hills.

I am ok at grinding out the pedals to get up the hills but I am always beaten by those who can stand up and tap out towards the bottom of the hill and then sit down and slow a little towards the top. I can close the gap but never enough!

My question is: should I be training to improve my steady speed up the hills or should I learn to change my style and stand on the pedals and what exercises should I do for this? ie should I train on my strengths or should I be working on my weaknesses?

TIA

LeighB

Best technique for hills is dependant on the type of hill; long length hills are best tackled sitting and shorter steeper hills standing. On longer hills you can stand to give a burst of acceleration but pedalling the correct gear sitting down is the most efficient. The best way to get better on hills is to work on them or if you don’t have many in your area try riding into a head wind in a high gear. Hard work will improve your strength and endurance but don’t forget the importance of rest.

jocksyboy

TBH and not meaning to be rude do a search on hills and climbing and you will find loads of topics - it has been covered many times