How best to use a Singlespeed during training?

bigpikle

As well as my stable of geared bikes, I converted an old Trek to a singlespeed last year. Living in a fairly hilly area on the edge of the Chilterns, and not being particularly strong last year I struggled to make much use of it as it runs 42x18t so quickly becomes hard work on steeper hills. It became a hack for quick journeys to the shops etc.

My fitness has improved massively since then and yesterday I wheeled out the SS and went for a blast. I hit every hill around the immediate area and just went hard for 45 mins or so. I got an intense workout as I was rarely riding anything flat, and found I was far stronger than last time I rode it - able to grind it up even the worst hills and over the rolling roads round here 8)

My question is about how I might make the most use of it in training? I'm building for some 100 mile sportive rides and lack strength and power right now - I'm OK spinning a lower gear but when the wind blows I soon struggle . Should I get out there and hit the hills and use it for building climbing strength or are there other ways to make the most of it?

DaveyL

Are you planning on doing the sportives on it? If not, leave it in the garage and ride your "race" bike, especially on the long rides. You can still go hard on a geared bike.

Might not hurt to get out on the SS for some short quick blasts, just to mix things up a bit, and it will definitely be beneficial psychologically if you enjoy those sessions, but I would stick to the bike you are using for the events, for the most part.

amaferanga

I commute on fixed and particularly through the winter do some longer rides in the Peaks on fixed, but for training its really not much use as you can't control your effort in the same way you can with a geared bike. So I agree with DaveyL, use your geared bike for training. Ride your SS for fun.

Murr X

The two previous replies are spot on.

No need to be riding the fixed bike at all from a physical point of view, it will not make you a better cyclist than training on a geared bike.

If you enjoy riding the fixed now and then for fun then that is fine and won't do you much harm.

bigpikle

thanks all - I'm not planning on using the singlespeed for any events. I primarily built it to make some use of an old bike that was gathering dust, and to be a hack bike I could leave without worry of being stolen.

I'll just use it for a bit of fun now and then. I had thought that some session pushing a bigger gear up hills etc might help build strength more than my geared machines where I always end up changing gears to cope with the hills

mask of sanity

I would say that a fixed gear as a town bike compliments training really well. I've had one for a few months now and have found that four miles of riding around Bristol (big enough hills to result in grinding up and fast spinning down) is enough for me to feel it in my legs. But doing that on my geared bike would be easy. I've definitely seen improvements as a result of my fixed gear.

Saying that, I wouldn't use it for long flat training rides as the gear wouldn't be big enough to enable me to push myself on the flat.

bigpikle

yep - I think hill climbing is the win for me. Being forced to work so much harder on the hills must be building strength that doesnt come when you spin up in a low gear.

Murr X

Bigpikle wrote:

yep - I think hill climbing is the win for me. Being forced to work so much harder on the hills must be building strength that doesnt come when you spin up in a low gear.

The forces even when climbing hills in a fixed gear are in reality still very low compared to lifting weights at the gym, so the strength required to do it is relatively little.

In cycling performance is all about power. The best climbers in the world do not have "strong" legs in that the maximal force they can exert is not very high. However they are exceptionally powerful which is what matters.

Riding up hills in very high gears is not good for training if you can produce more power in a lower gear.

Although without a powermeter it is hard to tell what cadence produces the most power, in training you should always aim to try to produce as much power as possible as easily as possible - ie riding in a too high a gear may still feel hard but the power will be low. Training like this will NOT result in better performance over time than riding at the same effort level in the ideal gear/cadence. Likewise training in too low a gear and spinning away as fast as you can will not result in a high power output so should be avoided.


Murr X

markos1963

Bigpikle wrote:

yep - I think hill climbing is the win for me. Being forced to work so much harder on the hills must be building strength that doesnt come when you spin up in a low gear.

+1 for me. Now able after a winter riding SS to power up the hills but as said by others not a big improvement in general riding.

bigpikle

Murr X wrote:

The forces even when climbing hills in a fixed gear are in reality still very low compared to lifting weights at the gym, so the strength required to do it is relatively little.

In cycling performance is all about power. The best climbers in the world do not have "strong" legs in that the maximal force they can exert is not very high. However they are exceptionally powerful which is what matters.

Riding up hills in very high gears is not good for training if you can produce more power in a lower gear.

Although without a powermeter it is hard to tell what cadence produces the most power, in training you should always aim to try to produce as much power as possible as easily as possible - ie riding in a too high a gear may still feel hard but the power will be low. Training like this will NOT result in better performance over time than riding at the same effort level in the ideal gear/cadence. Likewise training in too low a gear and spinning away as fast as you can will not result in a high power output so should be avoided.


Murr X

thanks - sounds a little counter-intuitive but I think that makes sense. Sort of...