Pedaling Technique

Ringo 68

I have heard a lot about pulling up on the pedal as you push down with the other leg and other things like 'wiping your foot at the bottom of the stroke'

TBH, for a newb like myself it is all a bit confusing.

Is there an ideal pedaling technique or should I just forget about it and just push the damn pedals?

rick_chasey

Ringo 68 wrote:

I have heard a lot about pulling up on the pedal as you push down with the other leg and other things like 'wiping your foot at the bottom of the stroke'

TBH, for a newb like myself it is all a bit confusing.

Is there an ideal pedaling technique or should I just forget about it and just push the damn pedals?

Mainly the bit in bold.


But if you were being picky, think about pedalling in circles. 'kick the door open" at the top of the stroke and "whipe your feet" at the bottom of the stroke. From roughly 7 to 11 on the clock your foot will ideally be unweighted.

But like I said, just push the damn pedals.

CiB

That's pretty much it. Push through the top of the stroke at 12:00, push down from 2-5pm and then drag the foot through the bottom at the 6pm arc. Some will claim that following on by pulling up on the upstroke is the only way to do it but unless it's a real sprint finish you may as well have a free ride on the upstroke whilst the other leg has a go. Pedalling in circles adds a lot to the power o/p and hence speed. It's worth practicing so that it's available as another option but you don't have to use that technique all the time.

Gizmo_

Also useful to be able to pedal upwards if you're as bad at clipping in as I am.

But it's probably easier just to learn to clip in.

Ringo 68

Gizmo_ wrote:

Also useful to be able to pedal upwards if you're as bad at clipping in as I am.

But it's probably easier just to learn to clip in.

Yep, I have a 1000 miles on my SPD SL's and still make a hash of it from time to time. I am a lot better than I used to be though.

Thanks for the replies, I will try out the the mentioned techniques.

rick_chasey

Ringo 68 wrote:

Gizmo_ wrote:

Also useful to be able to pedal upwards if you're as bad at clipping in as I am.

But it's probably easier just to learn to clip in.

Yep, I have a 1000 miles on my SPD SL's and still make a hash of it from time to time. I am a lot better than I used to be though.

Thanks for the replies, I will try out the the mentioned techniques.

I've been clipless for 6 years and I still make a hash of it from time to time. Wouldn't worry about that.

MattC59

round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round and.......................

I wouldn't be too worried about anything more than this, just do what feels right.

cycleclinic

Pedaling is not a consoius action like walking. You think pedal and you pedal. Try and think about what you are doing while you are pedalling and you will not pedal normally.

TKF

A good tip I found was to find a quiet country road and try pedalling with one foot for a bit. You get to feel the muscles that are used when you go rooooouuuund rather than just up and down.

mog812

TKF wrote:

A good tip I found was to find a quiet country road and try pedalling with one foot for a bit. You get to feel the muscles that are used when you go rooooouuuund rather than just up and down.

+1 to that...
might look a bit of a prat doing it, and believe me, it does feel very strange doing it too.

FSR_XC

A lot of beginners tend to push down on the pedals, just like you are stamping on them.

To get a more even pedal stroke & improve your cadence, start by pushing over the top of the stroke. You should find the leg at the bottom naturally 'wipes' as it starts the up stroke.

This is a very basic method, but should help improve pedalling efficiency

IShaggy

Pedalling in circles is so yesterday. You'd be better off concentrating on a high cadence and let your legs do their own thing. Studies have failed to shown any evidence that 'pedalling in circles' improves efficiency or power. On the contrary, studies have shown that elite cyclists actually produce a greater proportion of force in the downstroke when compared to lesser mortals.

tonyf34

Yeah but 'mashing' can hurt your feet (& possibly transfer to other areas) if you're doing that for 100+ miles, I do a bit of both but I do have to think about my pedalling technique to get it better

snoopsmydogg

tonyf34 wrote:

I do a bit of both but I do have to think about my pedalling technique to get it better

^^^^ this

I try to pull the pedal up but generally seem to forget. When im starting to tire or going uphill I start to concentrate on my pedalling it seems to help a lot pulling with one foot while pushing with the other.

CiB

IShaggy wrote:

Pedalling in circles is so yesterday. You'd be better off concentrating on a high cadence and let your legs do their own thing. Studies have failed to shown any evidence that 'pedalling in circles' improves efficiency or power.

But that ignores my pers exp, which is that pushing along without doing the circles things sees me doing speed A, and then changing to circles adds a significant bit on that. It makes sense to me; with circles I'm transferring power on about 55% of each revolution compared to about 30+% when not. I may not be generating more absolute power but more continuous power is being sent to where it matters. Cadence isn't mutually exclusive either; keeping it high (90s into the low 100s for me) in circles is my sweet spot.

Davey C

Riding on fixed or rollers (even an MTB up technical climbs) will help develop a smoother pedalling action but it's unlikely to make a measurable difference to your road riding.