When are the glutes used?

Gav888

Hi,

Just wondering about bike position, at present when riding on the hoods or tops I feel my quads all the time but when in the drops I feel the glutes/ham as well.

Is this normal or should I feel the glutes/ham when on the tops/hoods?

Also a friend said that he thinks I'm pedalling too hard, ie always pushing and when he rides he sort of relaxes his legs and doesn't push, does this make sense to anyone - surely when doing tempo for example your pushing the pedals, or do people kind of have light pressure on the pedals at all times?

Cheers

ollie51

Because of the closing of the hip angle when you move to the drops you would expect glute activation to be inhibited and because of the opening of the hip angle when in the tops you would expect greater activity. The glutes are typically most active from 12 o' clock to 3/4 o'clock. Though this would presuppose the ability to fire your glutes properly, which a lot of riders can't actually do.

Gav888

Really, I thought the lower your torso or further back your saddle, ie closing the hip angle via one or both methods recruits the glutes more as your stretching them allowing them to work? A bit like getting out of a chair and leaning forward to do it rather than sitting bolt upright.

I just wasn't sure if you should always feel them working or just in the drops.

diamonddog

Spin an easier gear faster and you achieve the same speed with less stress on the relevant leg muscles IME, which is more or less what your friend is saying.

jgsi

http://youtu.be/1goZGa1UNcI

Just watch these and take on board a few of the tips.....or you can argue until the cows come home which muscle should be used when and where... yawn..
If you seem to be riding 'push..push..push' with your shoulders bobbing?? all the time then definitively, you are doing it wrong.

Gav888

diamonddog wrote:

Spin an easier gear faster and you achieve the same speed with less stress on the relevant leg muscles IME, which is more or less what your friend is saying.

I did think that, but I keep my cadence between 90 - 100rpm, he did mention that being too fast and I should lower it into the 80's, but then for me it just feels like im grinding a bit too much as I feel it more in the quads.

JGSI wrote:

http://youtu.be/1goZGa1UNcI

Just watch these and take on board a few of the tips.....or you can argue until the cows come home which muscle should be used when and where... yawn..
If you seem to be riding 'push..push..push' with your shoulders bobbing?? all the time then definitively, you are doing it wrong.

Yep seen that video a good few times, I dont really bob unless im knackered on a climb trying to keep up with someone, but it does say cadence between 70-90rpm until power comes up, my mate is always in the 80's and I have seen posts on other forums about people using slightly lower cadences to 'activate' the glutes more?

diamonddog

It's the gear your pushing not the cadence that puts the stress on your muscles, if you are happy at 90/100 cadence then that's fine.
Take a look at your position on the bike (bike fit) this could be a source for your problem.

diy

When are the glutes used:


Why are my glutes working more in a lower position:


If you have access to a Wattbike - have a look at your pedal stroke shape, in different positions : it will tell you a lot. If not sign up for a trial pass at a local gym who have wattbikes and do an hour on a wattbike it will show you your pedal shape very quickly.
https://wattbike.com/uk/guide/cycling_t ... hapes_mean

The other thing (and where I'd start) is to make sure you stretch the muscles properly - it can make a massive difference on par with a bike fit in my opinion. A full on stretch 15-30 minutes as well as cool down stretching makes a huge difference particularly if you do stretches that work the psoas and the periformis.

JayKosta

Gav888 wrote:

[
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but I keep my cadence between 90 - 100rpm, he did mention that being too fast and I should lower it into the 80's, but then for me it just feels like im grinding a bit too much as I feel it more in the quads.
...

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Perhaps try a slightly slower cadence for a few weeks to strengthen those muscles, and to become accustomed to the technique.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

bahzob

The glutes (and calves that matter) are extremely fatigue resistant plus can contribute significantly to power. They also activate at different points in the pedal revolution both to each other and the quads (as the above diagram shows)

This is one reason why its worth spending some time focussing on them and being sure you are actually using them fully rather than relying on the quads to generate all your power.

First is bike fit, if you sit too low (most likely) or high then the glutes will not be able to work effectively.

Second is do some low rpm work. Reason for this is not primarily the load but to give you chance each rev to sense how the muscle is working/contributing. Once done then increase load and rpm. There will be a maximum rpm you can sustain before you lose the feeling the glutes contributing a lot, this will differ with individual and training. Really this should be above 80rpm, after that whether it is 80 or 100 doesn't matter much

Like said before I have found a great way to improve is simply do your normal workouts but make a conscious effort to change rpm, either by doing some low others high or varying from low to high to low as time progresses.

Gav888

Thanks for the advice guys, I will make a note of doing some lower RPM rides going forwards and focus on the pedalling and the muscles being used. Will let you know how it goes.

diy

Just to put what bahzob said in to an example... I personally found an increase in power of around 10-15% going from the "peanut" shape to the Sausage shape pedal stroke. it didn't feel like I was increasing my effort 10-15% either - probably only 2 or 3%. Effectively focusing on pedaling in circles and using the front muscles more.

I'm not too sure how you'd do it without the display/sensor, but thinking about a circular stroke helped maintain the shape.

Gav888

Does a Watt bike show the 'peanut' shape thing as I've found out a local club does one a month

mpatts

I use mine predominantly for attracting mates.

Tom Dean

Gav888 wrote:

Is this normal or should I feel the glutes/ham when on the tops/hoods?

It's normal that different positions stress the body in different ways. The way to adapt to a position is to train in that position.

Pedalling technique is a subject that comes up on here a lot and we always get the link to Wattbike advertising. If you are interested in pedalling in a sausage shape I suggest you do a forum search.

diy

Gav888 wrote:

Does a Watt bike show the 'peanut' shape thing as I've found out a local club does one a month

Yep - I posted a link to the interpretation above.

You are actually after a Sausage though



Personally I think its handy to check your legs are balanced in terms of output and would be interested in those who have different views on the value. I was actually thinking of buying one. When you think you have a £6-700 bike sat on a £150 turbo trainer and they go for £1000-1400 used

Gav888

Sorry missed the link, and sausage - got ya

Tom Dean

diy wrote:

Personally I think its handy to check your legs are balanced in terms of output and would be interested in those who have different views on the value. I was actually thinking of buying one. When you think you have a £6-700 bike sat on a £150 turbo trainer and they go for £1000-1400 used

Are you thinking that you want to spend £1400 for some data that no-one has demonstrated any practical use for?

diy

Actually I liked the colour.. but seriously I'd not heard of anyone suggesting that it was bro-science - but happy to be pointed in the direction of something that critiques them. So much BS in the fitness industry - really annoying that brand comes before evidence in a lot of what the manufacturers spout.

However, I did get power improvements from concentrating on stroke.