Exercise R Us

Question:

> > Weird.. when mountain biking, I do the opposite.. instead of leaning back in > my seat, I put my but up as far to the front tip of the seat as I can, lean > forward and fold my elbows in.. then I make sure to keep a good steady hold > Frankly I though this was proper technique for the steep > climbs. Once I learned this, many hills I used come off > are now graced. OTOH, I’m new to this and willing to > listen to all the techniques.

Both ways work fine.  When the rear wheel starts to slip you have to sit back, but to get the power down when you have traction, moving forward works best. —

Response:

> Weird.. when mountain biking, I do the opposite.. instead of leaning back in > my seat, I put my but up as far to the front tip of the seat as I can, lean > forward and fold my elbows in.. then I make sure to keep a good steady hold

Frankly I though this was proper technique for the steep climbs. Once I learned this, many hills I used come off are now graced. OTOH, I’m new to this and willing to listen to all the techniques. > with my arms so my head and torso hardly move at all.. this puts most of my > weight over the front shock.. sometimes even making it compress a little.. > this keeps you from wheelying.. the pulling back motion also puts weight > over your back tire since your are on a steep incline.. think about it.. > leaning back behind the saddle would put you close to behind your rear > wheel.. that’s not good.. it wouldn’t actually be OVER it.  Then I just > smoothly pedal cirlces and easily skim to the top of any hills.. that’s > assuming my legs aren’t tired from not taking enough time between rides!  :) > Jordan > In short spin with power (burn at the top not in the middle); ass back in > the seat and be fit.

– Caveat Lector!

Response:

Weird.. when mountain biking, I do the opposite.. instead of leaning back in my seat, I put my but up as far to the front tip of the seat as I can, lean forward and fold my elbows in.. then I make sure to keep a good steady hold with my arms so my head and torso hardly move at all.. this puts most of my weight over the front shock.. sometimes even making it compress a little.. this keeps you from wheelying.. the pulling back motion also puts weight over your back tire since your are on a steep incline.. think about it.. leaning back behind the saddle would put you close to behind your rear wheel.. that’s not good.. it wouldn’t actually be OVER it.  Then I just smoothly pedal cirlces and easily skim to the top of any hills.. that’s assuming my legs aren’t tired from not taking enough time between rides!  :) Jordan – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> In short spin with power (burn at the top not in the middle); ass back in > the seat and be fit.

Response:

Could someone explain what is meant by the reference to spinning in 3/4 circles and 360 degree spin mentioned below?  I understand the concept of spinning uphill as opposed to standing, but I’ve never heard these techniques mentioned before tia Dave

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->You are asking what is going to help you blow away the roadie, fitness man >fitness. I battle a weight problem- I eat a lot when I am heavily training >no problem, but when I am not… I have put on five #’s in the past week and >a half- I am moving soon to Colorado from New Orleans and have been >celebrating a lot. A friend of mine and I went to Mississippi recently for >some extremely tough single track. I felt every one of those pounds. So I >would recommend that body and bike lightness helps. >Primarily, I find technique to be the best aid. I ride both road and >mountain, I can climb the dickens out of road hills because they are not too >steep and allow me to spin in a higher gear but I do not "bottom" out my >gearing. Being able to turn my pedals in a comfortable zone (not wildly >spinning- I have strong legs and like to work them) I spin in 3/4 circles- I >have not mastered the 360 spin yet. I sit back in the seat and not use my >upper body until I naturally start cheating, this is when I get out of the >saddle and pump and try to pull (it is difficult for me when standing to >maintain decent form). I outclimb very more experienced riders on the road. >On the trail it is different, since my gearing is determined by shimano to >only have 28 teeth on my rear cassette (I hope to buy a megarange from >Sheldon Brown) to help with the steeps. If I have to get in to the granny I >like being out of the saddle behind the seat a little bit to keep traction. >But my technique is not the best because I can pedal hard and still lock up >(legs can push/pull) no more- losing twenty pounds and a bigger granny will >help, but most of my friends climb using this technique so I have copied >their styles. >In short spin with power (burn at the top not in the middle); ass back in >the seat and be fit.

Response:

You are asking what is going to help you blow away the roadie, fitness man fitness. I battle a weight problem- I eat a lot when I am heavily training no problem, but when I am not… I have put on five #’s in the past week and a half- I am moving soon to Colorado from New Orleans and have been celebrating a lot. A friend of mine and I went to Mississippi recently for some extremely tough single track. I felt every one of those pounds. So I would recommend that body and bike lightness helps. Primarily, I find technique to be the best aid. I ride both road and mountain, I can climb the dickens out of road hills because they are not too steep and allow me to spin in a higher gear but I do not "bottom" out my gearing. Being able to turn my pedals in a comfortable zone (not wildly spinning- I have strong legs and like to work them) I spin in 3/4 circles- I have not mastered the 360 spin yet. I sit back in the seat and not use my upper body until I naturally start cheating, this is when I get out of the saddle and pump and try to pull (it is difficult for me when standing to maintain decent form). I outclimb very more experienced riders on the road. On the trail it is different, since my gearing is determined by shimano to only have 28 teeth on my rear cassette (I hope to buy a megarange from Sheldon Brown) to help with the steeps. If I have to get in to the granny I like being out of the saddle behind the seat a little bit to keep traction. But my technique is not the best because I can pedal hard and still lock up (legs can push/pull) no more- losing twenty pounds and a bigger granny will help, but most of my friends climb using this technique so I have copied their styles. In short spin with power (burn at the top not in the middle); ass back in the seat and be fit.

Response:

Hi I’m Jim I live in Scotland here are some tips. It is best to sit and spin if it is a long climb. I ride a suspension bike and this is my only option, how ever if ou are riding a hard tail and your leg are burning get out of the saddle. It uses more energy but will help get rid of some of the latic acid. Although you burn up the first few hundred meters blowing the rodie away you slow down due to sore legs. Although a roadbike has bigger gears it is down to tecnique. And also remember if you have cleats or toe straps you can pull up as well as pushing down.Rodies tend to ride for  milage and not a time too generally have stronger legs. Try interva training or speedply trainning too that may help. Bye jim

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Hi, > Just went out on a 2 hour ride today on my 21-speed Brodie (made in Canada) > mountain bike.  It’s a double triangle, hardtail, relatively light MTB. > I tend to attack hils by maintaining my cadence in the gear I am in until I > can no longer maintain cadence due to the burning in my quads then I down > shift to a lower gear and keep going as best I can. > While I was wheezing, panting and struggling with my first chainring, this > guy on a road bike blows past me.  I was quite surprised as I felt I was > doing my best for the road and here a guy goes by on a road which only has > higher gears than mine!  before long he was out of sight on the hill. > Is there something I am doing wrong?  Is there a better approach to > hillclimbing?   I am looking for specific advice about cadence, gear > selection, do I sit more forward or back, out of saddle climbing?   > Do I select as low a gear as possible and keep a high cadence or I have a > bigger gear and climb by pushing the the gear and riding it with the help of > gravity on the down stroke? > Thanks, K.  Vancouver, Canada

I have personally found that the best way to climb hills is whatever works for you.  One of my friends likes to crank away at 60 rpm in larger gears, while I generally prefer to spin at 90.  We both climb at comparable speeds, so I wouldn’t necessarily advocate one technique over another arbitrarily.  There are so many variables to take into consideration like aerobic fitness, leg strength, leg length, etc, etc.   My advice to you would be to try some different styles out and see what fits you best.  Try different pedaling speeds, body positions, breathing patterns, mental imagery.   Some things I find helpful: – (physical) Pedal reasonably fast, not so much that you feel like a blender,   but fast enough that you have to shift up/slow down in order to get enough   resistance on the pedals to stand. – (mental) Relax the upper body, and concentrate on good breathing (exhale all   that bad CO2), try and get in a rhythm – This one sounds silly but find an object on the hill ahead of you like a   pothole or distinctive rock/tree and imagine there’s a bungie cord extending   from your bike to that object.  Feel the bungie cord pull you up the hill.   Your mileage may vary but I wish you luck.  I found biking became even more fun when I found I could enjoy the climbing as much as the downhilling. MBG — "Infinite: Bigger than the biggest thing ever and then some.  Much bigger than that in fact, really amazingly immense, a totally stunning size, real "wow, that’s big," time.  Infinity is just so big that, by comparison, bigness itself looks really titchy.  Gigantic multiplied by colossal multiplied by staggeringly huge is the sort of concept we’re trying to get across here."         -Douglas Adams ‘The Restaurant at the End of the Universe’

Response:

I think on really loose, steep climbs, you need to overgear slighly to maintain traction.  I got farther than I ever have on a local climb by grabbing one more gear, and just concentrating on slow, even pedal strokes. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Spinning is totally overrated, especially for mountain biking.  The slowest >people up the hills are always the ones spinning some ridiculously easy >gear. >Spinning saves knees, time, and helps you keep traction. Where I live >(Marin, CA) the slowest riders up are always the ones who think they can >grind it and wind up out of energy in the first mile. I’m not saying that >there isn’t a place for grinding up (I do it all the time, especially when >there is ample traction, like on the road) but spinning doesn’t necessarily >mean you are in a ridiculously easy gear. It is about finding the most >efficient balance for YOU and keeping it there.

Response:

>Spinning is totally overrated, especially for mountain biking.  The slowest >people up the hills are always the ones spinning some ridiculously easy >gear.

Spinning saves knees, time, and helps you keep traction. Where I live (Marin, CA) the slowest riders up are always the ones who think they can grind it and wind up out of energy in the first mile. I’m not saying that there isn’t a place for grinding up (I do it all the time, especially when there is ample traction, like on the road) but spinning doesn’t necessarily mean you are in a ridiculously easy gear. It is about finding the most efficient balance for YOU and keeping it there.

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->>Just went out on a 2 hour ride today on my 21-speed Brodie (made in >>Canada) mountain bike.  It’s a double triangle, hardtail, relatively >>light MTB. >>I tend to attack hils by maintaining my cadence in the gear I am in >>until I can no longer maintain cadence due to the burning in my quads >>then I down shift to a lower gear and keep going as best I can. ><SCHNIP> >Spinning is always better. Shift a few strokes before you think you >"have to." Pedal a few strokes/minute faster than you think you >"should." >Install a cyclocomp to prove it to yourself if you have to, but >spinning is universally better than hammering. Totally >counterintuitive, I know. > Spinning is totally overrated, especially for mountain biking.  The slowest > people up the hills are always the ones spinning some ridiculously easy > gear. > If you want to get up a hill fast you need to pick some comfortable gear > (5% of the battle) and get yourself in shape (the other 95%).

I’ve seen a lot of arguments for and against spinning, but anytime I try it out (or the trail necessitates it), I am always overcome by the "rat in a wheel" feeling that I’m just going nowhere fast despite my efforts.  I think this psychological effect is even more devestating when on the road because, unlike XC, there are few landmarks that one can fixate on to gauge progress. Anyway…just my four and a half bucks… Chas Emerick "When you’re on the side of the majority, it’s time to reform."       – Mark Twain

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Hi, >Just went out on a 2 hour ride today on my 21-speed Brodie (made in >Canada) mountain bike.  It’s a double triangle, hardtail, relatively >light MTB. >I tend to attack hils by maintaining my cadence in the gear I am in >until I can no longer maintain cadence due to the burning in my quads >then I down shift to a lower gear and keep going as best I can. ><SCHNIP> >Spinning is always better. Shift a few strokes before you think you >"have to." Pedal a few strokes/minute faster than you think you >"should." >Install a cyclocomp to prove it to yourself if you have to, but >spinning is universally better than hammering. Totally >counterintuitive, I know.

Spinning is totally overrated, especially for mountain biking.  The slowest people up the hills are always the ones spinning some ridiculously easy gear. If you want to get up a hill fast you need to pick some comfortable gear (5% of the battle) and get yourself in shape (the other 95%). — Marty Gulaian – Cleveland, Ohio

Response:

Hi, Just went out on a 2 hour ride today on my 21-speed Brodie (made in Canada) mountain bike.  It’s a double triangle, hardtail, relatively light MTB. I tend to attack hils by maintaining my cadence in the gear I am in until I can no longer maintain cadence due to the burning in my quads then I down shift to a lower gear and keep going as best I can. While I was wheezing, panting and struggling with my first chainring, this guy on a road bike blows past me.  I was quite surprised as I felt I was doing my best for the road and here a guy goes by on a road which only has higher gears than mine!  before long he was out of sight on the hill. Is there something I am doing wrong?  Is there a better approach to hillclimbing?   I am looking for specific advice about cadence, gear selection, do I sit more forward or back, out of saddle climbing?   Do I select as low a gear as possible and keep a high cadence or I have a bigger gear and climb by pushing the the gear and riding it with the help of gravity on the down stroke? Thanks, K. Vancouver, Canada

Response:

>Hi, >Just went out on a 2 hour ride today on my 21-speed Brodie (made in >Canada) mountain bike.  It’s a double triangle, hardtail, relatively >light MTB. >I tend to attack hils by maintaining my cadence in the gear I am in >until I can no longer maintain cadence due to the burning in my quads >then I down shift to a lower gear and keep going as best I can.

<SCHNIP> Spinning is always better. Shift a few strokes before you think you "have to." Pedal a few strokes/minute faster than you think you "should." Install a cyclocomp to prove it to yourself if you have to, but spinning is universally better than hammering. Totally counterintuitive, I know. Besides being better for hill climbing, this will also put much less torque and strain on your drivetrain than shifting under maximum load. That’s a good way to bend chainrings and break chains. Also, roadies are often superhumanly fit bastards. Hard to compare yourself to them. He was probably also riding a much, much lighter bike than that Brodie of yours. Good luck, Paul

Response: