Efficiency while Biking; Part 2...Pedal Stroke...
I figure if I can make 10 people into better cyclists out there, I'll earn my ticket to heaven! So here comes part 2 of the efficiency...Pedal Stroke...
First and foremost having an efficient stroke is dependent on seat height...There are almost as many different schools of thought about saddle height out there as bike manufacturers...A good starting point is putting your heels on your pedals and back pedaling...If you can backpedal at full speed without having to rock your hips as well as while getting full extension on your knees your seat height is probably close to being correct...If not adjust with small increments until desired level is reached...Keep in mind when you change your saddle height, it might feel a little weird at first to pedal but stick with it and soon it will become comfortable.
OK now that is out of the way we can go onto our main topic...Pedal Stroke...Most people believe that pedal stroke is all about pushing downward on the pedals...Although this works it is not necessarily the most efficient...After all, a vast majority of us have clipless pedal systems and why not use this technology to its fullest extent? Clipless pedal systems not only attach you safely to your bikes while cornering but they also will allow you to pull up on the pedals with one leg while pushing down with the other...That's just the gist of it. Now let's get technical shall we?
Look at your pedal stroke from the side and just iagine is as if it was like a clock. The most power input will usually occur between 1 and 5 o'clock positions. Between 1 and 5 you should think nothing but downstroke, as you are coming closer towards the 5 start thinking about the upstroke. Hopefully you will apply a little pressure toward the back of the bike between connecting your upstroke and your downstroke. Pull up on the upstroke, I cannot emphasize this enough! Pulling up on your upstroke not only puts extra power into your forward motion but it also negates less from the other legs downstroke...Just imagine when you stop pedaling with your crank arms in 3 and 9 o'clock position and stand up...The only reason why you can do this is because your are putting equal forces on both of the pedals to prevent the cranks arms from rotating. So if you were to let your leg rest on the upstroke while pushing down with the other one, your legs are literally working against each other while contributing none of this power into forward motion. Anyways as you are hitting 11 o'clock position on your leg you should start thinking about your upcoming downstroke as well as pushing your leg forward into the downstroke.
There are exercise you can perform to improve your pedal stroke. Most popular being single pedaling...Unclip from one side and work on smooth, pedaling with only one leg. Do this for 30 seconds at a time for each leg...Repeat 3 times and then work on cadence for a bit while recovering...
-Ali
PS. I am attaching a diagram of correct ankle position through out the stroke as well...
First and foremost having an efficient stroke is dependent on seat height...There are almost as many different schools of thought about saddle height out there as bike manufacturers...A good starting point is putting your heels on your pedals and back pedaling...If you can backpedal at full speed without having to rock your hips as well as while getting full extension on your knees your seat height is probably close to being correct...If not adjust with small increments until desired level is reached...Keep in mind when you change your saddle height, it might feel a little weird at first to pedal but stick with it and soon it will become comfortable.
OK now that is out of the way we can go onto our main topic...Pedal Stroke...Most people believe that pedal stroke is all about pushing downward on the pedals...Although this works it is not necessarily the most efficient...After all, a vast majority of us have clipless pedal systems and why not use this technology to its fullest extent? Clipless pedal systems not only attach you safely to your bikes while cornering but they also will allow you to pull up on the pedals with one leg while pushing down with the other...That's just the gist of it. Now let's get technical shall we?
Look at your pedal stroke from the side and just iagine is as if it was like a clock. The most power input will usually occur between 1 and 5 o'clock positions. Between 1 and 5 you should think nothing but downstroke, as you are coming closer towards the 5 start thinking about the upstroke. Hopefully you will apply a little pressure toward the back of the bike between connecting your upstroke and your downstroke. Pull up on the upstroke, I cannot emphasize this enough! Pulling up on your upstroke not only puts extra power into your forward motion but it also negates less from the other legs downstroke...Just imagine when you stop pedaling with your crank arms in 3 and 9 o'clock position and stand up...The only reason why you can do this is because your are putting equal forces on both of the pedals to prevent the cranks arms from rotating. So if you were to let your leg rest on the upstroke while pushing down with the other one, your legs are literally working against each other while contributing none of this power into forward motion. Anyways as you are hitting 11 o'clock position on your leg you should start thinking about your upcoming downstroke as well as pushing your leg forward into the downstroke.
There are exercise you can perform to improve your pedal stroke. Most popular being single pedaling...Unclip from one side and work on smooth, pedaling with only one leg. Do this for 30 seconds at a time for each leg...Repeat 3 times and then work on cadence for a bit while recovering...
-Ali
PS. I am attaching a diagram of correct ankle position through out the stroke as well...
Views: 466
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by o0_dan_0o on
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its not just up and down either..
you gotta think about the back and forth too.
i learned how to do this properly, using super knobby mtb tires on pavement, you can listen for variation in power in the sound the knobs make. when its a monotone hum youre doing it right.
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Permalink Reply by Ali on
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Yes it is also very important to pull and push as well I did mention it above but perhaps did not emphasize it enough...Thanks for reminding me yet again dan...
-Ali
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Ali said:Yes it is also very important to pull and push as well I did mention it above but perhaps did not emphasize it enough...Thanks for reminding me yet again dan...
-Ali
sorry, im not trying to be a smartass here, it just seemed like your emphasis on pushing and pulling was limited to the up and down parts of the stroke.
smoothing the stoke out to include fore and aft in boxes at first was how i did it.
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Permalink Reply by root on
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Thanks for posting. I've been questioning this for ages now. I ride a low fixed gear @ 46-17, so most of the time I'm spinning and would really like to improve my efficiency.
So ankle rotation is good eh? I sometimes try to focus on making my feet work together like that, but it's hard. Most of the time i just end up zoning out and going back to a more primitive "this leg comes up. ok now this leg. now you again.." type thought process
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Permalink Reply by vxla on
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I know some older Italian cyclists that would argue the diagram is incorrect. I had a long discussion with a guy a couple years ago on this and he claims that pointing the toes down at a 35-degree by the time you're at the 5-oclock position is best. A good way to practice it is by doing so and contracting the toes at the same time while you're doing one-foot drills.
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Permalink Reply by S on
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Just fyi, but there really isn't any pulling going on in the upstroke. Even pro cyclists at best reduce the downward force on the pedal on the upstroke. I guess that this is one of those urban myths about clipless pedals.
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Permalink Reply by millenial removing Bernie tattoo on
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Nobody pulls with net upward force on the upstroke except for short bursts.
Just like evereyone has a unique walking gait, everyone has a unique "pedaling gait" and you shouldn't try and force your body to do it differently. This applies especially to ankling: some people do it and some don't.
( see http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/ankling.html )
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