Am I pedaling wrong?

[jwroubaix]

As you may have read in previous post about giving up on clipless pedals, I feel like they're isn't much difference in performance between gonig clipless and being on normal pedals. Do i need to change the way i pedal with clipless pedals? I must be doing something wrong, I must not be taking advantage of the pedals. Please help.

 

[Peter@vecchios]

As you may have read in previous post about giving up on clipless pedals, I feel like they're isn't much difference in performance between gonig clipless and being on normal pedals. Do i need to change the way i pedal with clipless pedals? I must be doing something wrong, I must not be taking advantage of the pedals. Please help.

Have a bike shop around that is interested in giving advice rather than just selling something? If yes, go there.

 

[jhuskey]

As you may have read in previous post about giving up on clipless pedals, I feel like they're isn't much difference in performance between gonig clipless and being on normal pedals. Do i need to change the way i pedal with clipless pedals? I must be doing something wrong, I must not be taking advantage of the pedals. Please help.

Clipless pedals give you more range of motion and the ability to use your muscles more effeciently without losing power.
I suggest checking the way the bike ,and generally the equipment you are using fits.
Find someone that has experience to help if possible.

 

[TheDarkLord]

As you may have read in previous post about giving up on clipless pedals, I feel like they're isn't much difference in performance between gonig clipless and being on normal pedals. Do i need to change the way i pedal with clipless pedals? I must be doing something wrong, I must not be taking advantage of the pedals. Please help.

With normal platform pedals, you only push down the pedals. In contrast, with clipless pedals (or toe clips), since your shoes are attached to the pedal, you can pull up as well as push down. If you practise this, you can improve your throughput quite a bit...

 

[garage sale GT]

I think you should feel a lot more torque over short climbs or sprints, but when you go for distance or sustained speed, most people simply aren't held back by not being able to recruit enough muscles without special pedals.

 

[dgregory57]

I have read that even pro racers don't do much good on the upstroke beyond removing their weight from the pedals... However, you can unload the pedals on the upstoroke without the fear of coming off the pedal.

I am fairly new to clipless, but even though I don't usually try to lift up on the pedals , I still feel more secure on them, and therefore I will stick with them. If I get to the point where I more regularly pull up, then I will gain an even bigger advantage.

 

[alienator]

I have read that even pro racers don't do much good on the upstroke beyond removing their weight from the pedals... However, you can unload the pedals on the upstoroke without the fear of coming off the pedal.

I am fairly new to clipless, but even though I don't usually try to lift up on the pedals , I still feel more secure on them, and therefore I will stick with them. If I get to the point where I more regularly pull up, then I will gain an even bigger advantage.

Yup. The idea that people actually pedal in circles, recruiting muscles all the way around is a false one. From an efficiency point of view, clipless pedals aren't that much more efficient than non-clipless pedals. The big advantage to clipless pedals is that they offer better bike control and for a lot of people, better comfort.....than, say, cages and straps.

 

[gemship]

Yup. The idea that people actually pedal in circles, recruiting muscles all the way around is a false one. From an efficiency point of view, clipless pedals aren't that much more efficient than non-clipless pedals. The big advantage to clipless pedals is that they offer better bike control and for a lot of people, better comfort.....than, say, cages and straps.

That pretty much sums it up for me as well. Although I do enjoy keeping things simple with the standard platform pedal on my mountainbike with the velco reflective straps to keep my pants out of the cranks and chainring.

 

[Thinkly]

Yup. The idea that people actually pedal in circles, recruiting muscles all the way around is a false one. From an efficiency point of view, clipless pedals aren't that much more efficient than non-clipless pedals. The big advantage to clipless pedals is that they offer better bike control and for a lot of people, better comfort.....than, say, cages and straps.

I disagree completely. I used to be a big platform fan till i went clipless. The biggest thing i learned was how much more power i have on climbs and into the wind.

I am not a physicist but I know what it has done for me. I still run platforms some in the winter, and they are ok, but the leverage is nowhere near what i get with clipless.

 

[garage sale GT]

I have read that even pro racers don't do much good on the upstroke beyond removing their weight from the pedals... However, you can unload the pedals on the upstoroke without the fear of coming off the pedal.

I am fairly new to clipless, but even though I don't usually try to lift up on the pedals , I still feel more secure on them, and therefore I will stick with them. If I get to the point where I more regularly pull up, then I will gain an even bigger advantage.

I don't think it's an efficient tradeoff to unweight the rising pedal. One of the reasons for the efficiency of a bike is that the weight of the leg muscles is counterbalanced, one leg against the other, and you don't expend any energy re-placing your legs into position. I am not sure but I do not believe you would get back as much torque as you expended doing this.

I believe clips or clipless let you recruit more muscles for short bursts of a few minutes. To put as much power to the ground without them, I need to have handlebars ideally placed for mashing, not riding at high speed. The reason you get little extra efficiency from cliples is, I believe, the fact that just your "platform pedal muscles" are capable of using up your aerobic capacity.

 

[TheDarkLord]

I believe clips or clipless let you recruit more muscles for short bursts of a few minutes. To put as much power to the ground without them, I need to have handlebars ideally placed for mashing, not riding at high speed. The reason you get little extra efficiency from cliples is, I believe, the fact that just your "platform pedal muscles" are capable of using up your aerobic capacity.

I agree with you here. I have noticed that by pulling on the pedals, I am able to power up short climbs/put in a burst of speed in a way that is not possible with platform pedals. But I'm just a recreational rider, and so there is no attempt to maximize power, efficiency, etc.

 

[mark444]

Can I ask you guys if you are talking in terms of road or mountain biking? I have clipless for road riding but not for my mountain bike. I've been holding out on the trail because of all the dismounting. There are dual purpose pedals that have clips and a platform - do you have any opinions on this?

Thanks Mark

 

[Powerful Pete]

Mark, don't get your question. Why would it be a problem to use a nice set of clipless on a MTB?

 

[TheDarkLord]

Can I ask you guys if you are talking in terms of road or mountain biking? I have clipless for road riding but not for my mountain bike. I've been holding out on the trail because of all the dismounting. There are dual purpose pedals that have clips and a platform - do you have any opinions on this?

Thanks Mark

The clipless pedal that I use does have a platform. It helps in two ways - the first is that you can use the platform and continue to pedal if for some reason your shoes don't get clipped in. This is useful while commuting when you want to get to speed quickly after the signal turns green instead of fiddling with trying to get clipped in if you encounter any problem. Ok, this is probably not really a problem for biking in the road, but potentially an issue with mountain biking if mud gets into the cleats. Secondly, if you want to take a short ride, you can use the platforms and ride with regular shoes/sandals (instead of having to change to your cycling shoes). It is not recommended for long distances as the clip-in portion of the pedal sticks out above the platform, but managable for a short commute.

 

[Fujiman]

I don't think it's an efficient tradeoff to unweight the rising pedal. One of the reasons for the efficiency of a bike is that the weight of the leg muscles is counterbalanced, one leg against the other, and you don't expend any energy re-placing your legs into position. I am not sure but I do not believe you would get back as much torque as you expended doing this.

I believe clips or clipless let you recruit more muscles for short bursts of a few minutes. To put as much power to the ground without them, I need to have handlebars ideally placed for mashing, not riding at high speed. The reason you get little extra efficiency from cliples is, I believe, the fact that just your "platform pedal muscles" are capable of using up your aerobic capacity.

I have rode toe straps for many years then went to clipless SPD pedals and am now riding SPD-SL pedals and I do believe that you can crank better when standing up on climbs without fear of coming off the pedals, but I have also read that as far as efficiency there is not much difference between standard pedals and clipless.

I have also found on long rides instead of pushing I pull with both feet which helps to rest the muscles you are normally using most of the time when pushing.

 

[beison]

So, I can go ahead and shed some light on this from the perspective of a racer. I'm a big sprinter, and I've clocked myself in a sprint for both top speed and acceleration speed (my jump). Comparing my numbers with my Look Keos and normal platforms, I can tell you that overall speed isn't really effected by pedal preference, but my jump absolutly is. I can accelerate *much* faster with the Looks, simply because you can use more muscles for the upstroke. The platforms don't really effect my top speed at the end of the sprint however.

But yeah, say what you guys want about cyclists not actually pulling up when they wear clipless, my acceleration from between 15-35 mph is *rediculiously* improved when I use clipless, and I don't know what else could contribute to this.

 

[jhuskey]

I'll make one more comment on this subject. As I mention before the range of motion is increased without the compromise of stability, how much depends on the the float of the equipment.
Whether a great deal of power is derived or not it gives you the ability to pull and reduces cramping because of the ability to stretch out you legs in acounte motion while maintaining a rhythmic cadence.
At least this is how it works for me.

 

[Camilo]

So, I can go ahead and shed some light on this from the perspective of a racer. I'm a big sprinter, and I've clocked myself in a sprint for both top speed and acceleration speed (my jump). Comparing my numbers with my Look Keos and normal platforms, I can tell you that overall speed isn't really effected by pedal preference, but my jump absolutly is. I can accelerate *much* faster with the Looks, simply because you can use more muscles for the upstroke. The platforms don't really effect my top speed at the end of the sprint however.

But yeah, say what you guys want about cyclists not actually pulling up when they wear clipless, my acceleration from between 15-35 mph is *rediculiously* improved when I use clipless, and I don't know what else could contribute to this.

I'm just a recreational cyclist with decent gear. I use and have always used spd pedals so I don't know if what I'm writing is better or not with large cleat pedals.

But I agree with the premise that beison makes. Even though I don't race and am not all that strong, I'd have to say I agree that just starting out and especially hard accelleration, or other hard efforts - whether that's sprinting in a race, taking off from a light, etc. - is where the clipless pedals do the most good. I consciously think of pulling up and pedaling in a full circle when I have to really get somewhere fast (across an intersection, across a lane for a turn, etc.). PLUS and this is a BIG PLUS - the clipless pedals simply keep your feet securely on the pedals.

As for "steady state" pedaling, I agree that the idea that people actually use the pulling up muscles is pretty weak. It just isn't a major factor IMHO and from what I've read. But for the above, they're well worth it I think.

 

[kdelong]

So, I can go ahead and shed some light on this from the perspective of a racer. I'm a big sprinter, and I've clocked myself in a sprint for both top speed and acceleration speed (my jump). Comparing my numbers with my Look Keos and normal platforms, I can tell you that overall speed isn't really effected by pedal preference, but my jump absolutly is. I can accelerate *much* faster with the Looks, simply because you can use more muscles for the upstroke. The platforms don't really effect my top speed at the end of the sprint however.

But yeah, say what you guys want about cyclists not actually pulling up when they wear clipless, my acceleration from between 15-35 mph is *rediculiously* improved when I use clipless, and I don't know what else could contribute to this.

You cannot pull up on regular platforms but you can pull up on a set of platforms with standard toeclips and straps. I do it all the time. I do not pull the straps as tight as they can be pulled but tight enough so that I can pull up on the upstroke. The wear on the top of my favorite pair of cycling shoes is proof of this. The straps are loose enough that they do not cause any loss of comfort or circulation and to release my foot, all I do is pull back rather than twist my foot, so float is not an issue. Yeah, I'm an old guy who only rides recreationally now. I have tried clipless and went back to my platforms because I'm more comfortable with them. I don't have a problem with people riding with clipless pedals but I think that there is a lot of misinformation that is directed at platform pedals such as saying that you cannot pull up on them during your upstroke.

 

[TheDarkLord]

You cannot pull up on regular platforms but you can pull up on a set of platforms with standard toeclips and straps. I do it all the time. I do not pull the straps as tight as they can be pulled but tight enough so that I can pull up on the upstroke. The wear on the top of my favorite pair of cycling shoes is proof of this. The straps are loose enough that they do not cause any loss of comfort or circulation and to release my foot, all I do is pull back rather than twist my foot, so float is not an issue. Yeah, I'm an old guy who only rides recreationally now. I have tried clipless and went back to my platforms because I'm more comfortable with them. I don't have a problem with people riding with clipless pedals but I think that there is a lot of misinformation that is directed at platform pedals such as saying that you cannot pull up on them during your upstroke.

When people refer to platform pedals, they are referring to pedals without any toe clips. There is really no misinformation...