Hill climb, Sitting & Standing

[innerrhythm1]

When I go riding on my road bike I do all my hill climbs sitting down. I'll do about 20 or 30 miles and feel quite good afterwards.
However, if I go on a similar ride and climb a hill by standing up, just one hill, instead of sitting my leg's just die. I find the rest of the ride near hell trying to climb any other hill.
Must be just lactic acid build up or something, but that's how it feels.
So what I want to know is, would this occur because I use different muscels when hill climbing standing up, and because I dont do it often these muscels are under developed compared to the muscels I use when sitting?
Further more, any training tips to strengthen those muscels - should that be the problem.
James

 

[UNF_Chaz]

When I go riding on my road bike I do all my hill climbs sitting down. I'll do about 20 or 30 miles and feel quite good afterwards.
However, if I go on a similar ride and climb a hill by standing up, just one hill, instead of sitting my leg's just die. I find the rest of the ride near hell trying to climb any other hill.
Must be just lactic acid build up or something, but that's how it feels.
So what I want to know is, would this occur because I use different muscels when hill climbing standing up, and because I dont do it often these muscels are under developed compared to the muscels I use when sitting?
Further more, any training tips to strengthen those muscels - should that be the problem.
James

not much hills around me, but there are a couple bridges... i noticed the same thing. When i just sit down and pedal it out around my average as long as i can and then shift down if needed. but when i get off the saddle, and work the bike, i can feel the lactic acid just building up and killing me for the rest of the ride.

If ur going to get off the saddle, then i suggest just doing it towards the end of the ride. for building up those 'other' muscles, i think u r just using the same ones; quads, hams, and calves. i could be wrong, but live and learn.

 

[Graham_DNF]

I used to fear getting out of the saddle for exactly that reason. My legs would start killing me and I couldn't climb as fast towards the end of a ride.

I think it is the same muscles, but they are being used in a different way. Of course, I could be way off.

Just working on it has helped. Last winter I spent a lot of time on stationaries just grinding with huge resistance to build up my ability. Seemed to help a lot. I still prefer to remain seated, however.

DNF

 

[Rideastrong]

i try not to climb out of the saddle until my legs start to hurt then i stand so i flush the lactic acid out of my muscles. As soon as my legs feel better i return back to the saddle.

 

[RapDaddyo]

Climbing out of the saddle is initially very fatiguing, no question about it. But, often we are climbing at higher power than we do seated, so it's a little unfair to compare climbing out of the saddle with climbing on the saddle but at 50w less power. I had the opportunity to do a lot of riding out of the saddle the last few months because I was slowly recovering from sore glutes. I couldn't do more than 200w seated, so it was either do intervals out of the saddle or don't do intervals. I elected the former. So, I learned a lot about riding out of the saddle at high power. I think a key is to learn to use all of one's body weight on the downstroke and very little energy. The upper body can and should be very quiet, almost stationery. I found I can do this by using my legs to tilt the bike from side to side rather than throwing it back and forth with my arms and upper body. I found that if I got in the right gear I could turn the cranks over at a pretty high cadence with body weight alone, with each downstroke bringing the other leg over the top of the stroke without having to push it over the top. If I used too much gear, I definitely had to force it over the top and that used a lot more energy. I actually compare the stroke more to a dance step than a cycling motion. It's still fatiguing, but less so. Hope this helps.

 

[Stallion]

When I climb really steep hills, or short nasty kills I like to upshift and power over the hills by standing. On long, not-so-very steep hills, I will stay seated.

 

[SolarEnergy]

When I go riding on my road bike I do all my hill climbs sitting down. I'll do about 20 or 30 miles and feel quite good afterwards.
However, if I go on a similar ride and climb a hill by standing up, just one hill, instead of sitting my leg's just die. I find the rest of the ride near hell trying to climb any other hill.
Must be just lactic acid build up or something, but that's how it feels.
So what I want to know is, would this occur because I use different muscels when hill climbing standing up, and because I dont do it often these muscels are under developed compared to the muscels I use when sitting?
Further more, any training tips to strengthen those muscels - should that be the problem.
James

As a coach, I have always left the choice up to the athletes. BUT I have always imposed to develop both styles, as part of specific technical training sessions.

What I've noticed over the years, is that the heavier cyclists tend to climb standing up. While the lighter ones like climbing seated. This is quit normal : when you climb standing up, you tend to use your body weight. Putting 200 pounds on the downstroke versus putting 135 pounds on the downstroke, you can clearly see the benefit of standing up for the 200 pounds rider. Specially given the fact that both riders will have to carry their weight during the climb anyway.

 

[Phil Stone]

Riding in the saddle will have a lower max torque per revolution of the crank then riding out of the saddle. Even though power & average torque through the whole revolution is the same. Its this peak which causes the pain & lactate build up in the Gluts if your not used to this. Its these muscles which are used to deliver that torque. bigger riders probably use their weight to produce a high torque but they also need to lift a lot more weight!

Another way to put it maybe If you think of the average torque as the weight (the pressure you must apply to move the crank 360°) & then think which muscles you must use to move that weight round. On a climb that weight is divided more evenly around the full 360° if in the saddle. Once you get out of the saddle the same weight is spread over say 180° so max torque is effectively doubled (while the leg effectively rests for the other half)

If you have the capacity in your legs to deal with that torque like most riders that race then riding out of the saddle will become a real option. Often changing from one to the other is how most of us ride as one muscle group fills with acid we rest the others!

Regards Phil

www.tacx-video.com

 

[Don Shipp]

When I go riding on my road bike I do all my hill climbs sitting down. I'll do about 20 or 30 miles and feel quite good afterwards.
However, if I go on a similar ride and climb a hill by standing up, just one hill, instead of sitting my leg's just die. I find the rest of the ride near hell trying to climb any other hill.
Must be just lactic acid build up or something, but that's how it feels.
So what I want to know is, would this occur because I use different muscels when hill climbing standing up, and because I dont do it often these muscels are under developed compared to the muscels I use when sitting?
Further more, any training tips to strengthen those muscels - should that be the problem.
James

Practise both ways of climbing.

 

[innerrhythm1]

Thanks everyone for your input so far! All very interesting. I have just come home from a holiday in Cornwall, so not been riding for a week, took to surfing instead.
I have tried a few rides just standing, trying to build up my legs etc. But I shall try a few techniques like you have all said above, see how that goes.

Cant wait to get back on the road.... I do have a car, that needs new brake pads..... but I'm too busy searching the net for cycling add on's and a sea kayak. Another passion I guess?
James

 

[N_laplaca]

When I first started riding 3 years ago I mostly climbed standing up. On significant hills anyway. I just didn't have the power to stay seated at the time. I couldn't stand the whole way up though so I would alternate. One of my new riding buddies suggested to me at the beginning of this year to just stay seated.

I took his advice because he is an amazing climber. Initially it was tough but it has made me a much better climber. On the really steep hills I still stand a bit but not nearly as much as I used to. I get a lot of joy out of watching people standing up pumping away with seemingly all they have got while I stay seated and easily power past them. I'm not the greatest climber of the bunch but I am much faster than I was a year ago and I attribute a lot of it to keeping my butt on the saddle. Doing tons of hill repeats I'm sure played a role also.

 

[Adam-from-SLO]

If the hill is short/steep , I may stand for part of it to power over it.

For the most part , where I live........ most hills/mountain ranges tend to be longer in distance- 1 to 8 miles in length , so sitting comfortably in the saddle is the position I prefer.

Last weekend, on a club ride(41 miles).... we did two hill passes, with fairly steep gradient- probably 6-6.5 %. On the last steep hill climb , about 150 yards to the top , my quads starting spazzzzzing / mis-firing on the up/down stroke !
I took in H2O (20oz), gaterade(17oz) and Cytomax(20oz), and a Cliff-shot ......... so I'm not sure if it was a hydration issue with my muscles. That morning, I did not really eat a breakfast , I just hydrated... and ate a small biscute w/honey.

..... to continue, on that last 150 yard climb, I had to get out of the saddle , and slowly bounce up the last incline.... not that I wanted to go out like that , but I did not want to damage anything on my body