> >What the best way to get up an hill (road bike)?
We've got an article on climbing on our website, at-
http://www.chainreaction.com/hills.htm
It doesn't much address the issue of standing vs sitting though. In general, you'll be more
efficient while sitting, and you'll run considerably less risk of going anaerobic. You'll also find
it easier to breathe at a "natural" pace while seated; when standing, one tends to syncronize their
breathing with their pedal stroke, and that's *not* a good thing. The key, even while standing, is
to be relaxed, and part of that involves breathing deeper and more slowly, as opposed to breathing
shallow and gasping for breath.
However... even though it may be more efficient being seated, it's generally not a good idea to
remain in the saddle on a long, hard climb. Best to stand up once in a while and stretch yourself
out a bit. Otherwise, you may find that your back begins to talk to you (and when your back talks to
you, it's rarely a pleasant conversation). Maybe stand up and move around a bit on the bike every
mile or so and you'll find yourself able to ride longer without difficulty.
But, having said that, if I'm out of shape (frequently the case) and trying to get up a big hill as
fast as possible, I need to force myself to stay in the saddle. Every time I stand up I find my
speed dropping quite a bit when I sit back down, well below where it would have been had I stayed
seated... and it takes a bit of time to recover from the anaerobic spurt, so your speed doesn't come
back up as quickly as you'd like.
--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReaction.com
"Jon Isaacs" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >What the best way to get up an hill (road bike)?
> >
> >When I started cycling I read somewhere to stay in your saddle
>
> >Now I have mastered this - although I do feel I could get up the hills faster out of the saddle,
> >sitting gives a more controlled ride, and encourages you to pull up - where as standing seems to
> >encourage downward power - but would seem to be faster ?
>
> Many issues and many different individuals. Pantani climbs seated for a
while
> then standing for a while, gives those muscles a change. Heart rate may
be a
> tad higher standing.
>
> Bottomline is you have to discover what works best for you as an an
individual.
>
> jon isaacs