Stand Pedalling (1st update)

Standing is a cheap and effective way to boost your performance today, for free. Whether you want to climb better on the road or navigate tricky root sections on local trails, you’ll need to get out of the saddle.

Why stand? 

When you ride, you can sit or stand to shift the load to different muscles. When you stand, you can use your body weight to turn the pedals over athletically as you go up and over tough terrain. If you have had to walk up a climb on a road bike or had your front wheel unweight on a steep trail, then it is worth practising standing to give yourself options.

In 2008, Professor Ernst Hansen discovered that road cyclists were better off remaining seated until the gradient hit 10%. From then on standing became more effective in terms of sustained power output, although the riders consumed 5% more oxygen when standing.

During short (less than 30 seconds) all-out bursts, peak power output has been measured at 25% greater when standing compared to sitting, but there is trade off. Research has shown that even at shallower gradients of around 4%, ascending at 19kmh while seated requires 10% less oxygen than when standing. That’s primarily because the body’s centre of mass is supported by the saddle, conserving energy. 

Efficiency, in the sense it is often used is not always desirable. Sometimes it is worth expending more energy for a short period to climb a hill rather than slogging at a low r.p.m. for a longer duration.

How do you stand?

When you stand, your goal is to ride in a straight line as you lean the bike back and forth. As your right foot reaches the bottom of its pedal stroke, you lean the bike to the left, and vice versa. Start off by doing these actions slowly up a gradual climb. Then begin adding speed.

When should you stand?

Bigger riders pay a higher price for elevating their bodies frequently and for extended periods. That may sound like a disadvantage for the big riders, but they typically also have better power seated than smaller riders. While body size will determine how much you stand to a degree, the terrain and event type is a bigger determinant. Smooth and high-speed criterium races require aerodynamics and, ideally, efficiency through smooth cornering. But you need to get out of the saddle to attack, stay on wheels and sprint.

Mountain bikers are in and out of their saddles constantly to be efficient and to let their bikes roll over terrain. Generally, fitter riders can stand more. For long rides or efforts, you’ll want to sit more and save standing for getting up steep sections or keeping the cranks turning as you start to fatigue. Often, road riders will sit and grind at cadences lower than 50 r.p.m. or even walk up steep grades rather than standing and shifting their weight side to side to essentially “walk on the bike.”

Source:
Canadian cycling June-july 2017
http://www.cyclist.co.uk/tutorials/183/should-you-sit-or-stand-when-climbing

Ride On!