Hills -- is it true?

[Crankin]

You can't avoid hills where I live! But, I also find it very difficult to stand and climb on the big ones. First, it was a balance issue and the fact that i was in too low of a gear. Now I will stand on little rollers, but I find it really doesn't get me that much more speed (1-2 mph) going up the little rollers. It raises my HR more than I like, too. On a really steep climb I stay seated. Usually near the top, where poeple tell you to get up out of the saddle, I don't have the strength to do that. I'm talking about 12-18% grades here... I focus on even, steady pedal strokes, my breathing, and usually I try to remember what I do when mountain biking. I do gear up at the beginning of a long and/or steep climb. While I will be in the granny gear, I will stay in a pretty high cog until I start feeling the need to shift down. That way I actually have some gears to shift down to. I have never had to walk up a hill using this strategy, including some really challenging ones in Austria. I don't really care how fast I am going, but now I can climb medium hills at 10-11 mph and really steep ones at 6-8. I did see 5 a few times in Europe, though.

[liberty]

My deal with standing is that for some reason it would torque my left knee (before I went clipless). Hills that I would be painfree on if I sat and pedaled were suddenly stressing out that knee and I'd need a week to recover. Had basically written off standing up hills. Part of my reason for standing was I wanted to be able to go faster up the hills, and sometimes it was because I was too tired to try to sit and pedal/wait to get up them... Odd, I know. And it makes no sense to me as I write this... These are all types of hills: long ones, short and steep ones, long and steep ones... No matter, if I stood up it, I paid for it. Since I got the clipless I am hoping that it keeps my knee more stable and I can go up the hills easier. Aerobic fitness? Still trying to regain that. So for me right now it is the easiest gears all the way up, baby. At the top of the hill I collapse in a pile until my breathing recovers, and then I keep going. Fun stuff.

[wavedancer]

One little mental focus trick that I found has helped me with climbing is to focus my attention in my lower abdomen and hips. I imagine all my power coming from the center of my abdomen, into my hips and thighs to drive my legs. It seems to take the pressure off my knees and I am able to increase my cadence if I don't want to downshift into an easier gear.

Linda