Do you sit or stand going up hills?

[F8th637]

I have found that everyone has their own philosophy. Some people think that standing wastes energy. If I do stand on a hill it's briefly as my legs can't take the burn for too long. I also have bad knees so I try to take full advantage of those granny gears especially for long climbs. I definitely think you can go both ways on a climb. It's all a matter of personal preference.

[GLC1968]

If it's a short climb and I think I can get up it without losing speed if I stand, then I do. If it's a long climb - I sit and spin to the best of my ability. Sometimes, I mix it up - spin where I can, stand if it gets too steep, go back to spinning, etc.

Basically, the first year I started riding, I stood all the time. Then I found that my muscles got used to it and I couldn't effectively spin. My second year riding, I tried to stay seated more and just spun. Then I found that by the end of the season, standing would wear me out because my muscles had gotten used to spinning. Now I try to mix it up - partly to keep my body capable of doing both with some efficiency, and partly because I've gained a bunch of weight and I need all the tricks of the trade to get up hills!

[sundial]

If it's a short climb and I think I can get up it without losing speed if I stand, then I do. If it's a long climb - I sit and spin to the best of my ability. Sometimes, I mix it up - spin where I can, stand if it gets too steep, go back to spinning, etc.

Yep, me too!

[wackyjacky1]

For me it depends on how long the climb is. I prefer to sit, scooching back on the saddle to get those big ol' butt muscles more involved, but during a long climb I may stand on the pedals and do a few yards that way, just to change things up a bit.

[Geonz]

I'm a total sitter. I'll stand a few times a year, on a very steep long hill when I just feel like I need to change something or fall off the bike.

It depends on the bike, too, though. I think if I had a different bike I *might* be more inclined to stand.

However, my weight distribution is such taht the one time I went skiing, if I fell down I could not get up. My backside has little pockets of extremely dense tissue in it or something

Any slight differences in efficiency really aren't that important to me and would be counteracted by the necessary change in focus... and besides, I live in the flatlands so I only do hills on special occasions.

[mimitabby]

It really depends on where you are at that moment. Sometimes I just don't want to slow down that much so i stand and go up the hill. Other times, I just don't feel like working that hard!