Annie, we just gutted it out back then. Before women's cycling clothes were available & we had to make men's shoes fit. When women were ignored in bike shops like we were invisible - or worse - snotty nosed kids tried to fit us on bikes that had springs underneath the seats.

But I digress....

Another hill climbing technique is to pedal in circles. The pulling back works the hamstring. On most of us cyclists, the hamstring is a neglected muscle & our quads are much more powerful.