Bouncing in the saddle

[maillotpois]

Lots of times people bounce or rock in the saddle because the seat is too high. Have you been fit correctly? Just a thought....

[climbergirl]

I believe it will also help if you focus on a smooth, even pedal stroke all the way around. When there's very little resistance on the pedals, I find that it helps me to focus on the "back and forth" part instead of the "up and down" part of the stroke.

[OakLeaf]

Practice, practice, practice (assuming your seat isn't too high, which would also make your hips rock from side to side besides bouncing). Ride rollers when the weather's bad. Do downhill intervals - climb the hill, then ride down it in the same gear you climbed in, spinning as fast as you can to barely keep tension on the chain. Visualize your feet pedaling in circles, not squares. Do cadence intervals on the road - ride one minute at 90 rpm, then rest, then one minute at 100 rpm, then one minute at 110, and keep building until you can't maintain the minute without bouncing ... then go back down the ladder again.

There isn't necessarily one cadence that's the most efficient for everyone, but you ought to be able to spin with good form at any cadence. High RPM work helps build that form, because it unmasks the flaws in your pedal stroke.

And make sure your crankarms aren't too long for you.

[marni]

Assuming the rocking is not from an incorrect saddle height, practice using only one leg at a time when on the trainer- this is the best method I have found for training the brain and muscles to think circles. do a two leg interval and then unclip and do an equal amount of time single legged (hint start with a really simple 1 minute, you'll be surprised how many different muscles speak up especially on the single leg section. Do another two legged session and then unclip the other leg. start with moderate easily resistance and then as your stroke starts to become predictably round, drop the resistance and lengthen the intervals. If the resistance is too low, you will rock.

[Wasp]

Assuming the rocking is not from an incorrect saddle height, practice using only one leg at a time when on the trainer- this is the best method I have found for training the brain and muscles to think circles. do a two leg interval and then unclip and do an equal amount of time single legged (hint start with a really simple 1 minute, you'll be surprised how many different muscles speak up especially on the single leg section. Do another two legged session and then unclip the other leg. start with moderate easily resistance and then as your stroke starts to become predictably round, drop the resistance and lengthen the intervals. If the resistance is too low, you will rock.

I will give it a shot. It sounds like a tough workout!

[Wasp]

Practice, practice, practice (assuming your seat isn't too high, which would also make your hips rock from side to side besides bouncing). Ride rollers when the weather's bad. Do downhill intervals - climb the hill, then ride down it in the same gear you climbed in, spinning as fast as you can to barely keep tension on the chain. Visualize your feet pedaling in circles, not squares. Do cadence intervals on the road - ride one minute at 90 rpm, then rest, then one minute at 100 rpm, then one minute at 110, and keep building until you can't maintain the minute without bouncing ... then go back down the ladder again.

There isn't necessarily one cadence that's the most efficient for everyone, but you ought to be able to spin with good form at any cadence. High RPM work helps build that form, because it unmasks the flaws in your pedal stroke.

And make sure your crankarms aren't too long for you.

How do I measure the crankarms?
I don't think the seat is to high, as the bike was fitted to me when I bought it in June. I think your dead on when you mention practice practice practice. My usual ride is pretty flat, with only 3 smallish hills. I need to find some decent hills to practice on.
I just got my first road bike this summer, so I still have a huge amount to learn
Thank you for the great advise

[laura*]

How do I measure the crankarms?

If you want to know what length they are, just look at the backside - almost all cranks have the length stamped/cast into the back side (aka inner side) somewhere. It'll be a number like 165, 170, 175, etc. This is the distance in mm center to center between the crank spindle and the pedal spindle.

However, I suspect you're asking how to measure for your correct size. Start by adjusting the saddle height to get good leg extension at the bottom of the pedal stroke. Your knee should remain slightly bent and you shouldn't need to "ankle" (tilt your foot) to reach the pedal. Now position the crank to check the top of the pedal stroke. Check the angle made by your knee. If this angle is too small, you can't make power at the start of the pedal stroke. This means the cranks are too long. If the angle is too large, you're giving up the potential leverage of a longer crank, and you're not using your muscles to their fullest. If you search the web, you'll find some recommended knee angles (for the top of the stroke). However, there's a significant personal preference issue here. You might simply prefer using a particular range of knee motion. And this might even change as your fitness level changes.

[indysteel]

Are we talking about spinning on hills or on the flats? It's perfectly normal for your cadence to slow down when you climb. If I tried to maintain 90 rpms when I climbed, my heart rate would go through the roof.

[Wasp]

Are we talking about spinning on hills or on the flats? It's perfectly normal for your cadence to slow down when you climb. If I tried to maintain 90 rpms when I climbed, my heart rate would go through the roof.

Spinning on flats. The hills I'm just grateful to pedal to the top, I have no idea what the uphill cadence is.
I think part of my problem is when I'm in the hardest gear on the small chainring I tend to bounce. But the easiest gear on the large chainring, causes knee pain after awhile. It seems like i need a in between gear, and im guessing thats something i need to train into?.

[Wasp]

Are we talking about spinning on hills or on the flats? It's perfectly normal for your cadence to slow down when you climb. If I tried to maintain 90 rpms when I climbed, my heart rate would go through the roof.

Spinning on flats. The hills I'm just grateful to pedal to the top, I have no idea what the uphill cadence is.
I think part of my problem is when I'm in the hardest gear on the small chainring I tend to bounce. But the easiest gear on the large chainring, causes knee pain after awhile. It seems like i need a in between gear, and im guessing thats something i need to train into?.

[indysteel]

I assume you have a compact crank on your bike. Unfortunately, I think compacts can make it hard to find the perfect gear on the flats because there are bigger jumps in the gears. Do you happen to know the specs for your cassette? Or just tell me what bike model and year you have. I might be able to look it up.

[indysteel]

I think part of my problem is when I'm in the hardest gear on the small chainring I tend to bounce. But the easiest gear on the large chainring, causes knee pain after awhile. It seems like i need a in between gear, and im guessing thats something i need to train into?.

After rereading this and looking at Sheldon Brown's gear calculator, I'm wondering if you're confused as to the difference between front and rear gearing. If your gearing is similar to mine, your big ring/big cog combination should be easier, not harder, than your little ring/litte cog combination. So, it doesn't make sense to me why you would be bouncing in your hardest little ring gear combination but experiencing knee pain with your easiest big ring gear combination.

Remember that the bigger the rear cog, the easier the gear. It's just the opposite in the front in that the bigger the chainring, the harder the gear.

Little chaingring + littlest cog = your biggest gear when you're using your little chainring.
Little chainring + biggest cog = your smallest gear of any front/rear combination.
Big chainring + littlest cog = your hardest gear of any front/rear combination.
Big chainring + biggest cog = your easiest gear when you're using the big chainring.

And if I'm way off track, I apologize. It's just that it's not uncommon for relatively new riders to think that the bigger the cog, the harder the gear.