Hills -- is it true?

[DDH]

Susan, I think I am like you. I have gotten so accustumed to sitting while riding and spinning that it seems all wrong to stand up. I have read so many differing opinions on climbing while standing and climbing while sitting that I don't know what is correct so you get to where you do what your use to and comfortable with. I almost never stand while riding. Talking to the LBS guy today, he is telling me to build my endourance up, to do intervals of standing pumping hard and then sitting and letting the heart rate slow, then stand, then sit.

What is a girl to do? I tell ya though, eventually I will have enough knowledge in my head and enough riding time under my belt that, next thing you know I will have my own training way down and know enough just to be dangerous.
Main thing is, I enjoy riding, and want to continue until I eventually get better.

[Geonz]

I'm strong on hills, but rarely get out of my seat - and I'm on a hybrid, and pretty positive there's a correlation there. I HATE the total change in balance; it just doesn't feel right at all.
It pays to shift early, and the other thing that really helps me is making sure to keep my stroke steadily going 'round and 'round the whole big circle.
I got stronger doing intervals without standing up. THere's a little excuse for a hill near me (there are very, very few hills around here) and doing repeats up that sucker does a lot for the endurance and strengtha nd speed.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Donna,
I didn't start standing up on hills until I'd been riding over 2 months most every day. At first, I coould not balance at all when standing...scary! Don't expect to be able to do everything before you get a bit more experience. There's nothing "wrong" with you- you just need more time to build up your skills (just like I do as well).
I practiced on a SMALL hill, and partway up I would put my hands on the hoods and pull myself to stand- I would just stand for one downstroke on each foot, wobble along, then had to sit again. With practice, I could stand for several strokes, and now it's just plain FUN to stand and power my way up a short hill....when I *can*. Long hard hills now...that's a real challenge and I usually spin them in low gear, envision clouds, and keep my breathing deep and even.

P.S. I just love your avatar picture

[kelownagirl]

Oh, that's exactly what I've been doing but you've put it into words for me! And it was working the same way - I have even passed dh a few times when normally I never could. Too bad he usually uses the same strategy... Anyways, I do it well on the rolling hills, but I die on the longer ones whether they are steep or not. Not enough stamina (yet

barb

Something I underestimated is shifting skills and momentum. This works for rollers, mostly. I spent a month on Vancouver Island this summer and it was ALL rolling hills, everywhere, and pretty serious hills in many cases. I have improved my shifting a lot, to a point where I can now sometimes pass my Dear Partner - a MUCH stronger cyclist than me, especially on hills - on an uphill with no hopes for him to catch up. I'm pretty sure that fitness is not the factor here, but strategy.

I thought he was just being nice in letting me pass him and not re-passing me immediately! But when he told me he actually couldn't catch up I started observing what I was doing on those specific occasions. I realized that, on the end of a given downhill, I'd shift up (or increase cadence if no bigger gears were available) and take all the speed I could find. Then I would start the climb and as soon as I started feeling resistance I'd shift down pretty quickly, maintaining a very high cadence.

In other words, it means no real resting on the downhill. But a really fun time on the uphill!!!!

In any case, practice is the key. There is no other way to get good on hills. Sometimes slow, sometimes fast, in different gears, trying different tricks, sitting, standing, singing (it helps). Smiling at the hill is also a booster! I think it makes the hill shy away.

[kelownagirl]

Standing just tires me out so fast, but I like doing it. The main time I really stand is when I take off when the light turns green at an intersection. And that makes me feel like a kid, like someone else already mentioned..

[SouthernBelle]

Standing just tires me out so fast, but I like doing it. The main time I really stand is when I take off when the light turns green at an intersection. And that makes me feel like a kid, like someone else already mentioned..

That's when I can stand!!

[BeeLady]

I am doing much better on hills mainly by concentrating on keeping my cadence steady in lower gears and have at times been able to go into a higher gear near the top to get over the top fast and moving well into the descent.

When I try to stand, however, when I'm in a low enough gear that can keep me at 75 cadence or so, its like there's no resistence when I stand and no significant forward movement. Should I be shifting into a higher gear before I stand? I have toyed with that but because I have dislocated my right kneecap several times in my past life, I worry about stressing the knee by standing and pushing a bigger gear. I don't know if the standing or the bigger gear is what seems to stress it. Standing while in a small gear doesnt seem right or am I just not doing it right?

I am doing small arc knee extensions to strenghten my knee but the question I have is once I can push a bigger gear standing is that what the object is? Move along with my smooth cadence, shift up and then stand?

Or just enjoy the fact that I've improved as much as I have on hills (no longer will I go a mile out of my way to avoid one!) and leave the standing til Im stronger in general??? (Like I really have a choice )

[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.

[Cassandra_Cain]

When I try to stand, however, when I'm in a low enough gear that can keep me at 75 cadence or so, its like there's no resistence when I stand and no significant forward movement. Should I be shifting into a higher gear before I stand? I have toyed with that but because I have dislocated my right kneecap several times in my past life, I worry about stressing the knee by standing and pushing a bigger gear. I don't know if the standing or the bigger gear is what seems to stress it. Standing while in a small gear doesnt seem right or am I just not doing it right?

Hi Bee - when I am going to stand while climbing, I generally shift up 1 or 2 gears. As you've discovered, standing and trying to pedal in an easy gear is not very productive. When you stand you produce a bit more power than when sitting because more of your body weight is over the cranks and your arms help a bit too.

I am doing small arc knee extensions to strenghten my knee but the question I have is once I can push a bigger gear standing is that what the object is? Move along with my smooth cadence, shift up and then stand?

Or just enjoy the fact that I've improved as much as I have on hills (no longer will I go a mile out of my way to avoid one!) and leave the standing til Im stronger in general??? (Like I really have a choice )

Hmmm, I'd say the object is getting up the hill as fast and comfortably as possible right?

Standing while climbing uses up a disproportionate amount of energy. If you ever watch a professional cycling race, you'll notice that the riders that spend the most time standing while on a climb, are those with very light 'climber' builds. I'm talking 5'7", 130 pounds here. The rest of us conserve much more energy by sitting most of the time.

[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

[CR400]

Personally I climb in my drops when standing, sprint in my drops, and power up (starting in a big gear and spinning it up to the speed I want to be at) in them. Helps me to feel that I have more control of the bike especailly when using the big watts it takes to get this fat body up a hill. I use hoods for relaxed riding and the tops for even more relaxed riding.

[Trek420]

I climb seated, hardley ever stand, hands on the hoods, and badly

I think I could stand to relaxe my arms a bit.

there's a photo here

www.breastcancerfund.org/siteapps/tools/PhotoDetail.aspx?c=kwKXLdPaE&b=2068549&p={FA89DBB9-08EA-4972-9E91-9799E7E6D7AF}&st=ASC

same gallery photo # 37 is our own cindysue and her crew.

It's taken by Mark Fong, Marc Fong, Jr. and Carol Melanie Galan who provided photographs for the Breast Cancer Fund. Photographs may not be reproduced, copied, televised, digitized or used in any way without permission of the Breast Cancer Fund and/or the photographer so not gonna import it

[Quillfred]

I climb seated, hardley ever stand, hands on the hoods, and badly

I think I could stand to relaxe my arms a bit.

there's a photo here

www.breastcancerfund.org/siteapps/tools/PhotoDetail.aspx?c=kwKXLdPaE&b=2068549&p={FA89DBB9-08EA-4972-9E91-9799E7E6D7AF}&st=ASC

Hey, nice pic Trek! You get extra points for smiling on a climb.

[Trek420]

Thanks! I had a feeling that would be a good picture because he caught me:

* early in the ride on Tunnel Road before I was cursing the hills.
* on a turn, I'd just got the line right and was enjoying a tiny bit of momentum.
* when my grimace could be mistaken for a smile.

Only thing wrong is if I knew he's around the corner I'd still have my AV arm skins up, I'd just pushed them down 8-(

I'd like to use the photo on my homepage but I'm contacting the photographer first.