Pedaling Technique Basics
Pedaling Technique Basics by Michael Smartt @ Smartt Training
(I recently wrote this piece for the Whole Athlete newsletter with the help of Dario Fredrick)
What is “Good” Pedaling Technique?
If you have completed a long season of road, mountain bike or triathlon racing, the fall and winter months are the time to back off from the high intensity stress of competition and focus on things like getting in those steady miles, cross training, unstructured fun rides and technique. Proper cycling technique is often touted as a critical aspect of cycling performance. Claims are made about greatly increasing economy, efficiency, power at the same heart rate, etc. if you regularly spend time doing various drills on the bike to improve technique.
But what is “good” pedaling technique in cycling anyway? Is it pedaling in circles, mashing, or somewhere in between? Does “good” pedaling technique differ between cycling disciplines? And of course, in the end how much does it all matter?
First, let’s dispel the notion of realizing “huge” gains in cycling economy/efficiency simply from technique training. Unless you are literally wrestling with the bike and/or incorporating excessive upper body movement, your aerobic fitness (% MSS vs. maximal aerobic power) and genetic talents (% of type I muscle fiber) will largely determine your cycling economy (or the ratio of VO2 and watts) for a given intensity during cycling (1, 2). Also, due to the confines of being connected to the bike, efficiency and economy are essentially the same for most trained cyclists. This isn’t to say that pedaling technique is not an aspect of your training you should ignore. Rather it is important to appropriately distribute training time and energy based on prospective gains.
However, to get some insight into what is good technique, the renowned Dr. Ed Coyle and his cohorts published a notable paper comparing “elite national class” (group 1) and “good state class” (group 2) cyclists (3). What they found from a simulated 40k time trial on a laboratory ergometer was that the more powerful national class cyclists had higher peak torque values during the down stroke compared with the other group; i.e. the slower group pedaled in smoother circles compared to the faster group that relatively mashed (Fig. 1). Similar average economy (VO2 vs. watts) was seen in both groups. -
Figure 1 -
It’s interesting to note that the authors felt that the technique employed by group 2 was a more effective approach based on the total effective pedal forces (what is typically referred to as a more efficient technique, better spin, smoother stroke, etc). Put another way, group 2’s technique more effectively eliminated the “dead spots” at the top and bottom of the pedal stroke. However, since economy was not significantly different, group 1 demonstrated that at the intensity most highly correlated with successful road/mountain performance (2: equivalent to mid z4 for Whole Athlete) it was of primary concern to put power to the pedals as effectively as possible during the most naturally powerful part of the pedal stroke, the down stroke. Group 1 did however apply enough torque during the upstroke to keep from imparting any significant negative torque that would work against forward propulsion.
Put it all together and the foundation for good pedaling technique at race pace/long time trial intensity or higher comes down to maximizing downward force production and lifting just enough on the upstroke to un-weight the rising leg, eliminating any potential negative torque (Fig. 2). Although these concepts lay the groundwork for a powerful pedal stroke, there are other considerations to account for.
The Coyle (3) study looked at road cyclists ranging from top 20 performers at state ITT championships all the way to former national TT champions. But what about triathletes, mountain bikers, track racers, any cyclist with injuries to consider or lower intensities?
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Categories: Coaching and Training, Hub, Science of Cycling
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