How's your pedaling technique...

[cannondale]

I'm always looking for more efficient ways to pedal. Here are some of mine.

Flats - hammer the quads, pushing the pedals, high cadence.
Hills - more pulling, little standing, some wiping like there is mud on my shoes and I'm wiping it off, like a horizontal motion.

What's your technique?

[pat5319]

Two things to help you-

Practice pedaling with one leg with the other COMPLETLY off the pedal, this will force you to put power very nearly around the full "circle" and to keep the force TANGENT to the crankarm. This will increase your power while making it more efficient, and smooth your stroke

Work on your spin, make yourself spin as fast as you possibly can-faster than you'll ever need to. After you've warmed up, get in an "EASY" gear and practice accelerations until you can't spin any faster on each one. Ride down hills spinning in a low gear, ( small chainring). Ride a "fixed" gear. The fast spin makes your muscles "fire" more efficiently and also smooths your stroke- great for your normal spin.
My goal each spring is to be able to hit, ( AT LEAST), 160 rpm on the road, 200 rpm on the ergometer (trainer).

Ride to Spin, not to Push
Pat