Originally Posted by
DaHaMac
CraigB, I have tried to make myself relax the grip when climbing but its an ongoing battle. Now I know relaxing the grip is the best thing to do.
RollCNY, You described exactly what I am doing and helped me understand why I hate long hills. The short hills with which I am familiar I will stand on entry in my highest gear until cadence slows then quickly downshift to lowest gear and spin the rest of the way. The long hills are killing me though and it is mainly my breathing that it hurting so bad. I imagine that is because I am restricting my breathing by pulling so hard.
Biggziff, thanks for the link because I am currently using the stock pedals on the bike so I have no assistance on the upstroke. I asked at the LBS this weekend about cages but was not shown any. I'm not sure if I want to clipless on this bike but know I will on my next bike which will be more of a road bike.
Pulling while climbing is a natural response and there's really nothing wrong with it. Having a death grip while riding on level roads for very long periods isn't a good idea but when climbing, do what seems natural.
Pulling on the bars, as RollCNY, says has an advantage while climbing. We can only exert a force equal to our weight when pedaling if you have a relaxed grip on the bars. Pulling upwards on the bars in climbing situations actually lets us increase the downward force slightly. Since the bike is such a light vehicle even a slight increase in pedal force has a good effect on the power transfer. For short bursts, the stress this puts on your body is inconsequential. Don't do it all the time - the dreaded 'death grip' - but for short intense efforts, it does help.
Your wide bars should negate any problems with restricted breathing due to pulling on the bars but there is a technique to pulling on the bars. Don't try to push off the back of the saddle. Pull your upper body towards the handlebars. You can even slide a little forward on the saddle. Use your arms to pull yourself down but resist with your abdominals. This will result in your arms being bent at the elbows and your chest area should be wide open as if you were in the middle of doing a push up...think about half way down. This has the added benefit of centering your weight over the bike where it needs to be to get the best power. When you ride mountain bikes uphill, you use this technique to balance between keeping the front wheel on the ground and keeping the back wheel from losing traction. But it works well on road too.