Originally Posted by
hillcrawler
I've been thinking about this while i was riding today. I have a hybrid bike with flat pedals and road bike clipless. As you know, you are applying maybe 4 different types of force with clipless pedals. Pressing, lifting, pushing (forward) and pulling (back). Well but in the same time you are wasting, let's say consuming more energy for your extra efforts. In the end you are getting exhausted quicker. Maybe it sounds bullish but i gave a thought about it. What would you say?
With clipless (or cleats of course), you can go faster, period. Yes, more muscles are at work to utilize the entire cycle correctly, and all those muscles become progressively stronger and more efficient over time enabling greater power. I'd bet a very large sum of $$ that measurable results like TT's would exhibit markedly faster times with clipless vs. flats for the same riders.