Originally Posted by
PiLigand
Also, it seemed like you were trying to correct me about elliptical cranksets, but you don't seem to have done that in any way - unless I'm missing something.
Must be a miscommunication -- I haven't discussed elliptical or oval chainrings in this thread. (As far as I know, the data on those is inconclusive.)
....now I'm confused, because I'm not sure what you get from this. That leg has got to come up anyways otherwise you're going for a very short ride. So, am I missing something?
Just the actual power data from strain gauges in pedal-based power meters.
Here's a vector map for a typical (clipped-in) pedal stroke. You'll notice how on the upstroke, there is still negative force applied to the pedal.
Presumably this is because you can't lift your leg fast enough to completely "get out of the way" of the upstroke.
And here's the power profile of a typical pedal stroke (again, clipped in):
Your math is slightly off, in your favor; each leg is 10% of your body's weight, not 15%. Still, let's say it takes 75N to lift your leg @ 90rpm. That's a significant amount of force in this context, yes?
You might also note that as cadence increases, the amount of effective force per rotation also decreases. We see the same thing with low cadence as we see with intentionally pulling on the upstroke -- the force is greater, but overall gross efficiency is lower. Similar to with foot retention, mashing
feels more powerful, because each pedal stroke
is more powerful. As an overall method, though, it's detrimental.