Originally Posted by
Racing Dan
I dont buy the "higher rpm is more efficient" dogma. Try Spinning at 120 rpm on a very light load compared to 80 rpm. At 120 you spend a lot of energy just moving yous legs up and down, spinning the crank, even without doing any real work (moving the bike). Just try it out and you'll see.
The point of high RPM isn't energy/oxygen efficiency, it's reducing torque to keep the leg muscles from exploding.
(Similarly, the point of high torque is to avoid spinning out. The body has a lot of bottlenecks, and it's all a balancing act.)