Originally Posted by
terrymorse
No, standing does not require twice the energy than seated pedaling. For well-trained cyclists, standing and seated energy is about the same.
The power to the wheels is determined by how hard you work, not by your cycling position. You can produce more or less power standing, if you choose.
Yeah, there are several factors but not a big net load. There is additional internal workload from stabilizing muscles, a small internal work savings due to a lower cadence (less power spent moving legs, feet and pedals at a given speed) and a small external load due to increased air resistance of taller profile.
Otto