Originally Posted by BudFox

I've been using this technique over the past few months more and more on my rides. And now that the necessary muscles have developed, I am really amazed how effective it is. I can't recommend it more highly to anyone who wants to get faster and keep the speed up for longer periods.

For those who are not too familiar with the technique, allow me to share my experience. It starts with the general idea of "scraping off the bottom of your shoes". You'll probably find it awkward at first, especially if you're used to mashing. The calf and back of the leg come into play, as opposed to the dominant thigh muscle. It's definitely more effective at a higher rpm, especially at first. I typically spin at 85 to 95 rpm anyway.

I also found that it helped to have my seat at the higher range of the "comfort zone" so as to allow for a smoother spin in general, as opposed to a lower position where the knees are exposed to greater stresses from lateral leg movement and patellar friction.

If you are already comfortable spinning, then it simply requires adding the bottom pull immediately after the downstroke. What's amazing is that you can add another couple of MPH just by adding this simple technique. All other things being equal, your level of effort and heart rate will increase. But you will find that your legs will not fatigue as quickly as you are spreading the effort over more muscles. This is especially effective on climbs as you'll find yourself tapping into your pulling power more at top of the climb as the lactic acid floods your larger muscles. Just don't over-pull as you will strain the back of your knee as you pull around the back side of the pedal stroke. You should never attempt to pull up on the pedals, period!

But there is another way to use the bottom pull technique. Towards the end of a hard ride, when your thighs are toast but you want to keep moving, you can actually skip the downstroke and just do the back stroke. To avoid the awkward dead spot in your pedaling, I find it helpful to let my foot float over the top of the pedal stroke and wait for the bottom of the stroke before engaging the pedal. This has the added benefit of allowing you to stretch your cramped feet in your shoes and adjust your foot to the back of the shoe, if there is any play in them. Now you're just pulling and giving your tired thighs a much needed rest. I wouldn't recommend this on hills and only for limited periods of time as your calves will inevitably cramp up from the effort.

Try it, you'll like it! I promise.