Training with a Single Speed
 

When I was a kid playing baseball my father encouraged me to swing a lead weighted bat before a game, the theory being that during the course of the game a regular wood bat would feel lighter in my hands, increasing bat speed. That being said, I use a steel single speed for exercise and save my carbon geared bike for events. Actually it's fun trying to stay with the geared bikes on my daily rides. Obviously I get blown away by serious riders. I have found that when I switch to my geared bike speed is easier and I can control better. Does anyone here train on a single speed and what are your conclusions?

Id go to the Gym.. for muscle strength.. and Spinning Classes for the high RPM training..

that way you can concentrate on the workout, and not get hit in traffic.

Me, I ride my bike to get places..

I train on a fixed gear, which is not exactly the same thing (i.e. a single speed can freewheel whereas a fixed gear cannot) but I find it really helps me smooth out my pedal stroke so I can spin up climbs better when I'm on my geared bike. Regarding increased strength; no, probably not.

That said, it's often helpful to be able to apply the strength you have more effectively, even if when you're not really increasing your strength.

Rick / OCRR

Yup. Riding a fixed gear bike has made me a better and stronger rider. No question.

A friend of mine used to train with the East German cycling team back in the old days. They used to train on fixed gear bikes in the winter and early season. The coach would make them go up crazy steep grades until they fell over!

If I were to begin my racing career over again, I'd go out on group training rides on a fixed gear. You're working harder on the steeper hills, you're developing a fluid spin on the flats, you're spinning like a fool on the descents. You're unlikely to win the town line sprints, but just staying with the sprint as long as you can gives you far better training that will pay off when you're on the geared bike. While everybody is coasting, you are working. You are getting a FAR, FAR better workout than everybody else, so why would you even think of giving up this advantage?

Back in the 70's I was out on one or two early season training rides with the Berkeley Wheelmen where Mike Neel (one of the top US riders of his day) would show up on a fixed gear bike (a track bike with a front brake attached and a 15mm Campag "peanut butter wrench" strapped under the saddle with his spare). He'd power away from the group on his 66" gear and win the town line sprints!

Now most of my riding is on a fixed gear. I think that in the longer events (like Paris-Brest-Paris), it's actually an advantage. On a geared bike, the temptation is to ride in the biggest gear you can spin, so you're always on the verge of "pushing" a gear. On a fixie, you have no choice. Most of the time you are spinning too small a gear. However, what this does is to flush out the lactic acid from your muscles. So after 150-200 km, your legs feel heavy on the geared bike, but you're still fresh on the fixie!

Luis

Not much 'feel the burn' with this style of riding?

I enjoy riding my singlespeed bikes for training, some of my best average speeds have been achieved on these bikes. I converted them from fixed gear mainly for safety reasons while riding on the street, but I think they have definitely helped with my training.

I was riding a Worksman single-speed bike for a couple of years prior to getting my current bike. That bike was relatively low-geared, which helped on hills. On the other hand, at higher speeds, what works best is giving it two or three fast spins then a quick coast, spin again, then coast. In other words, it teaches you to pedal irregularly. So it's not always better.

I have a friend here that used to ride fixed gear bikes extensively and had to quit due to knee issues- so there can be a downside.

My two big rides (solo) during the week are on a fixed. It has made a difference. The few people I do ride with on occasion can still drop me. It just takes them a little longer now.

Fixed gear is an entirely separate issue, but I guess I am too much of a gearhead to see the appeal of a freewheeling single speed.

If I ever try fixed gear again (tried it once, almost 40 years ago, didn't like it), it will be with the newly reissued 3-speed Sturmey Archer hub.

Seriously? They've done this?

That was an old wives tale in baseball similar with similar merit to the old school method of riding fixed gear bikes.

You guys talking about "smoothing our my pedal stroke" do know there are many out there ready to debunk your theories?

I, of course, am not one of them.

I like fixed gear riding. I also have the makings for several single-speed bikes to build up when I get home. The simplicity is wonderful, and the workout is great depending on the gearing and terrain. My legs were strongest and my centuries fastest on a geared bike after an extended period of riding fixed.

Even if it didn't prove to increase bat speed (and I don't think that's the case) the wooden bat felt lighter inspiring confidence. That, in itself, was beneficial. Same is true for single speed or fixed gear. Climb a hill pushing a 46 by 16 and then do it on a geared bike using a lower gear. Simple math.

Beginning last December I did all my outdoor road rides on a fixed gear bike until March. On Sunday's, I rode in fixie group rides of up to 60 miles that my coach organized. I think it benefitted my riding to an extent. I do know that in March when I raced in the Barry Roubaix gravel road race in Michigan I was killing the rolling hills compared to the other riders.

I thought about getting a fixie for several years, and never picked one up due to my concerns about additional, unnecessary risk associated with riding a fixie. I have friends who have crashed by hitting a pedal on a speed bump, falling on ice, and not being able to control speed on a downhill. None of these crashes would have occurred with a free wheeling hub. Instead, I focused on spinning classes over the winter.

I'd always get a bike in the front row where I could observe my upper body in the mirror. I focused on maintaining a perfectly still upper body while constantly increasing my work effort. The spin bikes I used were Keiser bikes with magnetic resistance freewheels and a computer that gives an estimate of power. The immediate biofeedback of observing myself during all levels of effort on a bike dramatically improved my smoothness and ability to generate useful cycling power. But in general, any increase in riding over the winter will be very helpful.

I no longer have access to Keiser spin classes, so I've just ordered my own Keiser. It's going into the "shed", along with a set of mirrors to observe my form.

If you haven't ridden a Keiser, it's a world apart from the felt friction pad spin bikes that are normally associated with spinning classes.

I still totally lust after a Cinelli MASH SSCX frame set, but I'll probably continue to take a pass.

[QUOTE=Terex;14745004]I thought about getting a fixie for several years, and never picked one up due to my concerns about additional, unnecessary risk associated with riding a fixie. I have friends who have crashed by hitting a pedal on a speed bump, falling on ice, and not being able to control speed on a downhill. None of these crashes would have occurred with a free wheeling hub. Instead, I focused on spinning classes over the winter.

This is why I ride a single speed. I very rarely coast except at speed downhill. It's better in traffic emergencies and I can use clipless pedals. I'm not sure if you can ride fixies with clipless pedals. I find it boring to spin on a machine. I'd be afraid that I'd lose interest and stop exercising.

[QUOTE=Frankfast;14745235]True and true. A single speed (non-fixie) may be in my future. Re the spinning, I have enough experience that boredom isn't an issue. I look forward to being able to quickly get in some highly focused training when my Keiser arrives. I have a perfectly good fluid trainer that just doesn't interest me. Go figure. At the end of the day, we've all got to go with what works best on an individual basis.

Oh, for high level training, clipless (or old school clips) are what most people use. Keeps your feet from flying off the pedals on downhills, and assists with power when climbing.

Shorter crank arms can help with this.

Yes. I have one of the new 3-speed fixed gear hubs (S3X) on my winter/bad weather bike. It's not a re-issue of the old ASC 3-speed fixed gear hub from the 1940s, but a new design. The gearing is much wider (0.625, 0.75, 1.0) on the S3X vs 0.75, 0.90, 1.0 on the old ASC hub, and the S3X uses a 3-planet transmission for better load balancing than the 4-planet ASC transmission.

I don't think you can fault those entirely to the fixed gear. Pedal strike can be minimized by using a frame designed for fixed gear (i.e. high bottom bracket) and/or short crank arms. I don't see that fixed gears are any more or less hazardous on ice than freewheel bikes, and downhill speed can be readily controlled by a hand brake(s).

You don't need a single speed bike to climb hills in a big gear. There's nothing magic about training on a fixed gear bike that you couldn't do equally well if not better on a regular bike.

Riding a fixed gear breaks you of the habit of coasting.

Incorrect.

Getting a single speed enforces the discipline. Sure you could refuse to shift, but there is nothing so motivating as not having that option.

I don't race or anything, but when I got a single speed bike, I learned a lot about riding- the benefits of different cadences (spinning vs. mashing), how to read the terrain, how to attack a hill, improvements to my out-of-seat technique (which used to be lousy and undisciplined), how to manage energy.

Sure, a person *could* do that on a geared bike, but try doing it ride in, ride out, ride after ride. SS makes you do it, makes you think your game. Once you go back to multi-gear bikes, that experience helps manage the gears better.

Have you ever ridden a fixed gear or single speed bicycle as an adult?

Fine. Some people are only motivated if they ride in groups or on an expensive bike. Whatever gets you out there riding is good I suppose. You can still learn all those techniques you mentioned just as well on a regular bike. The reality is a fixed gear bike puts more limitations on your training than a geared bike.

It's a bit like adding weights to your current bike. Ride around for a while on a heavier bike and it will feel lighter and easier when you take the weight off. That doesn't mean it's a good training technique.

Then why bring all those gears if your not going to use them. A steel single speed for me is a means to an end. It makes my geared carbon bike feel like a rocket, especially climbing.

On the track yes.

I don't have that habit unless I'm descending when it becomes quite useful.

I bring them because they're on my bike and I do use them. Occasionally in the winter I'll do a group ride and stay in my 39-15. It's a tough workout particularly on downwind legs. I do it for a change of pace. I also ride a MTB for change of pace and when I go back to my road bike it feels different.

Just because you road bike 'feels' like a rocket doesn't mean you are any faster or powerful than you would have been if you'd stayed riding your road bike.