blanqui

A few people have told me that because I'm 6'3" and wiry it's more efficient for me to climb standing on some of the long 6-8%s in our neck of the woods. They didn't provide a reason. Is this BS?

johnny99

Climbing seated puts more stress on your legs. Climbing standing puts more stress on your heart and lungs. Skinny people usually better cardio and poorer leg strength than heavier people, so standing is worth trying, at least some of the time.

aMull

^ That may be true but both sitting and standing, my legs are the first to give out. I can't remember the last time i had to slow down because of my lungs or heart.

BigSean

Im 6'3 and wirey. I prefer to climb seated. Standing is alot more tiring to me cardio wise. Seated seems to work better for me. I stand for short steep kick ups then back to sitting. Ill also stand on occasion to change up, but only for a minute.

johnny99

Try using a lower gear and increasing your cadence. That will put less stress on your legs. This works for Lance Armstrong.

phoenity

I'm 5'11" but have very long legs in comparison to my torso. I went for a short ride Saturday and headed up a steep, twisty mountain road. On the way up I remained seated and actually had to stop to rest a few times. I descended down the mountain, stopped at a little country store for some water, and headed back up the same mountain to head home.

The return climb I was out of the saddle on the steepest parts of the climb and sat down for the flatter parts (no part of this mountain was flat!). To my surprise, my heart rate was actually lower climbing out of the saddle and I didn't stop once to take a break. I felt amazing when I got to the top the second time as opposed to my heart beating out of my chest the first time.

joshalope

Climbing standing is never more efficient than climbing seating because you are diverting energy to feed the muscles of your arms and torso. With that said, if your aerobic efficiency isn't fantastic, the added leverage of climbing out of the saddle may give you the perception that it's easier. I don't think height has anything to do with it. FWIW, I'm 6'2" and do most of my climbing in the saddle unless its just a short little hill, I'm sprinting, or I'm just flat out exhausted and need all the leverage I can get to turn the cranks.

waterrockets 

Standing on a climb also works for Lance (intermittently).

I've never heard a relationship between height and standing climbing, but I like to stand 20% of the climb -- more if it's over 10% grade.

ridethecliche

From what I've read (aka Carmichael articles on bicycling.com), it's really helpful to alternate atleast a little bit. Look at what people do on climbs during races. It's exactly that.

When you do stand up, be sure to try to align your sternum/midsection with the knee that's on the downstroke, this way you put a lot more of your weight directly on the pedal side and use your weight as a tool instead of leaning it on the other side or standing perpendicular to the top tube.

pedex

ya for like 10-20 minutes at a time on occasion, sometimes longer

malec

Not sure if this applies to road biking (I just bought my first road bike) but climbing in the saddle is much more efficient on a mountain bike because of the weight transfer toward the front end when you stand up. Keeping weight on the rear wheel ensures that you're transferring as much of your effort toward forward motion as you can.

2Tired2Shift

I found the best thing for me was to mix it up; alternate to give the different muscles some recovery time.

phoenity

Not sure about that personally - I guess it depends how you position yourself over the bike. Out of the saddle I can put all my weight into the peddles while having just a light touch on the bars. I don't see how that's inefficient at all...

pedex

cause your also supporting your weight with your legs too, and that takes energy which could be used to turn the cranks with

from what ive seen, people over about 150-160lbs start progressively having a harder time out of the saddle, and you get up over 220lbs and you wont see many out of the saddle cept on rare occasions, it zaps too much of their strength, power to weight ratio comes into play

Terex

I'm pretty sure that the taller you are, the less efficient you are climbing out of the saddle. Center of gravity, moment arms, etc.

ericgu

I'm 6' 2" and wiry (164 pounds), and climbing seated is far easier. I do stand from time-to-time to use different muscles and rest my butt.

DrPete 

Unless I'm attacking on a climb, I'm in the saddle, usually at 90-100rpm. If I need a little extra kick I might get out of the saddle, but it wears me out quickly. I'm 6'2 and 200#.

jrobe

It is interesting to climb with a power meter and HR monitor. My heartrate standing goes up about 10 points to maintain the same power output as compared to sitting. I have to stand from time to time to stretch out but it certainly isn't as efficient as sitting.

pedex

ya but how much do you weigh?

how often do you stand?

and whats your max sustainable in the saddle power vs max sustainable out of the saddle?

I wouldnt be shocked if lighter people show less HR difference in or out of the saddle as heavier people.

dancing on the pedals is something that does take practice, the body doesnt like it much at first, but it gets much easier with some practice, its just like intervals

TheKillerPenguin

I stand a lot. Different strokes for different folks

spiderbike

I can usually climb faster out of the saddle if its not to long of a hill but I'm more gassed at the top of the hill then when I stay seated. I use both techniques, it just depends on the hill. Steep and short I will stand, Steep and long I might stand and sit, Shallow and long I stay seated.

mic2377

This brings up some interesting points. I am also 6'3", weighing about 165 lbs. I would not consider myself a particular strong "sprint" type cyclist, however, I do climb very well. I generally stand when grade exceeds 15% for extended periods, as my bike has a 39/23 low gear.

Whether I climb seated or standing depends. Several things are certainly true:
1. Climbing standing almost always places a higher load on cardio capacity
2. Spinning at a higher RPM reduces muscle strength demand but increases cardio load
3. Thin, slight people will have to stand more, and are likely more efficient at it

One important facet for those who like to ride standing is increasing efficiency while standing, and shift to a higher gear!!!!! Cyclists often have a good spin when seated but everything goes to pot when they get up "out of saddle."

If you try and climb with the same gear as sitting, you will certainly blow up sooner! I drop two gears and lower my cadence accordingly to where it has an efficiency that is somewhat close to climbing seated. I also have very little upper body movement, and don't throw the bike back and forth.

The best way to get this all worked out is to get yourself a HR monitor and timer, and find a LONG hill to go experiment with. You will quickly figure out what works for you.

I am from WI, and lately I have been doing studies like this at a place called Blue Mounds state park. It is a 3.5 mile long hill, around 1000 feet vertical climb. Through training and developing better technique I managed to go from ascending the hill in around 22 min to 15 min in the course of 2 months. Excellent results for the time invested.

Cheers~

phoenity

Not if you know how to peddle efficiently... (not just mashing on every downstroke)

I guess it's different for everyone. I like to be out of the saddle. During the winter I'll do spinning classes at the gym nearby. Sometimes I'll go hard out of the saddle for a full hour just because I can.

I don't feel awkward out of the saddle. I don't have an uneven amount of weight on my arms or my legs. I just feel like I'm floating on the peddles... *shrug*


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiCIJ2JewPE

Watch how his legs move so fluidly when he's out of the saddle. He's not just mashing downward.

timmyquest

Indeed. For me it really depends on the length/grade of the hill. Those short steep hills always get me out of the saddle, as do the top of longer hills.

Bantam

I am tiny and medium height. I find my explosiveness on climbs is totally out of the saddle. I usually spin until the verge of mashing, drop a gear and jump out of the saddle. I don't find it to be a huge energy sap either.