Upstroke
 

I have sort of heard of this, but never seen it explained. When pedaling, I do not put any effort in my upstroke. My legs only push down and rest for a brief period on the upstroke before pushing down again. Am I pedaling inefficiently? Should my legs be putting energy towards my upstroke? I have thought about this, but I was unsure on whether this is the correct way to pedal. Thanks in Advance.

i like this link:

http://tbfreewheelers.com/Tips/circular.html

it feels weird to "scrap" the foot back at the bottom of the pedal stroke and then push it forward at the top, but you'll get used to it. if you have a trainer, try pedaling with one foot - you'll quickly see where your dead spots are.

There is no up and down stroke, you're pedalling in circles. Keep your heel down, focus on pedalling in circles...keep it natural.....don't focus too hard.....big circles..... Oh, and search the archives so i don't feel like Bill Murray :rolleyes:

G'day,

ooohhh bet that one went 'swoosh'...(hitchy waves his hand over his head!)...however, on the subject of keeping tigerboy Bill murray........Shimano is much better than campy...lance is on drugs.....& carbon gives a better ride than steel....now...the alarm is about to go off!...you ready T/boy? :D

Cheers,

Hitchy

I appreciate the responses. I did search the archives for 'upstroke' since that is the only word I know to describe the pedaling. If I knew what the hell I was talking about, I probably could have narrowed my search down to something that I can read instead of starting a whole new thread. I apologize... smartasses. :)

try 'pedal stoke', 'pedaling', 'circular pedaling', 'spinning', etc.. you should be able to find some pretty good stuff.

If you rest your foot on the pedal when it is coming up, a lot of effort by the pushing foot is lifting the resting foot rather than propelling the bike. You leg muscles are not made for pulling with your feet, but if you make sure there is no weight on your pedal in the upstroke, you will find you go alot faster. Also try and push the pedal forward at the top and back at the bottom of the stroke.

Thanks for all the responses. I will try a different search technique. I don't entirely rest my leg on the upstroke, I just have never made an effort to pull all the way through or work in a circular motion. I did try a little bit last night and found that my speed increased and I could last longer and wasn't as winded, (talking about biking here). I am sure if I keep concentrating I will make my pedaling more efficient.