How to improve climbing
 

Hey all,

I have done a quick Google search, as well as checked here, but I am hoping that I can get some experiential advice as to how people have improved their own climbing.

I currently live in a very hilly/mountainous area where most of my rides include climbing multiple 500m+ hills (recently rode a 200k with 3,900m of elevation gain), so I am comfortable climbing. However, there is a short 6-7 min climb that a few friends and I use for training and timing. I felt that I was competitive with a time of 7:03, but it was smashed yesterday by my riding partner with a time... damn him.. of 6:14. :crash:

What now? I have not been doing any 'specific' training, just riding, but I'd like to hear what people have found to be the most effective way to increase speed, power, and effectivness on the big hills.

Thanks in advance... this is keeping me up at night...:innocent:

ride up it, ride down it, ride up it again. repeat until your legs fall off.

like any strength training, you improve by doing.

+1

Intervals. Find a hill, sprint up it as fast as you can for a short period of time. Sit back for another short period of time. Repeat.

/thread

doing multiple repeats at a slow pace isn't necessarily the most effective way to get better at climbing. try doing hard efforts in fewer numbers rather than easy effort with more repeats

hmmm ... how about a little cross training like with running shoes, do some hill sprints, or go to a local college and run up those huge bleachers a few times

Loose a few kilos if you can.

this might be the most useless piece of advice I've ever seen posted on BF.
For one, what makes you think the OP has access to huge bleachers where he or she lives (Korea).
For another, running bleachers doesn't make you a better climber, it only beats the crap out of your knees.

There are well over a hundred threads on BF discussing this very subject.
Consensus seems to be hill repeats.
What helped me the most was mapping out a route with 5-7 decent climbs, going as hard as I can uphill and recovering on the downhills.
It really does get easier over time.

(edit - rumrunn6, where are you located? I'm in Fitchburg, lots of good climbs within 20 miles of where I am including Wachusett and Temple)

That's a relatively short climb.

You can practice by doing 5-7 minute intervals beyond threshold power, near VO2MAX.

So something like 2 sets of 2 x 5 ON, 5 min OFF, 2 x a week.

BTW, I will be visiting your country next month with my bike. Hope there are some good climbs, we shall see :D

+1

Running stairs will totally trash your knees. :eek:

I have started to wonder if I will ever get better at climbing. With me the problem isn't leg strength, it is lack of oxygen. I had a cardio related surgery a year and a half ago and I feel that I have made improvement since then but on inclines my heart rate still maxes out. Maybe it takes years of constant work to become a better climber.

I found this out for myself, last February I was in Gainsville Fl. without a bike. So I thought it would be a good idea to run the bleachers at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (UoF).
I couldn't walk right for over a week after a couple of sessions.

I've found that by just sticking with it you'll make incremental gains that will turn into significant gains over time.

1. Practice 5-10 minute hill climbs. Over and over again.
2. Loose weight if you have it to spare
3. Rest a couple days before "racing" your buddy. You want fresh legs when you throw it down.

This pretty much sums it up.

''

Thanks, this is good advice. I have seen some improvements in my climbing ability during the past year. I also lift weights and progress in weight training comes much faster than in cycling.

Thanks for the responses. As mentioned, I am comfortable climbing already, and I have no choice but to climb regularly anyway. If possible, I am looking for a specific program, such as 5-7 minute intervals beyond threshold power, near VO2MAX. Particularly one that people have experience with.

Advice is helpful, but I am already in very good shape (refer to the original post), so dropping weight, doing general climbs, etc. are not specific enough to help.

Thanks for any help... and keep climbing.

kimconyc: Lots of climbs here. If you are looking for some specific advise, check out Han Rivers Riders on Facebook... great country to ride in (just watch-out for drivers!!).

The hill you're trying to attack just happens to be perfect for the intervals you should be doing.

Climb it on the hardest gear you can push without having to downshift, and repeat 3-5X with 3-5 minute breaks in between (the descent alone should be enough for recovery). Too much recovery will hamper your progress.

And don't say you're "already in very good shape" because clearly you're not nearly as fast as your buddy. Lose this mentality or you won't improve.

I know I need to improve, and equally important is that I want to improve. I only mention that I am already in good shape because climbing hills more, or doing hills everyday is not targeted enough for someone like me, I do that anyway (I am only saying this so that the advice is more targeted to my situation and not a newbie).

Thanks for the advice. I was never too sure as how to long or often my hill repeats should be. Is about seven minutes a standard recommended climb for repeats?

A 7-minute hill is a great length for hill repeats. You may be in great shape, but there is a difference between great shape and climbing-specific shape. I don’t think anyone was saying that you are fat or out of shape by suggesting you lose weight. There are plenty of great time trialists who are in fantastic shape, but would be better climbers if they were 10 pounds lighter.

Please don't start with the good advice here. Everyone knows that just random hard efforts with no daily/weekly/monthly plan is the best way to improve.

No doubt. I'm just trying to tailor the feedback as I know there's a lot of experienced riders on this thread...

Wait, are you saying that buying a 12lb bike for $20,000, won't make me a professional level climber?

the only thing that will make climbing easier is to do more of it. its really that simple. first make sure you have the right gearing (whatever that may be for you) and having a decently light bike will also help but not drastically. then go hit the mountains. it will never get easy but it will get easier and you will get to the top faster. good luck and ill see you at the top!

This is spot on, in my experience.

Last season one of my goals was to break an hour up Mt. Diablo. Spent a lot of time doing 20min, 6min, and 1min intervals to bump up the FTP. But equally important -- maybe even more important--was eliminating all the junk from my diet to lose that very stubborn 10lbs. That weight never hurt me in crits or rolling RR's, but gravity is a very harsh mistress.