Grinding to Spinning
03-09-12, 11:09 AM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Columbus, Ohio
Posts: 312
Bikes: All City Nature Boy, Salsa Ti Fargo, Kona Electric Ute
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Grinding to Spinning
Ive always had very strong legs and Ive always been more comfortable grinding away rather than downshift and spin away. As Im getting older and the knees arent what they once were, I know that I need to make the switch but Im having trouble actually changing my mindset. Any advice as to how to increase my spinning and rely less on power?
03-09-12, 11:18 AM
#2
Senior Member
How about spinning away for times when you are doing endurance riding at first. Keep bumping up cadence till it's maybe 20-30 above what yours is now. Your leg will get used to the speed and you will notice that your tempo also is a little higher than before. Start propagating it to Tempo ride. Eventually to threshold ride. Repeat and rinse 
For me, having power meter helped as I found out I wasn't putting any extra power by grinding per say... (well other than those short burst beyond VO2Max... in wrong gear)
For me, having power meter helped as I found out I wasn't putting any extra power by grinding per say... (well other than those short burst beyond VO2Max... in wrong gear)
03-09-12, 12:19 PM
#3
working on my sandal tan
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: CID
Posts: 22,629
Bikes: 1991 Bianchi Eros, 1964 Armstrong, 1988 Diamondback Ascent, 1988 Bianchi Premio, 1987 Bianchi Sport SX, 1980s Raleigh mixte (hers), All-City Space Horse (hers)
Mentioned: 98 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3871 Post(s)
Liked 2,568 Times
in
1,579 Posts
03-28-12, 01:45 PM
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: 25 miles northwest of Boston
Posts: 29,549
Bikes: Bottecchia Sprint, GT Timberline 29r, Marin Muirwoods 29er, Trek FX Alpha 7.0
Mentioned: 112 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5224 Post(s)
Liked 3,581 Times
in
2,342 Posts
OP - climb steeper hills. the steeper the hill the lower the gear you will need. go find hills that require 1st gear. then spin way my friend. actually the steepest hills require good solid technique and the "spinning" doesn't really look like spinning due to the slow cadence. in fact maybe that will help you, meaning forget the word "spinning" and just try to keep gearing down to keep a slightly faster cadence than you are used to.
03-28-12, 02:24 PM
#7
Still spinnin'.....
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Whitestown, IN
Posts: 1,208
Bikes: Fisher Opie freeride/urban assault MTB, Redline Monocog 29er MTB, Serrota T-Max Commuter, Klein Rascal SS, Salsa Campion Road bike, Pake Rum Runner FG/SS Road bike, Cannondale Synapse Road bike, Santana Arriva Road Tandem, and others....
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times
in
2 Posts
Get a computer with a cadence function. Nothing keep you focused like having a meter than you can monitor.
03-29-12, 07:31 PM
#9
Senior Member
If you want to have some fun you can sufferfest and watch that while you follow the directions. What is your average cadence like? I used to average around 60-65 and in the last year I have trained to average around 85-90 and can hit 120 if I am really trying hard. My reason for change was same as yours. Protect the knees and the hip joint.
03-30-12, 05:24 AM
#10
Junior Member
you might need to look at your crank length - as i can spin a bike in the gym to quite a high cadence but really struggle on the road to get anywhere near... just a thought..
03-30-12, 09:28 AM
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Fredericton, NB, Canada
Posts: 1,430
Bikes: 2010 S1, 2011 F75X
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
It may sound weird, but I tend to spin faster on the road compared to the trainer. When I'm on my Kinetic, my comfort zone is typically around 87-92 rpm and I need to make a concious effort to spin faster. On road rides I'll look down and be surprised to see that I'm cruising along at 97-102 rpm.
Not sure why that is.....
Not sure why that is.....
03-30-12, 06:35 PM
#12
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Incheon, South Korea
Posts: 2,835
Bikes: Nothing amazing... cheap old 21 speed mtb
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
I can't get into spinning either. I know its actually easier - especially on the hills. But, it doesn't feel right somehow. When I see a hill I want to suffer up it for some reason...
