Globalti
Legendary Member
Stonygate Lane and Huntingdon Hall Lane are also my favourite routes between De Tabley bridge and Jeffrey Hill. Uphill they are challenging climbs and downhill they bring out the hooligan in me!
Uphill performance lacking?
- Thread starter GoatBeard
- Start date
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Stonygate Lane and Huntingdon Hall Lane are also my favourite routes between De Tabley bridge and Jeffrey Hill. Uphill they are challenging climbs and downhill they bring out the hooligan in me!
If you want to get up hills faster you "simply" need more power and / or less weight.
As you've correctly identified the bike's mass / any associated savings are minimal compared to the overall system mass when your own weight is taken into account, so losing mass from the bike will have little effect; while if you're overweight you could potentially lose the whole of your bike's mass from yourself (I'm down 15kg so far which is comparable to the mass of my bike, clothing, shoes etc).
Lower gearing will help you get up challenging hills with a more comfortable & efficient cadence, to the extreme that it will allow you to keep pedalling on grads that *EDIT* higher gearing would otherwise have required more pedal force than you're able to sustain, but outside of this it won't make you significantly faster.
As others have said BMI is a flawed metric; overly simplistic and doesn't take into account the presence / lack of fat or muscle. FWIW I'd suggest looking at waist:hip ratio; with the WHO defining anything above 0.9 as "abdominally obese". Alternatively another rule of thumb is that (as a bloke!) if you've got tits that wobble / a belly that hangs over your trousers, you could probably stand to lose a bit
As with all exercise the body adapts to the situations you present it with; so for the power to climb you need to be subjecting yourself to lots of high intensity training; maximum / near-maximum efforts up hill, intervals and probably a good mixture of seated and out-of-the-saddle stuff.
Basically the sort of stuff that leaves you panting like a sex pest and on the brink of throwing up...
As you've correctly identified the bike's mass / any associated savings are minimal compared to the overall system mass when your own weight is taken into account, so losing mass from the bike will have little effect; while if you're overweight you could potentially lose the whole of your bike's mass from yourself (I'm down 15kg so far which is comparable to the mass of my bike, clothing, shoes etc).
Lower gearing will help you get up challenging hills with a more comfortable & efficient cadence, to the extreme that it will allow you to keep pedalling on grads that *EDIT* higher gearing would otherwise have required more pedal force than you're able to sustain, but outside of this it won't make you significantly faster.
As others have said BMI is a flawed metric; overly simplistic and doesn't take into account the presence / lack of fat or muscle. FWIW I'd suggest looking at waist:hip ratio; with the WHO defining anything above 0.9 as "abdominally obese". Alternatively another rule of thumb is that (as a bloke!) if you've got tits that wobble / a belly that hangs over your trousers, you could probably stand to lose a bit
As with all exercise the body adapts to the situations you present it with; so for the power to climb you need to be subjecting yourself to lots of high intensity training; maximum / near-maximum efforts up hill, intervals and probably a good mixture of seated and out-of-the-saddle stuff.
Basically the sort of stuff that leaves you panting like a sex pest and on the brink of throwing up...
Last edited:
PaulSB
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
Yep both good climbs - I really don't enjoy those last 40/50 metres on Huntingdon Hall. I've never ridden down HH I must go and try it one day. Just one of those things, we often pass the top on our way down to Ribchester from Birdy Brow or go up it when we decide to chuck in an extra climb before the Potter's Barn stop - got to earn that cake!!
Globalti
Legendary Member
If you want to get up hills faster you "simply" need more power and / or less weight.
As you've correctly identified the bike's mass / any associated savings are minimal compared to the overall system mass when your own weight is taken into account, so losing mass from the bike will have little effect; while if you're overweight you could potentially lose the whole of your bike's mass from yourself (I'm down 15kg so far which is comparable to the mass of my bike, clothing, shoes etc).
Lower gearing will help you get up challenging hills with a more comfortable & efficient cadence, to the extreme that it will allow you to keep pedalling on grads that lower gearing would otherwise have required more pedal force than you're able to sustain, but outside of this it won't make you significantly faster.
As others have said BMI is a flawed metric; overly simplistic and doesn't take into account the presence / lack of fat or muscle. FWIW I'd suggest looking at waist:hip ratio; with the WHO defining anything above 0.9 as "abdominally obese". Alternatively another rule of thumb is that (as a bloke!) if you've got tits that wobble / a belly that hangs over your trousers, you could probably stand to lose a bit
As with all exercise the body adapts to the situations you present it with; so for the power to climb you need to be subjecting yourself to lots of high intensity training; maximum / near-maximum efforts up hill, intervals and probably a good mixture of seated and out-of-the-saddle stuff.
Basically the sort of stuff that leaves you panting like a sex pest and on the brink of throwing up...
All true but losing weight requires a lifestyle change of regular exercise and sensible eating and drinking. I'm going for a brisk 2 mile walk every day and cycling at least twice a week during lockdown as well as eating moderately and that change from my usual sedentary working week has taken a kilo of weight off me.
Absolutely; my experiences have been much the same. By far the largest weight loss has come from dietary control / changes against a backdrop of zero-moderate exercise.
Only since I've really started smashing it on the bike during the lockdown have I seen the exercise have an effect (and again this is against a backdrop of a relatively low-carb diet, excluding tonight's chips
). Lost about 1.8kg last month; really determind to keep hitting it hard as I reckon another 5-6kg and I'll have arrived 
Don't buy upgrades; ride up grades.
PaulSB
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
Obviously I don't know your work situation, WFH etc. but I'd advise you'll lose more weight riding 30 miles/day at 80% of your maximum HR (fat burning zone) five days out of seven than smashing it.Absolutely; my experiences have been much the same. By far the largest weight loss has come from dietary control / changes against a backdrop of zero-moderate exercise.
Only since I've really started smashing it on the bike during the lockdown have I seen the exercise have an effect (and again this is against a backdrop of a relatively low-carb diet, excluding tonight's chips
Expand, please?
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
Doesn‘t always need a “lifestyle” change as weight is rarely put on in a short period but has built over many years. Often just cutting the beer back, smaller portions is sufficient. These aren’t lifestyle changes just moderating what you are eating and drinking.
Indeed; when I say smashing it I'm referring more to the mileage than the intensity. As it happens with the arrival of the Genesis and with it my ability to explore new off-road routes, my mean HR for most rides has come down a fair bit with the median being zones 2-3 (so 60-80% of max) typically. Now you mention it that's probably another reason why I've been seeing a noticeable decrease in my weight; not just because of the increased distance but also the longer, lower-intensity sessions too.
All that said I cycle predominently because I enjoy it and I know it's good for my mental and physical health; so while I love the numbers try not to overthink it too much (I have plenty of other things to overthink!). Usually rides are rarely planned past which direction I'll take when I get out the door and I just ride how I'm comfortable until it feels like time to go home
Adam4868
Guru
I'm 6 feet 1 and allways around 11 stone,although I rarely weigh myself .At the moment probally less as cycling everyday.But my hill climbing will differ only on my fitness level.Losing or gaining a bit won't make much difference.Concentrate on riding your bike more and not worrying about hills.
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Seconded! (Or should that be 'thirded', since @PaulSB also agrees with you?)
PaulSB
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
Great glad to read you're gaining the benefits. By "smashing it" I thought you meant increasing your intensity which can be great fun but doesn't do much for weight loss, stamina etc.
Mo1959
Legendary Member
- Location
- Perthshire,Scotland
In saying that........I have read several articles debunking the whole fat burning zone thing and saying a high intensity burst of exercise actually raises your metabolism for much longer and therefore burns more. Best not to get too much into it methinks!
