What does "Spinning" actually mean?

[SkipdiverJohn]

I honestly think that each of us has a natural cadence and will be most efficient close to that, unless we concentrate on training otherwise.

Of course we have a natural cadence. We have a natural speed of doing all sorts of activities. Why do different people walk at different speeds? Why do people climb stairs at a certain rate, not either slower or faster?
Evolution and survival over many thousands of years has made the human body very good at conserving energy by optimising it's work rate for maximum overall efficiency in the conversion of food into motion.
Spinning and grinding can be defined as cadences at which your body becomes uncomfortable, either with the amount of energy you are expending simply pumping your legs up and down, or the excessive loadings you are putting on your muscles and joints. The exact speed/load thresholds are unique to each rider so cannot ever be set in stone. Every speed/load combination in between those extremes is simply normal pedalling, neither spinning or grinding.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

Froomey is an excellent example of a spinner.

Also Kylie.

 

[greenmark]

I thought spinning was a leafy vegetable.

Seems I mistook it for spinnage.

 

[slowmotion]

My front derailleur packed up on a night ride from Oxford to London. @Fab Foodie got me out of the pickle, but I was left with just the 34 tooth chain ring. I didn't fix it for over a year, so got quite used to higher cadences even though I'm naturally a gear masher/grinder. Sadly, it didn't make me a better cyclist.

 

[PaulSB]

I just do what feels comfortable at the time. When I’m climbing tough hills I find concentrating on my pedalling technique brings as much, if not more, benefit as spinning.

I should add I find it uncomfortable to spin for any length of time and cannot accelerate from this position. Just seem to run out of power.

 

[Tin Pot]

Spinning is an often misused term. It means nothing more than higher revolutions.

Higher revolutions are not better than lower revolutions.

They are different. They require different strains on your body, that will be appropriate for different scenarios.

If you want to know “how it works for you” get a power meter, a turbo and structured training plan. Opinions are worthless lies, science rules.

 

[bpsmith]

Science doesn’t rule. The Agenda, that people use the Science to prove, rules. That is until another Agenda comes along and disproves the previous one.

 

[Inertia]

I thought that the term originally referred to exercising on rollers, then got taken up by studio exercise bikes, and now just means high cadence in general unless it refers specifically to a "spinning class".

Back in the 90s - when my main exercise was running - I tried a spinning class. It was brutal. I could hardly walk the next day. Maybe I should give it another go now.

I haven’t tried it, but from descriptions from a fellow cyclist, It will still be brutal. It sounds like the gym equivalent of hills. You will go faster but it will not be easier.

 

[rugby bloke]

I thought that the term originally referred to exercising on rollers, then got taken up by studio exercise bikes, and now just means high cadence in general unless it refers specifically to a "spinning class".

Back in the 90s - when my main exercise was running - I tried a spinning class. It was brutal. I could hardly walk the next day. Maybe I should give it another go now.

I had a go at a Spinning Class whilst staying at a certain Forest based holiday facility last year. Being a fairly regular cyclist and the class being only 40 mins I was wondering what all the fuss was about. Ad you say, it was brutal, I was crawling out on my hands and knees by the end. I consoled myself with the thought that the gym bunnies may look good on an exercise bike for 40 mins but would not be able to match me on a real bike over 5 hours. This was probably untrue as well !

 

[Milzy]

It means you need to carb the *beep* up and pedal like a washing machine on full spin. Go out there and pedal with presence like Chris Froome. Get it done!

 

[User6179]

Spinning is an often misused term. It means nothing more than higher revolutions.

It does not have to mean higher revolutions , I could be in 50-11 doing 90 rpm or spinning a 34-11 at 80 rpm
It is not the speed you turn the cranks but ease at which you do it.

 

[Tin Pot]

It does not have to mean higher revolutions , I could be in 50-11 doing 90 rpm or spinning a 34-11 at 80 rpm
It is not the speed you turn the cranks but ease at which you do it.

Your gearing in conjunction with rpm could mean anything depending on the gradient.

Ease is a term relating to effort and power - if you look at previous posts you’ll see a clip off someone “spinning” up a hill faster than the “grinder”. The spinner is outputting more watts/kilo, that’s why he’s winning. So it’s not easier.

Spinning is a term used all over the place, the only consistent element is that it refers to faster revs...I think it’s pretty much useless for conveying meaning.

 

[Moodyman]

I haven’t tried it, but from descriptions from a fellow cyclist, It will still be brutal. It sounds like the gym equivalent of hills. You will go faster but it will not be easier.

It's like honking up a hill. There is very little 'spinning' in a spinning class. They raise the resistance and stand up and honk. They sit in-between the honking intervals with reduced resistance in the flywheel.

 

[slowmotion]

Oxford-London

Fabbers, old bean ( @Fab Foodie ) any chance of a re-run? I'll still walk that hill, BTW.

 

[Sunny Portrush]

Look, here`s four of them! You have to be rather old to get it lol