Training – The Hills

Yesterday kicked off the very broad topic of training for an epic adventure ride. All of these training articles will assist you even if you are ‘just’ a weekend warrior or starting to explore the world of bicycling. And yes, to a large degree this applies to e-bikes as well. Provided they are pedal assist, class 1 of class 3. Don’t get me started on throttle equipped e-bikes, aka motorcycles. 

Back to the hills or at least the one you are about to challenge. In yesterday’s post I said it makes a big difference if you ride a mere 10% faster. Now you’re saying: hey Jack, if I could ride faster I would. 

True, not that easy. So let’s develop some tricks to help us out. The first, assuming you have ridden, driven, or are familiar with the profile of the hill, let’s break it up into sessions. 

Start and finish should be visualized before you get there. Have a landmark, crosswalk, sign or other reference in mind for your start. Now picture the finish and how good you will feel when you roll past, faster than ever before. 

Ok, as the start approaches settle into a slightly easier gear and start spinning. Keep your speed constant with your legs turning over quickly. As the hill gradually slows down your speed start to lean back, open up your body position so you can use your glutes more effectively. These are big, powerful muscles. 

Ok you should be well past the start and into the first 1/4 to 1/3 of the hill. Gear down again and a few more times if needed. Try to keep your legs spinning. It is counterintuitive to spin faster, sit taller, and not lean forward or rock your body side-to-side trying to push the pedals as hard as possible. That didn’t work for you in the past and won’t on a long climb. 

Hey look – you crossed half way. 

Stand up and take a bow. 

No, seriously now is a good time to mix it up. You got in a nice rhythm but started to gradually slows down. A quick pop out of the saddle for 4 to 10 pedal strokes will get you accelerating nicely. 

Then ease your way down on the saddle. Don’t simply plop, down as that takes away momentum. Pick your cadence / leg speed up a tad. Maybe even shift into another gear faster. 

Hopefully your hill is not 6 miles of constant grade. Ugh, I have a few of those around and they are mentally challenging.

Past halfway the hill is either winding giving you some new scenery, easing a tad – catch a breather you don’t need to accelerate everywhere, or maybe hitting you with a short kick up. If so, pop back out of the saddle. You know the drill. 

This is a good time to do some up/downs. Stand 4 to 8 pedal strokes then sit for maybe 30 seconds to a minute. Pop up, repeat until you get through the tough stuff. 

You should be nearing the finish area. Take a breather by easing up on the pedals while spinning. Bring your breathing back into your comfort zone. 

Then, when you are 400 yards / meters from the finish, pick it up. Get your legs spinning like an egg beater on 11! Fly past that finish line. Enjoy the ride down, you earned it. 

You are now on your way to conquering the hills. It won’t happen overnight but the more hills you ride and the more times you use these techniques, the sooner you too will fly up the mountains.