EssEllSee

So, I just finished my new bike and switched down to gear inches in the low 70's. My other bike was in the higher 70's, so I have been trying to work on spinning. Now there are a few hills here that totally destroy me, but I am working on it. When you guys start spinning fast, is your rear completely off the saddle with all your weight on the pedals? I notice if I spin really fast while seated, my body gets kinda bucked around. This question may seem stupid, but I'm new to spinning at faster RPM's and I wanna learn efficiency

carleton

The bucked around feeling is normal. You have to learn how to smooth it out. Instead of mashing down, try mashing down and back towards the rear wheel.

There are several pedal strokes. Like 5 or 6.

EssEllSee

Ya, I kinda feel like my body is moving around all willy nilly - definitely not smooth. I can feel control coming as I spin more, but I want to be able to spin at 110 RPM and be smooth as silk. I'll keep in mind pushing down and back on my ride today.

Steev

Check your saddle height. If it's too high your hips need to dip at the bottom of pedal stroke.
If your saddle height is good, the rest is technique.
People can usually spin much faster sitting.

carleton

+1

If you are bouncing before 110RPM, then something is definitely wrong with your saddle height. Most people usually start butt-hopping at 120RPM. There is a weird resonance at the frequency. It smooths out at 130 and higher.

Rollers help because you can focus on your pedal stroke without having to apply much force. You can also put your bike in a trainer and not attach the resistance unit. However, rollers are better because you need some small amount of resistance to get it right.

After you get the saddle height sorted, it simply comes down to practice, practice, practice.

boxerboxer

+1

I'm by no means a great spinner, but this makes a huge difference for me in smoothness at high RPM.

EssEllSee

Saddle is fine, the bumping doesn't happen until very steep hills when I spin faster then I'm used to.

carleton

Are you trying to go faster down these hills or keep up with your pedals?

If you are trying to keep up with your pedals as gravity pulls you faster, try to simply relax your legs completely.

dsh

Funny thing is, I concentrate almost entirely on the kick forward with my top leg while spinning.

True story.

TheBikeRollsOn 

Interesting, I find that to be the weakest part of my pedal stroke.

hwdxbassist

Good advice all around. Good job BF members.

How does one know if their saddle is to high?

Squirrelli

..

dsh

I think that's probably why it helps the most to concentrate on it while spinning high cadences. I feel like it's the last thing most people worry about.

If you rode bikes as a kid, you know how to mash down. It's natural.
If you've climbed a hill as an adult, you know how to pull up. You do it unconsciously.
If you've done any kind of training to increase your power, you know how to scrape the bottom.

Those things always happen naturally by this point, so the last thing to concentrate on is the kick.

TheBikeRollsOn 

Nail on the head. I need to work on my spinning technique, there aren't any big hills around and I never go fast enough.

Steev

You should have a slight bend in the knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke.
Get someone to ride behind you or watch you from behind on a trainer to see if your hips are rocking as you pedal.

cbresciani

A really good thing that helps me to visualize a correct pedal stroke is to try and pedal in circles not squares, meaning you should feel the complete pedal stroke all the way around, not just at the top and bottom of the stroke.