4 Tips for Successful Uphill Cycling

4 Tips for Successful Uphill Cycling

Riding uphill could be what breaks or makes your race. Majority of cyclists, amateur and pro, find it to be one of the most difficult parts of riding. This task, however, can be made easier if you know precisely what you're doing. Then it becomes a question of not pure survival but the level of skill. Instead of simply hoping to make it at all, a cyclist with a correct game plan and a trained ability to execute it is looking forward to the climb because this could be a chance to break away and maybe even a ticket to winning the race. And if it's not about racing - then it's about being able to walk afterwards.

Here's a 4 point approach that has been proven successful for many of Dr. Romanov's athletes, including Arturo Garza, an elite Mexican triathlete and a winner of 2008 Ixtapa ITU Triathlon Continental Cup. You can also observe Lance Armstrong using what could be described as the same approach to riding uphill, just watch any of his post-illness racing videos. 

A race is a game of skill, a combination of various skills to be precise. Riding uphill is a skill that combines the correct implementation of proper cycling technique and properly executed plan of action. The mental dread and the anticipation of the upcoming climb affects athletes without warning and before they even know it - problems accumulate leading the rider on a downward spiral of loosing control of his race when severe fatigue sets in due to absolute overuse of muscles. The second you feel yourself pushing on pedals to power through the climb (or any other part of the race for that matter) - know that your efficient cycling form is falling apart and, contrary to a popular belief, you're slowing down no matter what. So, to successfully climb your hill:

1. Accelerate on approach. Increase your speed as you approach the hill. If it's an especially steep climb, your acceleration will be all that much more important. You need to gain and sustain the momentum to carry you instead of relying on your legs which are only the transmitters of power not producers.
2. Maintain high cadence. High cadence combined with acceleration will allow you to "breathe through" the climb instead of powering through it. This will make a major difference for you and your race results. Ask the 7 time winner of Tour de France Lance Armstrong how high cadence is working out for him.
3. Switch gears gradually from hardest to easiest. As you climb that hill it will become necessary to adjust your gears to accommodate your high cadence. Gradually switch from whatever gear you were on to a higher (easier) one and on.
4. Get off your saddle. When you feel like applying more efforts to climb, don't make a deadly mistake of actually applying more efforts, but simply get your hips off your saddle, i.e. stand up. That will give you more power for less efforts. Pedaling in a standing position can and should be done without much sacrifice of cadence.

With this strategy, you'll be done with that hill like it's a minor bump on your way to the finish line. 

Article by Dr. Nicholas Romanov
Composed by L. Romanov