cyclist. climbing hills?

[vash]

i have bad feet. when i jog, my feet will hurt bad. my foot doc told me to lay off the running, and my health suffered.

so, i took the chance to buy a bike. i got a cyclocross bike. i have been riding it off/on for about a month, with the last two weeks being very consistent. i do maybe 15 miles for now. i do a series of trails, paved and fireroads to get to the bottom of a very long climb. i wouldnt call it crazy steep, but for me..it kinda is. the first time i went up it, i almost died. i was sucking in bugs through my gaping mouth. now? well, i am not waving the "bike for sale" sign, but i would still rate it as VERY difficult.

my question, when does it get any better? any tips to fast-track the leg muscles and lungs? i get out 6 days a week, and i always end my day at the bottom of this hill, and climb it. my house is up there.

i want to drop some poundage, get my heart stronger, and hike and hunt better in the future. nothing more humbling than a bike and a long hill.

i want to add more distance, but i have limited time. i get home from the ride, strap up the new dog and walk 2-3 miles with the wife.

[vash]

FYI, a Surly Cross-Check is a great bike!

[Tobra]

What exactly do you mean, you have bad feet?

You want to gear down and spin the pedals at about 100 rpm, whatever gear you can use to do this comfortably.

[mikeferg75]

Yes, it will get better!

Find a baseline pace up the climb that does not make you go anaerobic, (seated, easy gearing) then gradually try to improve upon it each ride in both gearing and time.

You will be surprised how quickly that climb is nothing anymore and you set your goal to something else.

BTW nice bike

[vash]

Originally Posted by Tobra

What exactly do you mean, you have bad feet?

.

i broke my tib-fib in a horrible motorcycle crash a while back. i might be imagining things, but i think my leg healed, and now i am pigeon toed with that foot. it has been a long time, but that tingly "foot asleep" feeling is finally going away.

i got my foot x-ray'd and doc used some million dollar word explaining old fractures, or dead spots in my bone.

either way, i run, my right foot hurts in the toes, my left foot in the heel. it sucks.

[John Rogers]

Back in the 70s and 80s when I was bike racing I found I could not climb hills worth a dam, I was a sprinter! We had several olympic class coaches in the club and they helped me quite a bit. I learned to make sure I sat up as straight as possible, to give my lungs and heart the most room to work in, grasp the bars lightly to reduce stress on my hands and arms and sit back towards the rear of the seat and push over the top of the pedal stroke a bit more while still pulling as much as possible all the way around. I was also taught to only stand up if there was a preem or prize at the finish line at the top as standing takes way more energy! Last of all I was told to "always save at least ONE more low gear", just in case you bonk or run out of energy! While I hated hills that advice did help and keep me with the packs on long road races.

[JavaBrewer]

I love climbing - not the short stupid steep stuff but the long drawn out climbs that are miles in length. IMO it's the ultimate zen experience as it forces you to really pay attention to your technique and how your body is reacting. Gearing, pace and cadence are everything. I can't add more to what has already been stated above. As long as you keep up the effort it will (eventually) get easier. Some of us are not cut out to be climbers - me included. As good as I THOUGHT I was there were days the real climbers brought me back down to earth. LOL.

[flatbutt]

if one of your main goals is to lose weight then you should consider interval training. Hill climbing is a serious mutha but isn't going to help you lose weight. The intervals will. But...I trained for hill climbs on the road not the dirt. I have three different hills that I do repeatedly. every time I do a hill I increase the intensity by climbing in a fatter gear. If you're not at all accustomed to it try setting the rear derailleur onto a middle-ish gear and leave it there. Then flip back and forth between the front rings to alter intensity.

[matthew-s]

Originally Posted by vash

i broke my tib-fib in a horrible motorcycle crash a while back. i might be imagining things, but i think my leg healed, and now i am pigeon toed with that foot. it has been a long time, but that tingly "foot asleep" feeling is finally going away.

i got my foot x-ray'd and doc used some million dollar word explaining old fractures, or dead spots in my bone.

either way, i run, my right foot hurts in the toes, my left foot in the heel. it sucks.

This might be a stretch - so I'm not sure it's applicable here - but have you had your bike fit by a professional?

I had a "professional fitter" adjust my bike - and it really made a big difference, especially climbing. They may (or may not) be able to take your issues into account. . . .

Just a thought.

[dd74]

2nd the bike fit. Have a pro shop do a custom fitting for you before you do anything more. Nothing will work properly unless the bike is adjusted for your body. After that, just keep climbing. Don't worry about cadence. Concentrate on comfortable positioning and breathing. You'll get stronger if you keep at it.

[vash]

bike fitted? damn..learn something new everyday.

thanks.

[David]

We don't have many hills in Houston, but there were several on the MS150 ride to Austin a couple weeks ago. One thing I noticed a couple weeks ago that I didn't have back in the day is brake lever shifters. Now I can shift as I climb without ever moving my hand position. I'd keep my cadence about 90 to 100 by downshifting as I climbed. When I finally hit 1st gear I'd be near the top of the really steep hills and only have to stand up for the last little bit.

[Bill Verburg]

[QUOTE=vash;5997833]FYI, a Surly Cross-Check is a great bike!

What gearing are you running?

A buddy of mine who I used to leave in the dust on hills bought a bike w/ a compact crank and hill climbing gear set, he now leaves me in the dust.

[John Rogers]

You can simulate a hill in an area where there are none by wearing a loose fitting windbreaker (wind resistance) INTO a stout headwind and standing up in high gears to get nearly the same terrible feeling (zen?????).
A good pro shop can and should get your bike adjusted correctly and hopefully you did not buy it by straddling the top tube??!! Another item that can help are longer crank arms to help get longer levers and they can be swapped for regular ones any time.

[Jim Bremner]

I used to PUSH people up hills!

Sit as much as you can. hands on top of the hoods, BREATHE, look far up the road and attack the hill.

LONG 180 cranks help too!

[dd74]

IMO, cranks should be selected according to the length of your legs, and really nothing else. If you have short legs, 180mm cranks won't work well.

[look 171]

seat your azz a little further back to get a little more power out of your legs. about 1/2" or so back. I always drop my heels during those dig deep hair pins. I rode my district road race back in the mid/late 80s. They dropped me like a anchor. The last 10 miles I had to do alone. I use that heel "thing" a lot that day. I hate hills buy love rolling ones. Long 6 or 8 miles of drawn out mountain climbs suck a big one.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by john rogers

You can simulate a hill in an area where there are none by wearing a loose fitting windbreaker (wind resistance) INTO a stout headwind and standing up in high gears to get nearly the same terrible feeling (zen?????).
A good pro shop can and should get your bike adjusted correctly and hopefully you did not buy it by straddling the top tube??!! Another item that can help are longer crank arms to help get longer levers and they can be swapped for regular ones any time.

YOu must be from the 70shttp://forums.pelicanparts.com/ultimate/icons/icon12.gif. I read a book (may be the only book in the us on bike racing) back in the mid 80s on how to be a better climber. They suggested using a 52x13 or 14 and ride off the saddle into the head wind for 10-15 minutes in areas without hills like the mid west. Of course I didn't do that (at age 15, you kidding me) because we had lots of hills. May be that why I suck (Plenty of wheels too). Ron Skarin told me the same thing one day out on our club ride. He was on the 76 Olympic team.

[look 171]

Sorry, how do you get that icon there?

[Tobra]

Sequestrum maybe?

I suspect the one you broke is a bit short. It may be that the break healed internally rotated, perhaps the injury impacted the ankle mortise or the joint below your ankle, which could have an impact on the position of your foot. Flat posted orthotic to reduce motion, with a lift to make up for the limb length discrepancy. Measure to determine amount.

This will matter for the bike too, bike fitter dude can hook this up for you.