Remember the word “souplesse”, I mentioned a few articles ago ? Well here is one of those ‘diversions’ from the main topic, I had mentioned earlier.
This is an important, yet under-utilised training technique, that I found to be pivotable in my training “way back when”, but also enabled me to ride into my 70’s, even while still waiting for a leg operation.
Firstly, you need to understand the physiological importance of movement. Regardless of the type of injury, or your current training regime, movement increases blood flow and blood flow helps flush out impurities and heal damage. So whether you need to recover from hard training, come back from injury, or just for general joint health, “spinning” is very beneficial. (Perhaps Andre could explain the rabbit lab tests on joint healing for us … very eye opening !)
Back in the 60’s and early 70’s , we had only 5 rear freewheel cogs, combined with the smallest available inner front sprocket of 42 and a 52 or perhaps 53 larger chainring as a standard crankset. Considering we used a ‘straight block’ on a racing machine of a 13,14,15,16,17 (or perhaps an 18), gearing was brutal to ride uphill. 21’s were available and on touring bikes a 24, but no one would be caught dead running a “touring gear” on their racing bike. (We had a lot to learn back then) Spinning wasn’t usually happening in this part of the world. Most racers in North America prided themselves on how big of a gear they used, whereas the fastest riders in the world, like Jacques Anquetil, won le Tour de France and everything else that really counted, by spinning.
We had a Belgian coach, so we always had a few rules. No gear larger than a 42x15 would be used until we had at least a thousand kilometres on the road in our legs. In fact, early season time trials in Ottawa (March into early April) were only permitted to be ridden in those restricted gears. The idea is that in the early season, especially in cold weather, using larger gears may create injury to one’s joints and also, being early in the season, as the object was to gain fitness without undo stress to your body in the early season. Also, without the indoor trainers we now have, the winter was spent Nordic skiing, or speed skating, so one’s body movements were very dissimilar, and pedalling under load had to be re-taught to your legs. (Caveat: most of us also rode rollers in the winter to keep one’s legs supple, but the aerobic fitness came from those other activities) The other thing we never did until those first 1000kms were ridden, was to climb hills.
Does it work ? Oh my, does it ! I raced and beat several provincial and a national timetrial record, using SMALLER gears than my competitors. My favourite TT racing set-up was a single 51 front chainring and a 13 to 18 rear block. I think the smallest anyone else rode was a 52, but usually a 53 in a Time Trial. What I discovered was that a minimum of 95, but usually 100 rpm or above, was easier to maintain and my legs seemed to cleanse lactic acid build-up more efficiently spinning, rather than pushing larger gears at lower RPMs. Additionally, one can respond to subtle undulations in the road elevation much more effectively, so fewer gear changes were required, on a relatively flat TT course. A few of us rode the Gros Cap TT course in a high 18 or a low 19 minute time, while riding a 9.5 or 10kg steel framed bike, with standard road bars, and 19mm tubular tires inflated to 120psi, and wearing wool shorts and jerseys and a leather 'hairnet' helmet, whilst spinning way back then. Aerodynamics wasn’t a thing … it was one’s fitness that counted, as you couldn’t ‘buy’ speed like you can now, as sub 7kg bikes, aero bars, aero wheels, aero frames, dimpled skinsuits, aero socks, aero helmets, fast rolling tires, just didn’t exist.
Other things have also forever changed.
Firstly, we have a huge range of gears available to us now, so climbing in a 36x32, or even a one to one ratio, is possible, so some easy climbing while sitting is certainly okay in those first 1000kms. DO NOT however try anything that would require you to stand up or force your pedals around while climbing. That would be too steep. The word (should I say law!) is “souplesse”, or the ability to spin effortlessly.
Secondly, we were forbidden from going to the gym or swim in the winter. Again, we were wrong. (gym work was only advised for track racers and sprinters, due to the leg strength requirements of those disciplines) However, for most riders, aerobic endurance is more important than a sprint, so aerobic training is still the object of most riders. However, we now know that gym work can help stabilise physiological weaknesses, alleviate back pain and increase flexibility, so now usually an integral part of an all-round fitness regime.
Therefore, after all this, hopefully you get the point. Spinning is not only good for you, but can also win races, even today. Start the season with the goal to be smooth as butter on your bike and gradually build up the gear you can use, increasing effort. That increase is also very important. The object is to be able to spin a 51x15 (well today with the average aero optimised bike, so that spinning gear is probably a 53x15 (or even 14) on the flats with no tail wind) To be able to accomplish that, you have to gradually increase the loading on your body getting closer to racing season, or your time you put in becomes riding, not training.
So if you encounter some old guy on a bike this Spring, who yells at you to use a smaller gear, it’s not so I can try and keep up with you (which I can’t !)…it’s to make you faster later in the season !
Spring Training Protocols
Remember the word “souplesse”, I mentioned a few articles ago ? Well here is one of those ‘diversions’ from the main topic, I had mentioned earlier.
This is an important, yet under-utilised training technique, that I found to be pivotable in my training “way back when”, but also enabled me to ride into my 70’s, even while still waiting for a leg operation.
Firstly, you need to understand the physiological importance of movement. Regardless of the type of injury, or your current training regime, movement increases blood flow and blood flow helps flush out impurities and heal damage. So whether you need to recover from hard training, come back from injury, or just for general joint health, “spinning” is very beneficial. (Perhaps Andre could explain the rabbit lab tests on joint healing for us … very eye opening !)
Back in the 60’s and early 70’s , we had only 5 rear freewheel cogs, combined with the smallest available inner front sprocket of 42 and a 52 or perhaps 53 larger chainring as a standard crankset. Considering we used a ‘straight block’ on a racing machine of a 13,14,15,16,17 (or perhaps an 18), gearing was brutal to ride uphill. 21’s were available and on touring bikes a 24, but no one would be caught dead running a “touring gear” on their racing bike. (We had a lot to learn back then) Spinning wasn’t usually happening in this part of the world. Most racers in North America prided themselves on how big of a gear they used, whereas the fastest riders in the world, like Jacques Anquetil, won le Tour de France and everything else that really counted, by spinning.
We had a Belgian coach, so we always had a few rules. No gear larger than a 42x15 would be used until we had at least a thousand kilometres on the road in our legs. In fact, early season time trials in Ottawa (March into early April) were only permitted to be ridden in those restricted gears. The idea is that in the early season, especially in cold weather, using larger gears may create injury to one’s joints and also, being early in the season, as the object was to gain fitness without undo stress to your body in the early season. Also, without the indoor trainers we now have, the winter was spent Nordic skiing, or speed skating, so one’s body movements were very dissimilar, and pedalling under load had to be re-taught to your legs. (Caveat: most of us also rode rollers in the winter to keep one’s legs supple, but the aerobic fitness came from those other activities) The other thing we never did until those first 1000kms were ridden, was to climb hills.
Does it work ? Oh my, does it ! I raced and beat several provincial and a national timetrial record, using SMALLER gears than my competitors. My favourite TT racing set-up was a single 51 front chainring and a 13 to 18 rear block. I think the smallest anyone else rode was a 52, but usually a 53 in a Time Trial. What I discovered was that a minimum of 95, but usually 100 rpm or above, was easier to maintain and my legs seemed to cleanse lactic acid build-up more efficiently spinning, rather than pushing larger gears at lower RPMs. Additionally, one can respond to subtle undulations in the road elevation much more effectively, so fewer gear changes were required, on a relatively flat TT course. A few of us rode the Gros Cap TT course in a high 18 or a low 19 minute time, while riding a 9.5 or 10kg steel framed bike, with standard road bars, and 19mm tubular tires inflated to 120psi, and wearing wool shorts and jerseys and a leather 'hairnet' helmet, whilst spinning way back then. Aerodynamics wasn’t a thing … it was one’s fitness that counted, as you couldn’t ‘buy’ speed like you can now, as sub 7kg bikes, aero bars, aero wheels, aero frames, dimpled skinsuits, aero socks, aero helmets, fast rolling tires, just didn’t exist.
Other things have also forever changed.
Firstly, we have a huge range of gears available to us now, so climbing in a 36x32, or even a one to one ratio, is possible, so some easy climbing while sitting is certainly okay in those first 1000kms. DO NOT however try anything that would require you to stand up or force your pedals around while climbing. That would be too steep. The word (should I say law!) is “souplesse”, or the ability to spin effortlessly.
Secondly, we were forbidden from going to the gym or swim in the winter. Again, we were wrong. (gym work was only advised for track racers and sprinters, due to the leg strength requirements of those disciplines) However, for most riders, aerobic endurance is more important than a sprint, so aerobic training is still the object of most riders. However, we now know that gym work can help stabilise physiological weaknesses, alleviate back pain and increase flexibility, so now usually an integral part of an all-round fitness regime.
Therefore, after all this, hopefully you get the point. Spinning is not only good for you, but can also win races, even today. Start the season with the goal to be smooth as butter on your bike and gradually build up the gear you can use, increasing effort. That increase is also very important. The object is to be able to spin a 51x15 (well today with the average aero optimised bike, so that spinning gear is probably a 53x15 (or even 14) on the flats with no tail wind) To be able to accomplish that, you have to gradually increase the loading on your body getting closer to racing season, or your time you put in becomes riding, not training.
So if you encounter some old guy on a bike this Spring, who yells at you to use a smaller gear, it’s not so I can try and keep up with you (which I can’t !)…it’s to make you faster later in the season !