- Knowing when to get out of the saddle
is a crucial skill to get right
if you want to get the most from your cycling.
Adopt these techniques,
you'll be accelerating, climbing, and recuperating
far more efficiently.
- So let's have a look at the whys, the whens and the hows.
- We nailed that.
- Yeah, we pretty much did, didn't we?
- I just had a massive trump as well, sorry!
(Matt - cackling laughter)
Getting out of the saddle allows us to push far more power,
and therefore generate more torque
through the pedals than our leg muscles alone will allow.
That's because we have body weight
and the additional muscle recruitment of our arms,
our shoulders, our back, our chest,
and our core to assist.
- Now, there are numerous occasions
where you might use an all-out sprint.
The most famous being to win a bike race
or just beat your mate.
It doesn't have to be about winning though,
launching an attack and breaking away from a group,
again in a race situation.
If it's not about racing for you though,
sprinting is a great way of developing
your strength and power on the bike
as well as being good fun.
Now an all-out sprint is an anaerobic effort
It's very quickly gonna have you outta breath
and with burning legs (gasping).
- Sprint efforts are generally carried out
on a flat or slight-up hill
whilst holding the drops of the handlebars.
Firstly, you need to select a gear
that when you get out of the saddle
will give you enough resistance to accelerate through
without being over-geared.
The first pedal stroke should be carried out
with your favoured leg to give you the optimum start,
while simultaneously lifting yourself out of the saddle
with your body weight shifting forwards
to more directly over the bottom bracket.
Then rock the bike away from the side of your body,
pedalling downwards by pulling up on the handlebars.
Ideally, your upper body should be kept
as straight as possible whilst the bike moves beneath you.
The added force from your arms, etc,
will result in additional power.
- Like sprinting, riding out of the saddle when climbing
allows us to generate more force
because we can recruit more muscle groups.
And we can also use our body weight as well
to help assist in pushing or leaning on the pedals.
However, riding out of the saddle does come at a cost.
We use more energy as a result
of the increased muscle group usage.
- Yeah, that's why it's vitally important
to know when to ride out of the saddle
as it's generally far more efficient to sit down
when climbing when gradient,
fitness, and gearing allows.
It's on shorter, steep climbs
or harsher sections within long climbs
when we may need to get out of the saddle.
Now this is generally done in shorter bursts
due to the additional energy expenditure.
So it's hard to maintain for longer periods
unless you're Alberto Contador.
- Yeah. And again, like sprinting,
climbing out of the saddle allows you to accelerate,
which is great for launching an attack.
And it's also good for building strength
through improving your climbing
and your speed.
Yeah!
And just like when sprinting,
climbing out of the saddle allows quick acceleration,
fitness depending.
So, it's also great for attacking.
And indeed, developing your strength and fitness as well.
Although, you will find that with gravity against you,
you will very quickly go into the red
even with a short, sharp out-of-the-saddle effort.
- Your cadence should be lower out of the saddle
than when sat down.
So just prior to getting out of the saddle,
change up a gear to give you more resistance
to press against.
This will help ensure a smoother technique
and that you aren't bobbing around.
Hold onto the lever hoods and push your body upwards
as your preferred leg reaches the 12 o'clock position
on the cranks.
This will leave you in the best position
to push downwards when you're out of the saddle.
Whilst doing this, gently rock the bike from side to side
by pushing it to the left
when your right leg is pressing down
and to the right as your left leg goes downwards.
Gravity will assist here
as the weight of your body will be over the pedal.
Well, simply to relieve the stress
on particular muscle groups that are utilised
in pedalling for prolonged period of time,
i.e. your glutes in particular.
Though if you're new to cycling,
you may actually find it's quite difficult
to stay in one set position for a prolonged period of time.
And you may wish to regularly
shift in and out of the saddle.
Although you'll find
that even the most experienced professionals
will have to change position from time to time.
- When, well, whenever you feel like it really,
your body will tell you when.
Generally, if you've been seated
in the same position for a long period of time,
you'll get that telltale ache
either in our legs, particularly your bum,
or your lower back.
And it will be on a prolonged flat section of road
or a long, steady climb.
Or, I always find in fact, on an indoor trainer.
Now, if you're local roads are quite undulating,
then you many never get into this position
because the terrain will actually naturally having you
going in or out of the saddle.
But, if you do have roads
where you end up in the same position
for long periods of time,
you will know what we're talking about.
- On the flat, simply gear up two or three sprockets
and gently rise from the saddle,
using the resistance of the bigger gear
to turn a low cadence
and relieve your aching lower back or posterior.
On a climb, adopt the same principle.
Just make sure you rise out of the saddle
in a smooth action.
And don't simply throw your bike backwards,
especially important when riding in a group.
Do you know what, Si?
We've said "out of the saddle" 18 times
since the start of this video.
- Crikey. 19 now if you've said that.
Hopefully though, it has clarified
the why, the when, and the how
of riding outta the saddle.
20.
- Indeed. That's right.
Flippin' heck.
There we go.
Now, if you (chuckling) haven't already subscribed
to Global Cycling Network,
you can do it for free
by clicking on the globe.
And that way, you will not miss another video.
Now talking of other videos,
we've got another great beginner video here for you
if you just click down there.
It is how to change gear.
- Yeah, our viewers might have thought
you'd forgotten your lines there.
But no, no you hadn't, not at all.
Or for how to improve your balance on your bike,
a video filmed on this very climb in fact,
click just down there.
- That was a sunny day, wasn't it?
- (chuckling) It was.