Endurance and Efficiency

I guess endurance training takes time - measured in years in my case.

This is an 80km workout with 7500ft climbing repeated each year around the same period over 2 years:.

April 28 2010 5:01:33

April  5  2011 4:10:28

April  1  2012 3:46:03

 

There seems to be a steady improvement in the base level of fitness. The figures are important because they are encouraging. Progress is so slow that it's easy to think that it's not happening. In contrast to the slow progress of training - the plum tree here got its flowers out in a matter of days from the first buds appearing...

During yesterday's ride on the final climb I apparently became more aware of how to access more efficient power from the body. (Things like this often happen when close to exhaustion) It dawned on me that we try to push the pedals with the legs - especially the quads - but no matter which muscles are used in the legs ultimately we have to push against the weight of the upper body and work through the core. It's not like the leg can produce any significant power independently. Thinking about this I realised that the femur is just a long lever. When the hip comes backwards through the initial push of the pedal it's like it is primed to then push the femur forward and downwards - exactly like driving a piston. All the power comes from the rotation of the pelvis and lower back. The difference is so striking that suddenly in your mind there is a very strange and clear sensation of pedalling backwards - this is so strong that is it very unsettling and confusing at first. The movement is quite complicated I suppose because the hip still comes backwards at the start of the cycle and forwards during the recovery phase - so something special happens between the two. I guess it'll take a while to figure out what is really going on there. My legs had already been tired for an hour before this happened yesterday. I'd had one attack of cramp in the quads and was running on and empty tank really with still one big climb to complete. This new efficiency brought a sustained increase in speed and no muscle pain in the legs - which were now constantly aching anyway and couldn't be used for power even if I tried. Whatever happened it worked.


Perhaps part of the perception of those mechanics of movement comes from the use of much more efficient chainrings on the bike. I've replaced the standard round rings with elliptical ones - a Rotor Qring 34T inside and an Osymetric 50T on the outside. There are a few compatibility issues setting this up but they are still acceptable for the mechanical advantages gained. The "dead spot" as the pedals pass through the horizontal virtually disappears and you can keep up momentum more easily. I like anything that makes use of the body more efficient. That generally means "healthier" too - it's not just a question of performance.