For many cyclists, hill climbs are a source of dread that no summit cake binge or freewheeling descent can quite outweigh. For others, a steady roll uphill can set a meditative rhythm that sends the mind on rewarding detours. Either way, hills are hard to avoid \u2014 so how to ride them better?<\/p>\n
1. Yes, you do have to train<\/p>\n
A slight following wind on the flat can fool riders into thinking they are in good shape. \u201cBut on a hill there\u2019s no hiding,\u201d says Andrew Feather, Britain\u2019s king of uphill riding and the UK hill-racing circuit. Last year the wiry 41-year-old lawyer \u201cbeat\u201d the Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar in his own charity climb (Pogacar gives participants a head start but couldn\u2019t catch Feather before the line).<\/p>\n
Not everyone will manage the 13 hours a week Feather does around his family home in Bath, but some sort of training plan is key to enjoying any climb longer than a few minutes. What that looks like depends on your starting condition and goals, he says. \u201cBut I would focus on building up your stamina for any long Alpine climbs,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
For the best chance of floating up Alpe d\u2019Huez \u2014 or just getting to the top of your local big hill without feeling as if you\u2019re going to collapse \u2014 mix longer, steady efforts with regular, half-hour interval sessions: sets of short, intense sprints interspersed with easy pedalling breaks (this is easier on a static bike at home or in the gym).<\/p>\n
2. Pace, don\u2019t race<\/p>\n
The tortoise and hare fable comes into its own on inclined asphalt. \u201cYou\u2019ll be surprised how much time you gain over other riders if you can manage your effort and really go hard in that last few hundred metres,\u201d Feather says. As I know from punishing climbs including Mont Ventoux, the Proven\u00e7al peak, and the Fedaia Pass in the Italian Dolomites, there are few more demoralising feelings than starting strong and then finishing at crawling pace.<\/p>\n
3. Watch the weight<\/p>\n
Yours and the bike\u2019s. It stands to reason that the more flesh or machine you are pushing up a hill, the harder it will be. Feather\u2019s competition bike weighs less than 6kg. But the lightest bikes will cost you upwards of \u00a35,000. So while you don\u2019t need to be as light as Feather (63kg, or 9st 12lb, when he\u2019s racing fit), it\u2019s cheaper \u2014 and probably healthier \u2014 to lose a kilo or two from your own frame than that of your bike\u2019s.<\/p>\n
4. Nail your gradient ingredients<\/p>\n
It\u2019s vital to fuel properly for longer climbs to avoid the misery of \u201cbonking\u201d (the cycling term for suddenly running out of energy). Feather works with Tim Podlogar, an exercise physiologist and nutrition expert at the University of Exeter. He says fuelling should start the day before, with carbs \u2014 10-12g per kilo of body weight. \u201cEat plenty of rice, pasta and gummy bears and drink sugary drinks,\u201d he says. But avoid pizza, cheese and cake \u2014 fat is bad for digestion when exercising.<\/p>\n
During the toughest rides he recommends up to 90g of carbs per hour from a mix of energy bars, gels and drinks, avoiding anything you haven\u2019t tried before. That\u2019s more than you think \u2014 most energy bars contain less than half that amount. And if it\u2019s hot, drink all the additional water you can.<\/p>\n
5. Stand and deliver<\/p>\n
Feather almost always rides out of the saddle, standing as he rocks rhythmically on his pedals. It\u2019s a reliable way to add power, which can be the difference between stopping or not, but studies show that staying seated and spinning the legs faster is typically more efficient (unless steeper gradients force you to your feet) and aerodynamic, if you\u2019re quick enough to make the difference. Prioritise comfort on long climbs, changing position as you go.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For many cyclists, hill climbs are a source of dread that no summit cake binge or freewheeling descent…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":597357,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-597356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=597356"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597356\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/597357"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=597356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=597356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=597356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}