There is one common goal among all aspects of cycling that will make you a better rider almost instantly…cleaning up your pedal stroke will apply more power to the wheels no matter what discipline of riding you call your own. The fact is that every rider should focus on how they can more efficiently transfer the power from their legs to the cranks –> chain –> rear wheel –> tire –> ground.
What does a more efficient pedal stroke do for you?
- Faster over longer rides
- Strengthens muscles in the legs that improve balance and technical riding ability
- Faster with less effort
- And a whole host of other immeasurable benefits…
The Typical Beginner Pedal Stoke
The typical beginner pedal stroke is best explained by looking at a square. After a little bit of ride time on their new, shiny clipless pedals (and some personal interaction with the ground!), the rider starts to realize that they can get more power to the rear wheel by pulling up on the backside of their pedal stroke as they push down on the front. This creates a pull/mash technique as you can see by the illustration above. Many seasoned road bikers are still using this pull/mash technique to this day because they haven’t taken a serious look at how to create more power using their current fitness level and energy. That is why making a conscious effort to increase certain aspects of your cycling is so important.
What is wrong with the pull/mash square stroke technique?
While the pull/mash stroke is more efficient than and mash/mash (only ever pushing down), you still have tons of dead space in between motions that you could be transferring power to the rear wheel. This waste is time and energy that you can never get back during your ride. During the corner parts of your pedal stroke, you are wasting time and energy without applying any power to the chain line. The key is figuring out how to use all of your pedal stroke to generate energy to the rear wheel to create more power for the same amount of exertion on the road.
So what should I be doing while pedaling?
As you start to analyze how you are pedaling on the trail, you need to picture, in your mind, circular movements. Makes sense right? Your already pedaling in circles…you just didn’t actually realize that you were pedaling squares. Some of the best advice I was given while improving my pedal stroke was to imagine sweeping the bottom of your stroke with your feet.
By sweeping the bottom of your stroke (pulling backwards immediately following pushing down in a smooth motion), you are getting rid of one of the corners of the square…the bottom, right corner and turning the bottom dead space into power. In turn, by getting rid of the bottom, right corner…you are effectively removing the top, left corner in the process. Your concentration is on creating power at all stages of the stroke and you are now sweeping the bottom and pushing the top. While I am pedaling…I mentally visualize small circles as I sweep and push. The mash/pull comes naturally already as it should for you because your body is already trained to create power in that direction. You are now training your body to create power in the dead areas of your stroke to become more efficient.
The more efficient you are with your pedal stroke, the more power you are generating…which equals faster times and averages for the same amount of energy release. You are also strengthening the other muscles in your legs for increased stamina in other aspects of riding. Also, the pull/sweep motion keeps that tension on the chain line delivering power to the rear wheel at all times.
To properly deliver the sweep on the bottom of the pedal stroke, you also need to consciously force your foot level on the bottom of the stroke. Naturally, your body wants to pedal heals up toes down. This exaggerates the pull/mash tendency that you are trying to avoid. As you sweep through the bottom of your stroke, keep your foot level throughout the bottom 50% gradually pulling up with the rear while focusing on the next rotation. There is not one part of your stroke that should feel forced or sharp. Just one constant circle that delivers raw power.