CADENCE! SPINNING CIRCLES! FLOAT!

Answers to all your pedaling questions (plus a workout plan!) so you can ride faster, longer, and stronger than ever

Every mile. Every meter. Every watt. Every bit of play, propulsion, and progress you make on your bike begins with pedaling. Which is why riders have been fixated on pedaling since inventors first attached cranks to wheels (and later to drivetrains). How fast (or slow) should we pedal? How can we make our pedal stroke stronger? How can we pedal so efficiently that we can ride forever (or at least a very, very long way)? We've pored through the research and called in experts who have been studying, investigating, teaching, and applying pedaling technique and biomechanics for decades to shed light on your most pressing pedaling questions.

IS THERE A PERFECT PEDAL STROKE?

There is and there isn’t. Twenty or 30 years ago, editors of this magazine would have told readers to pedal perfect circles. Now we know that’s biomechanically impossible—and unnecessary. Though there are riders who have silky smooth pedal strokes and those who look like they’re stomping through mud, both styles can win world championships, says Jeff Broker, PhD, a biomechanics researcher and associate professor at University of Colorado, Colorado Springs.

“Riders tend to pedal in the style that suits them,” he says. Making yours more efficient can save you effort and energy. The goal is less about “spinning circles” than maintaining momentum by ensuring all your power production is propelling you forward without wasting watts.