I cycle. I live in Ithaca. Which means that to leave town, I have no choice but to bike uphill. And most of those hills are long and/or steep. Aka, challenging. While I’ve gotten used to the one between our house and Dan’s office (ie: I feel less like I’m going to die than I used to), I’m always a little fearful to attack the others. But when I do, at least I have a mental list of things that are helpful and things that are not as I huff and puff my way up.
At the top of a very large hill in Italy.
When biking up a challenging hill…
DO think about the fact that the view from the top will most likely be worth all the effort.
DON’T stare at your bike computer. Knowing exactly how slowly you are going isn’t going to help.
DO tell yourself to “push down and pull up” with your legs if you have clipless pedals. Pulling up will make a big difference.
DON’T immediately stop when you (finally) get to the top. All the blood will rush to your head and you’ll spend the next five minutes trying not to be sick. It isn’t fun. Just trust me on this one.
DO sing songs to yourself or focus on a podcast as a means of distraction.
Safety alert! If you do listen to music or a podcast while you ride, keep the volume LOW and ONLY use the right earbud so that you can hear approaching traffic (which will come from the left)
DON’T try to rehydrate immediately. Give your heart rate a minute to return to normal before you try to ingest anything.
DO think about how good it will feel to come back downhill and give your legs a break later.
What are your dos and don’ts?
Great Tips! I follow basically the same principles. Defs about not listening to music. It can totally be dangerous
My big don’t, is don’t get on the bike! I have really tried to like cycling but it just hasn’t clicked. It makes me nervous to be on the road and I’m a danger not only to myself but to everyone else on the road. I had lessons, I went out with others and I just had to admit defeat. I’ll run uphill though, slowly and cursing, esp at the speedy cyclists!, but I’ll get to the top eventually…
Ha. That’s okay, my big don’t is “don’t run.” Too many IT band problems for me!
My do and don’t is for running.
Don’t jog up the hill. Do walk quickly. Its almost as fast as if I were to jog it, and I enjoy it more
Then, DO enjoy running down the hill on the other side!
Have to admit, I like biking down hills more than running. Running downhill = more impact on the knees. Biking downhill = give your legs a break!
That is a very good point.
I’d have to get myself a bike first… haha
I commuted by bike for four years in London and there was a long hill that challenged me every day. My mine strategy was to keep the same cadence (leg speed) on the hill as I use on the flat. I was told by my husband that I should make the gearing easy enough so that I could keep a constant cadence at all times. This made a huge difference for me.
My second major tip: don’t ever stop. Go as slow as you like, but don’t stop pedaling. You’ll never get started again.
I’ve heard the cadence thing too, but the steepness of the hills + my bike gearing makes it nearly impossible for me to keep my cadence up.
I think I think similar thoughts when running up hills! Sometimes, once I’m past half way up a hill, I’ll look back, to sort of tell myself “look how far you’ve come!” I wouldn’t ever do that on my bike though… I’d probably fall over right away!
Yup, I can’t do that on my bike. I would fall!
to do: buy a bike.
Do not look up at the hill!!! I just tackled a humongous hill this weekend and the best trick I’ve learned the hard way is to just look a few feet in front of you and keep pedaling, stop thinking about how much further up the hill is. It’s totally a mental thing but it works.
Do not look up at the hill!!! I just tackled a humongous hill this weekend and the best trick I’ve learned the hard way is to just look a few feet in front of you and keep pedaling, stop thinking about how much further up the hill is. It’s totally a mental thing but it works.
Don’t always assume the top is flat. Sometimes a road that seems flat still has a slope to it and it can leave you puzzled as to why it is still hard to pedal.
Do start out will very low gears and if possible hit the hill with a little speed to help you get started.