I personally have set up my bikes for a more upright position versus what I had before. As I get older, previous injuries do bother me more so now, so I do take less risks. Also does take me longer to climb than it used to, and longer to recover.
I've used every tip they listed, and had been using them even before moving into the 50+ realm. Comforting to know I wasn't 'way off base.
One more equipment thought: Shorter crank arms. It may be a small thing, but if your knees tweak, creak, or hurt at the limits of motion, shorter crank arms move the knees through a smaller range of motion.
The shorter crank thing is really helpful, but sadly road bike heritage negatively effects the way mountain bikers look at crank length.
I've ridden mountain unicycles for a bunch of years, with one wheel and no gears, crank length and tire diameter are the only "gearing", so it is common to play with different combinations.
I have ridden cranks as long as 180mm and wheels as big as 36 x 2.25. What I found was that a 150mm crank offered the best balance of control, power, and efficiency.
On my bikes I ride the shortest cranks I can find, generally 170's, though I plan to move onto 165 or 160's on my next bike. Short cranks excel for reducing pedal strikes, minimizing leg motion, and helping center your body over the BB.
The idea that we need a big lever to propel the bike is based on the limited gear options that faced bikers "back in the day". Nowadays we have all the gearing we need, long cranks no longer apply.
...The idea that we need a big lever to propel the bike is based on the limited gear options that faced bikers "back in the day". Nowadays we have all the gearing we need, long cranks no longer apply.
The best way to put crank length into perspective is to think where you get the maximum thrust when you are doing squats, and it's not when your knees are at sharp angles.
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