Test and Usage Based Observations
Our testing efforts as well as long term usage of LPP shows that a properly executed LPP techniques (exerting pedaling force only by pulling from the 6:15 O’clock to the 11:45 O’clock position) promotes full adaptation of the “lifting” muscles. All other pedaling techniques do not use the lifting muscles to their full potential. To the extent that those muscles are not used, a considerable source of muscle power can be left untapped. The reason relates to muscle count. Nine muscles are directly engaged and four core muscles indirectly support the lifting effort. That is a total of Thirteen muscles. Hardly any of those muscles are being used by pure pedal pushers, who rely solely on seven muscles to do the pushing job. The sheer lack of muscle power makes push pedaling harder. In addition, those hooked on pure pedal pushing also have to overcome the weight and motion opposition of an ascending leg that is basically useless and just going for the ride during the pushing technique. That ascending leg adds weight and due to the force of gravity does not want to bend upward. Please bear in this in mind when you are temped to just push down on pedals. It is a passable technique when you are descending or have a tail wind helping you. It is a lousy pedaling technique when you face head and cross wind or you have to do climbing. It is also lousy for promoting high rpm pedaling, which is more efficient in generating power during cycling because it relies more on your cardio system and in doing so, it saves critical muscle power necessary for better long range performance.
In contrast, a reasonable percentage of the total force generated by the lifting muscles is used by Elite and Pro level cyclists. You can notice that seemingly effortless pedaling with a very stable upper body in the large majority of those Pro cyclists. You can also notice that they do pedal at a high rpm rate consistent with the reliance on their aerobic system to produce power via their techniques. Elite and Pro cyclists lift approximately within 75% of the arc depending on the specific technique of the individual. Once they get to that point, they stop lifting and start pushing with the descending leg and sweep back through the bottom and up to that 75% of the arc. That complex actions is done without hesitation yet it takes a heck of a lot of time and effort to get that delicate timing right. For some people it takes years to perfect that technique. Yet in doing so, as we have demonstrated with out testing, they leave 25% of the lifting power potential untapped.
The reason for that untapped lifting potential is that in order to achieve 100% adaptation of the lifting muscles, you have to train those muscles to lift effectively to their maximum limit. That is not done while combining lifting with pushing, no matter how efficient you are in doing so. Only when you commit exclusively to lifting will you be able to ultimately achieve that 100% lifting adaptation. That will take some mental rewiring to achieve in order to overcome old pedaling habits. It takes three to four weeks to achieve reasonable adaptation with LPP yet its much easier than adapting to pulling and pushing. It will be easier to do LPP on wind assisted flats and on descents. Having said that, your past muscle memory will fight you when you are asked to continue lifting while overcoming a headwind on a flat or as the climbing gets tougher!
It is surprising to see how much power can be efficiently produced by fully adapted lifting muscles. Power enough to not to have to use those Quads unless it is absolutely necessary to engage them in support of the lifting muscles to perform very high power generation as the Pro cyclists do. Stephan can generate over 800 watts while sitting and over 900 Watts standing. Consider how much will it mean for a triathlete to have those Quads fully rested for the marathon phase and how beneficial will it be for a road cyclist to have the Quads fully rested to engage them on an attack or a final sprint.
Testing across a fairly terrain diverse and demanding 20 mile test track clearly demonstrated that at 51 minutes and 9 seconds Stephane was able to improve 1 minute 9 seconds from his previous best time using his pro cycling technique, by using 99.9% pure lifting on the track with only some minor pulling/pushing on the standing starts. He did this improvement while spending 18 kilojoules less than during his previous best time effort. Both tests were performed on days that were extremely consistent relative to wind direction and calm wind conditions. In addition, the average temperature for the track varied by only 4 degrees between two test days and being in the 60’s it promoted a strong performance on both days. Stephane performed yet another 100% LPP test where he notched 50 minutes and 57 seconds on the track further lowering his best time. It is also interesting to see that he produced higher maximum wattage numbers in his pure LPP runs (814 Watts on the 51:09 run and 708 Watts on his 50:57 run on the saddle) when compared to the 620 Watts max on his 52:15 pro technique run.
Updated Comments (March 2022)
There is a fair amount of Physics (Kinetic Energy generation) that explains LPP lifting efficiency. We have hard empirical data that now we can complement with some hard math from the technical paper provided in within this website. The LPP Test Results section below is definitively cycling geeky but such geekiness is required to show cycling efficiency. As a gateway to it, I will leave you with these thoughts:
Comment #1 – In my mind, there is no doubt that Lift Propulsive Pedaling (LPP) should be the pedaling technique of choice for cyclists on the saddle, including Elite or Pro cyclist. The benefits of the LPP technique come from the critical and necessary physical adaptation in order to take full advantage of the previously proven mechanical efficiency of the lifting technique (Refer to technical paper available within this website).
Comment #2 – As long as you can generate the pedaling power required on the saddle for your cycling needs and goals with LPP you don’t have to use any other technique. As Elite and Pro cyclists need to produce wattages beyond 900 watts, they should revert to their Pro technique. Those wattages will most likely be generated out of the saddle. The average wattage of a Pro during a race rarely exceeds 450 watts and that is well within the realm of LPP.
Comment #3 – There is more to LPP than meets the eye. There is a technique to be learned and adjustments that have to be done to your bike and cleats to get max performance from it. You can try to boldly go on your own, however, joining the http://www.LPPtraining.com website streamlines the process and I will always be available of coaching. My contact information is in that website, however, if you have any questions prior to joining, you can send me an email to joevilella@gmail.com. Make sure to title it LPP Queries so that it can survive my span blocker.
Sincerely,
Joseph Vilella, San Diego, CA, May of 2022