New frame size affect pedaling

Well, what basically causes you to hop in the saddle spinning high revs is that you're pushing through on the downstroke all the way to the bottom (6 o'clock) and by maintaining your leg extension it is lifting you off the saddle. Before, you were probably not getting fully extended and thus weren't lifting yourself off the saddle. A drill you can do to smooth out your pedaling stroke is to do some high cadence drills at, say 125-140 rpm for about 1 minute at a time. Initially, you'll be hopping all over the place and will be very uncomfortable. But, your mind and body will collaborate and figure out how to smooth it out, basically by backing off the push by ~5 o'clock on the downstroke with each leg. If you look at the pedal forces of the top cyclists, it is very peaked at 3 o'clock and drops quickly after about 4 o'clock. It won't take long to sort it out and get smooth. After you get smooth at high cadences again, you can reevaluate the frame size.

My guess is that you've ridden your old bike for so long in your old body position that your body has adapted to riding that way. Give a few weeks, you'll most likely become comfortable with your new setup.

L

Rap, what you said makes sense. I do pedal all the way around (push and pull - I know that's a very long topic to discuss). But like Lonnie said, I just have to give myself some time to get my body adjusted. Yeah, I'll be practicing my spinning ad see what happens. On another note, I do feel my glutes working since it is sore after a ride on my new bike. Thanks guys

eortiz said:

Rap, what you said makes sense. I do pedal all the way around (push and pull - I know that's a very long topic to discuss). But like Lonnie said, I just have to give myself some time to get my body adjusted. Yeah, I'll be practicing my spinning ad see what happens. On another note, I do feel my glutes working since it is sore after a ride on my new bike. Thanks guys

Yesterday in my group ride, I got behind a guy who was trying to spin and there was just way too much going on above his saddle. I thought, "How can this guy keep this up for even a mile?" Exactly as I thought that, he pulled over to the right, slowed down and as I passed him to close the gap he said, "Too much for these old legs." I thought to myself that if I used that much energy pedaling I'd be pulling over as well. When you do your high cadence drills, have a friend ride behind you and watch your upper body. It should be rock steady, with very little movement. If there was a full glass of water balanced on each shoulder and on the top of your head, you wouldn't spill a drop. If that's not true, the first place to look is pushing through at the bottom. And the upstroke is more of an unweighting than a true pull. You will feel your glutes, from the push on the downstroke.