Turn your outdoor elliptical bike into an indoor elliptical crosstrainer

Standing cycling or cycling out of the saddle is a form of

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

in which the rider stands up while applying force to the pedals. __NOTOC__

Muscle activation

One reason for cycling standing up is to vary the muscles used and avoid fatigue.

Efficiency and power output

Standing cycling is less efficient especially at lower intensities. One study found that both positions have equal

time to exhaustion Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

at 86 V̇O₂ max, while standing up had higher time to exhaustion above 94 percent V̇O₂ max. A 2018 study in elite male cyclists found that standing did not affect energy cost but increased mechanical cost including rolling resistance power, rolling resistance coefficient, and lateral sways, resulting in an overall 4.3 percent increase in power needed to maintain the same speed. A 2017 study found that people spontaneously stand up when cycling to minimize muscular effort. Cycling standing up allows for greater

power Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

output in the short run because of the application of body weight to forward motion. People whose bodies are lighter suffer lower efficiency cost from standing up, thus lighter professional riders such as

Alberto Contador Alberto Contador Velasco (; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish former professional cyclist. He is one of the most successful riders of his era, winning the Tour de France twice ( 2007, 2009), the Giro d'Italia twice (2008, 2015), and the Vue ...

are more often seen standing up.

Type of bike used

Shorter crank lengths are more efficient with standing cycling compared to seated. Some bicycles are designed to be ridden standing up the entire time.

Muscle activation

Efficiency and power output

Type of bike used

References

Further reading