From the article: "Despite improvements in the oxidative potential of skeletal muscle observed in the present study, maximal aerobic power output, VO2max, cycling efficiency, gross cycling economy, power output at lactate threshold and time trial performance were not significantly different following either single or double leg cycle training." (Lines 424-427)

I won't be changing my training schedule any time soon based on this paper.

It's VERY important to note the word "counterweighted" when describing the single-leg cycling drills done in this study. That's VERY different than what most folks consider single-leg pedaling, either by just clicking out one leg or using some sort of clutched device in the cranks.

The interesting thing (to me) is that they were able do the COUNTERWEIGHTED single-leg drills at a power level greater than 1/2 of what the other group could do double-legged. Hmmm...could this be analogous to performing HIT using supplemental O2? The %error on the 2 group's TT performances seem to be fairly different as well (0.5% vs. 4.2%)...I wonder why that is?

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if your working hard, then who cares?

how did triathletes once produce nearly the same times as we are seeing today without the internet or technology? (or slowtwitchers)

hard work. if 1 leg is working hard or 2, my body knows one thing; does this hurt?

What exactly is "counterweighted single leg cycle training"?

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"one eye doubles my eyesight, so things don't look half bad" John Hiatt

I would say there is quite some difference between working hard and working smart.

I will use the example of VO2 max intervals and time spent at VO2 max. You can spend 2-3 minutes working yourself into a maximal oxygen consumption state and then immediately terminate. Do this from 10-15 times with a bunch of recovery. That is hard.

Spend those same 2-3 minutes working yourself into a maximal oxygen consumption state and then spend an other 2-3 minutes maintaining. Do this 3-7 times with a bunch of recovery. That is both hard and smart.

Edited to add: It was pointed out to me that some good research exists to suggest that time spent at VO2 max (or other intensities) may not be the end-all-be-all of improvement, and indeed, I feed my athletes a steady diet of varied VO2 work, from 30-30s to 5 on 5 off.

I was merely giving an example of what could the difference between hard and smart training could look like.

Counterweighted means a mass is attached to the legless crank arm. That mass serves to counter the weight of the leg in use as opposed to what most of those who practice single-leg drills do - unclip one foot.

Thanks...so in essence, "counterweighted" makes single leg "easier"?

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"one eye doubles my eyesight, so things don't look half bad" John Hiatt

If this doesn't bring AC out of hiding, we can always start a 'central governor' thread.

If only there was some sort of device or training aid on the market that would allow a cyclist to isolate one leg from the other while cycling.

Yes, single leg counterweighted cycling is very different to the "normal" single leg cycling or dare I say a decoupled crank system. The idea is to mimic the weight load of the opposite leg. This is to ensure the pedaling action remains as close to "real" cycling as possible.

The basic aim is to stress the leg in isolation and force adaptations which would limit performance of that particular aspect. In some regards this could be considered "capacity" building. As you'll in the study TT performance was not improved that much. One thing that did not appear in the study is that as sub-threshold efforts the RPE for some were greatly reduced but this cannot be accurately quantified and would require a separate study. Worth noting for triathletes.

I'll just stick to the principle of specificity. It seems to apply most of the time. I do the huge majority of my racing with the traditional, double-legged pedaling style. Therefore that's how I train.

So...would their conclusions support the use of Powercranks? Think about it.....

Aaah...but it may be the case that under certain conditions counterweighted single-leg pedaling MAY allow you to work each leg harder individually than you could if you were exercising both legs together. See my comment about it being similar to doing HIT with supplemental O2. For example, this could be one way to "work harder" if you live at altitude ;-)

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No...counterweighted single-leg pedaling mimics coupled pedaling better than uncounterweighted single-leg pedaling, and thus is more appropriate to the end use conditions.

Specificity, specificity, specificity! ;-)

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Do you train at race pace all the time? Given that would be the most specific to the task at hand? This does not utilize any muscles that are not used in cycling nor in a manner that is not specific to cycling. Hence the agreement normally used against more "traditional" single leg drills is not really valid. The results of study speak for themselves ie: they have the potential to improve aspects of performance in a manner which is superior to the other method testing.

More research required.

Counterweighted single-leg pedaling != clutched cranks, or typical "single-leg drills"

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No. That's why I pointed out the word "counterweighted". If anything, they argue against them.

Counterweighted single-leg pedaling != clutched cranks.

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yeah, nobody got faster

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Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
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Thus the results of the study should be ignored?

Is being faster the only physiological benefit that should be considered? Or are there other adaptations which may take place which will then enable improvements of performance?

Never once did I see mention of power cranks ;^}

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Not ignored.
Just don't go out and start doing one legged drills just yet.

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Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter

There hasn't been much discussion about powercranks lately. I don't get it. I miss those heated arguments.

Where's Frank?

 sshhh.... Frank was asked to leave.

Single leg drills are designed to help you improve the efficiency of your pedal stroke. You isolate the leg so you can focus on the up stroke as well as the down stroke. There are probably a lot of over the top mashers on ST that would benefit. 30secs to a min each side x 3.

This:

http://www.luescherteknik.com.au/...%20and%202%20web.pdf

Great for rehab from an injury to one leg....

I know it has been mentioned before but these single leg drills are counterweighted, that is there is a weight attached on the opposite cranks arm. If anything this encourages "mashing" or rather the force application on the downwards stroke. Doesn't really help "smooth" out pedal stroke the like.

Can you point to a study that indicates that "smoothing out" a pedal stroke makes one faster?

I only ask because there's a well-known study that indicates that faster guys tend to "push down harder" relative to slower riders AND relative to their own pedal stroke.

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Nope, because as far as I know "smoothing out" the pedal stroke is a waste of time. I was pointing out that if anyone was looking at the counterweighted drills to smooth out (whatever that means exactly) these are not the things to do. If anything the counterweight drills highlight why making concerted efforts to smooth out the pedal stroke is a waste of time.

Aaah...sorry. We're on the same page. For some reason I took your post as downplaying the results of the study and encouraging folks to "smooth out" their pedal strokes.

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All I know is that the last times I rode up climbs with Paul Thomas, he would unclip and challenge us on the climb, and still kick our asses for 3 or 4 minutes. Dude could generate a lot of power with one leg. So now I return the favor to him every time I get him in the pool. He cannot keep up with my one arm swimming at any distance, even a 25 sprint. Seems like cutting our 1/2 your limbs does not = losing half your power or speed. Don't have a clue whether this helps you later on in a race, but sure is fun in workouts!!

Yeah, though whilst there is a clear demonstrable benefit to these drills their application in turning that benefit to actual performance will require a lot more research.

I have experimented with these myself and very anecdotally report that I too didn't see any great improvements in FTP however it seemed that at sub threshold the RPE was significantly lower. So their application may be more in the ways of efficiency which is hard to quantify but could be of great benefit to those who spend a long time at sub threshold rates... Like triathletes ;)

May the testing and experimentation continue.

Hello All:
Counterweighted single leg cycling was my idea. I developed it in my lab and I'm the senior author on the paper which is the result of my sabbatical at Edith Cowan University.
By adding a counterweight to one crank, you can pedal with one leg but with biomechanics that are similar to those during normal double leg cycling. Much different than you would do during non-counterweighted single leg cycling.
The rationale for the study was that you would only exercise half the muscle mass at one time and therefore essentially double the available supply of oxygenated blood. This was well supported by the result that the participants trained at greater per-leg power during single leg than during double leg. While it is true that we did not obtain a performance improvement we did not really expect it after only 6 total workouts over three weeks. Anytime you design a study you are constrained by what you believe the participants are will to do and how much time they will take off of their normal training. We decided on three weeks knowing it might not improve performance. That's where the analysis of muscle biopsies came in. We pulled biopsies before and after each block of training (single and double) and analyzed the tissue. The results for increases in glut-4 (insulin and contraction mediated glucose transporter) and CoxII and CoxIV (limiting steps in the respiratory chain) are highly compelling. They suggest that this will be a potent training stimulus as well as clinical modality.
Cheers,
Jim

Hey Jim, So the question is: given the available data now available from the study what is the next step in terms of capitalizing on the adaptations shown? Longer time using the single leg drills, longer intervals (6,8,10mins or longer) or combining with other forms of training?

I had some brackets made up for my pedals, so have played around using these drills from time to time.

As mentioned above, highly anecdotal but I found after following a similar protocol to the study I found that sub-threshold effortsfelt easier. Improved efficiency perhaps?

Did you consider doing a similar study comparing counterweight single leg cycling to non-counterweight single leg?

Can you get the same effect using a trainer with a large heavy flywheel, e.g. Lemond Revolution?

OK, I finally was able to give it a try. I used only about 10 - 12 lbs of counterweight. I have to say that it felt strange. I was expecting to be able to crank out more watts with each leg, but the whole thing seemed awkward and I actually found non-counterweighted single leg pedaling to be easier.

Interesting. Hard to imagine why it would be awkward. Couldn't be smoother in my lab or in several other labs around the world.
How did you attach the weight? Maybe a pic would help.
Cheers,
Jim

Jim, I don't think this was answered in this thread, but what was the mass of the counterweight?

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We use 10kg and that seems to work really well for most riders.

Thanks...I guess that means Dreadnought above was using ~1/2 the required mass. Maybe that contributed to his "difficulties"? That would be sort of a "tweener" between fully counterweighted and uncounterweighted pedaling, no?

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Maybe, but we've done a wide range of weights in the lab 10-40 lbs and all of them are MUCH better than no counterweight. I'm wondering if the weight was rotating or somehow unstable.

I took some pics, but I was unable to attach them to my post. I'll try again. I can tell you what I did. I brought weightlifting bar to the machine shop. They cut it to about 5" in length and the threaded one end of it so that it would fit into the crank like a pedal. Then I put 2 x 5 lb weights on it plus the lockrings. My estimate is that the total weight was somewhere between 10 and 12 lbs. I can email the pics to you if you want..

I should point out that I've done a fairly large amount of non-counterweighted single-leg cycling. My guess is that I've become accustomed to using my hip flexors so much that the counterweight disrupts my usual rhythm.

Your setup sounds exactly like one of our early prototypes and should work just fine. I can imagine that if you approached it just like non-counterweighted single leg it would have been really jerky. We give our beginners a bit of instruction to emphasize the push. Try just riding for a while with sneakers so you can't pull up. That should allow you tone things down and then you can put bike shoes back on. Also, if there is room on your spindle, try loading it up to 20 or 25lbs.
Cheers,
Jim

That would not explain why 0kg (non-counterweight) seemed easier

OK, I'll try that. Should I start out at fairly low RPM?

Most of us tend to select something a little slower than double leg. Maybe aim for 80-85 and see how it goes.
Cheers,
Jim

But trying to pedal as if the weight wasn't there would explain it ;-)

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Go ride a skateboard. Your leading leg is your dominant leg upon which you balance. The other leg that you use to push forward is your less dominant leg, and as such is the one you should be training in single leg cycling drills.

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**All of these words finding themselves together were greatly astonished and delighted for assuredly, they had never met before**

...and yet, despite my preferring to stand on a skateboard with my left leg and pushing off with my right, like the vast majority of folks, when at FTP levels and above my "L-R Balance" is invariably a near exact 50-50 split.

Do I still need to do single leg drills? :-/

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Wrong forum mate. ;)

You've got a Powermeter on your skateboard?

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**All of these words finding themselves together were greatly astonished and delighted for assuredly, they had never met before**

Nope...a power source

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I was also thinking that a fixed gear or track bike setup with a heavy flywheel might help. What sort of trainer were you using?

If you did that you probably wouldn't need the pedal counterweight...interesting.

Is that why you were asking about how to "fix" a LeMond Revolution? ;-)

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Yes, but it is a different sensation. A track bike with a heavy flywheel will keep spinning even when you letup on the effort. I don't get that sensation with the counterweight: when I let up on the effort the counterweight drops down and quickly stops.

We use a Monark ergometer, but I know some teams have used them on trainers. Having a fixed gear could work but it would be pretty jerky each time the chain tension reverses direction. I suspect that after a few minutes of just pedaling with a sneaker you will find the counterweight system to be very smooth.
Cheers,
Jim

Andy Coggan and I got to talking about this a few years back and I had a set of weighted pedals made to do torque analysis using SRM's TA function. We made some video of the TA session:

http://www.youtube.com/...=1&v=MA6Rrv-4Vxs

The only hard part about the whole experiment was securing the weight in such a way that it would not swing or rotate about the pedal spindle. Once it was immobilized relative to the crank arm the 1-leg pedaling sensation was nearly the same as pedaling with 2 legs.

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Excellent independent validation, thanks for that!
Yes the biomechanics should be about the same. The big difference is the per-leg intensity at which you can exercise. I think of it as follows: What if I could wave a magic wand and give you a 50% increase in VO2 max for your hard training sessions? You would be able to train harder and thus increase the respiratory capacity (such as capillary and mitochondrial density) in the working muscles. When you go to competition I would undo the magic spell but the increases in respiratory capacity would remain. This should (yet to be demonstrated) increase lactate threshold and thus lead to sustained performance at increased percentage of VO2 max. Stay tuned for those studies in the next couple of years with published abstracts sooner.
Cheers,
Jim

Hi Jim, we sent you an email about this stuff.

Thank you.

"Counterweighted single-leg cycling provides an exercise modality that is more tolerable than typical single-leg cycling while inducing greater peripheral stress for the same cardiovascular demand as double-leg cycling."

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24492992

This is an established principle in cardiac rehabilitation among physical therapists. Lately, I have been thinking more and more about it. I know there is more research on it being done on this sort of training from a performance standpoint. It makes sense, especially for long distance athletes, to try and maximize local adaptation. I also know that Jenny Rissveds did some (unknown to me how much/often, but I've been told that she was close to FTP when doing 8 min(?) intervals per leg after doing this type of training for a while) of this modality prior to her olympic gold in Rio. She already has a wicked high vo2max, in excess of 75ml/kg so trying to max out local adaptations when the central adaptations has reached a plateu seems right.

It's just a shame that it seems hard to build a proper counterweight. Seems like one has to have contacts who can build it.

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