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    Hills Are NOT Harder Than Cycling On The Flat (Says Science)



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    0:00 – Intro
    0:53 – Simple Explanation
    1:39 – The Limits To My Claim
    2:17 – Why Hills Sometimes Feel Harder
    4:24 – Understanding Mechanical Advantage
    5:12 – How To Calculate The Steepest Hill You Can Climb
    9:42 – How To Fit Low Gears To Your Bike
    10:52 – One More Climbing Tip!
    11:31 – Summary

    PEOFWMLPSCCFGEIC

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    33 Comments

    1. CYCLINGABOUT on

      It took me many years to enjoy riding up hills! Like most people, I hated them…

      My first road bike was handed down to me as a young teen. It was an old steel racing bike with 53-42 tooth front chainrings and a 13-21 tooth cassette. I loved riding it because it felt so fast, but as soon as I got to a steep hill, I'd often need to get off and walk to the top.

      All along, I figured I just needed to get stronger, so I persisted with that vintage bike for years and years. But looking back, I was already super strong, I was already super light, and I was always up for a challenge. Why were hills so damn hard?!

      It wasn't until I truly understood mechanical advantage that I realised that hills were hard NOT because I was inadequate… but because I didn't have low enough gear ratios on my bike. 😅

    2. João Guilherme Vasconcelos on

      In my city, with the tropical weather and only flat surfaces, every time I get out the house feels like a climb, so hot and windy, definitely makes flat hard and this kinda makes me ready when I have to ride steep sections in a different city

    6. Jonathan Byrd on

      I recognize your voice from another channel that subscribe to. Don't you also do video games? It's either that or I can't remember what it is but you have a very distinct voice and I know you have another channel. I just got into e-bike building and biking. I love biking and so I'm going to try to do the backpacking biking trip with your guides

    9. Doug Miller on

      This does not take note of aerodynamic advantage of lower positions. It also does not recognize stress on knees which is greatly reduced on flat ground. My knees are totally shot. Hills kill me and I can time trial at 25mph

    10. Ostsol on

      Aside from the simple fact that hills require constant effort rather than coasting and soft-pedalling, for me it's historically been mostly a matter of psychology. It's frustrating to be forced to move so slowly, but lately I've just become more patient. I recognise that I can't make it up the slope quickly and am at peace with the fact. I'll still put in effort, but I'm not going to try and make it a race — especially when I'm already pushing max heartrate.

    11. Jan Ban Joovi on

      Technically speaking and in reality it’s harder. You can’t ignore the laws of physics just like how some moronic people dismiss biology when it comes to gender. You should have said it’s harder but there’s a way to make it easier.

    12. cynic5581 on

      Still can’t escape physics. Lower gear is slower making a given distance longer, ie more energy is required aka is “harder”. Might just be something so obvious there was no point in mentioning it.

      Also when balance becomes an issue you’ll start expending energy exponentially. I noticed this the next morning when my upper body is sore, someone with your experienced level and conditioning likely won’t even notice this but you’ll muscle mass is a giveaway.

    13. theemutsenfabriek on

      One crucial thing this video 'forgets': even though with a lower gear the energy output per pedal is the same, it requires more pedalling per distance to go the same distance. So in the end, more energy was spent on the same distance. So yes, biking uphill is harder

    17. Hector Convector on

      I sustain 90-100 watts on the flat. According to the article I saw, at 60RPM cadence my steepest climb I can do is 7% (at my FTP wattage and lowest gear's ratio), and that's already lots more watts than my average flat speed. But where I live, I have hills over 10% on almost every ride. I've successfully climbed 14-20% hills around here, without ever having to walk – and trust me, that is way way harder than going on the flat lmao.

    19. O. S. on

      Nice try… but riding uphill is harder, so much in fact, I avoid it from the getgo. Bike and uphill? That's not mobility, that's a sport. I want to get from A to B, not sweaty and ripped. What a load of bullcrap.

    23. Matthijs on

      You can give me a fixed gear and straps and ill be tripling my power output to 500 watts while maintaining speed. Yes bit more of a workout but at least I don't look like a morron taking 5 minutes to get up a 100 metre hill.

    26. YOGi on

      You may want to have a talk with Newton!!
      For me when the going gets tough, I get off n walk 😂😂😂. Take a break, have a Kit Kat 😋😋😋😋

    29. Brent Blackwell on

      I’m not sure I understand the premise here. The comparison at the beginning keeps the cadence and the power output the same. But the speed changes. This means it IS harder to go up hills to keep up the same speed. In order to keep up the same speed some of your energy has to go into climbing against gravity. Or another way to put it, your output per distance decreases when climbing, therefore it’s harder.

      But I guess the point of the video is that you can have a mental shift about climbing and therefore not have to hate them as much.

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