How To Make Your Pedalling Technique Smoother Than Ever | GCN's Pro Cycling Tips

Watching pros pedal is almost like observing a piece of fine cycling art. They look so smooth and relaxed on the bike as they turn their cranks towards victory. But how do they get their cadence so silky? Conor's here to give you his top tips and get you pedalling like a pro.
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How smooth is your pedal stroke?
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Leave us a comment below!

[@gcn]

How smooth is your pedal stroke?

[@justinsopelario5553]

Well that bike is Huge

[@kcyclopedia-keralascycling315]

Smooth as butter..😁😁🤓🤓

[@allthingsTechrelated]

Global Cycling Network smooth as oil

[@brycezoeller]

Bro its as smooth as leggos on a treadmill...😁

[@grob011]

Freshly waxed

[@greggderrick398]

Can GCN tell me why Conor puts 20 inch BMX wheels on his Pinarello - 😂

[@josephburke1842]

Seeing a 6’8” man doing a plank across a country road gives a whole new meaning to creating a “bridge”.

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@CarlForde]

Emma Pooley could teach Connor a few things about plank form

[@danh6720]

@@CarlForde you can’t make a single span bridge that long without an arch. Materials science isn’t that advanced yet.

[@YG-ue4ec]

He's got more space in that front triangle, than I have in my apartment.

[@8paolo96]

if he goes bikepacking he can take everything in a framebag

[@YG-ue4ec]

@@8paolo96 and still have some spare space..

[@rato_gordo]

Its not a triangle anymore its a trapezium

[@YG-ue4ec]

@@rato_gordo "modified triangle" for me..

[@jameswarner8038]

Lmao

[@SuperOlds88]

The presenter did an excellent job. Easy to understand, hope he does a lot more of these types of videos.

[@TWROC96]

This was very helpful and timely as indoor training seems a good place to practice the pedal stroke. Thanks Conor.

[@rato_gordo]

Really like connor videos its nice to se us tall guys represented

[@thomasjacques8400]

Conor great presenter - best gcn first couple months - Hank took you way longer but now your probably my fav

[@richaw6689]

Great and useful vid Conor! Its always good to see your (me) doing most things correctly! In my experience, stretching is so important because like you I get hammy pain, best thing though is foam rolling. It's amazing! General stretching for lower back is also good, especially if your in that aero position on your bike for upwards of a couple of hours. Thanks dude!

[@muhamadali6761]

Love all your videos 💪💪💪

[@martinaxe6390]

This video caused me to reassess my saddle height. I ended up dropping the seatpost a good inch. Soreness at the end of a two hour ride was greatly reduced. I have recently been trying different saddles and neglected to adjust the seatpost. Thanks, GCN!

[@steamedwhiterice]

This channel is so far beyond me, and I'm totally ok with that! Still love to watch and learn.

[@AtharvaVaidya]

How tall is he? The frame is so much bigger than the wheels he might just be a metre higher in elevation than the peloton.

[@JustinCrediblename]

Conor Dunne is 6'8"

[@Horstelin]

look at his position at 6:06 though... he needs all the headtube and spacers he can get. Sucks to be a "body-freak", I have similar problems because my legs are disproportionally long in comparison to my torso. I can not dream of riding/owning a madone or aeroad one day, the drop would be something like 20cm

[@tranminhnhat2977]

@@Horstelin but the long head tube pinarello still look cool tho

[@MrBusunglueck]

@@Horstelin 20cm drop is fine though.

[@Horstelin]

@@MrBusunglueck Tell that to my back hurting at 12cm of drop :P

[@lukecooper1993]

These videos are awesome

[@pinpointmarketing4183]

Brilliantly & well presented video. 👊

[@bigwil91]

Great job Connor!!!

[@parisayousefi2237]

great information. thank you

[@JonGarrood]

Very simple but very important content, cheers man

[@fastharri]

I was always taught to keep my feet in line with the bike as any angle could cause knee issues. Took the advice seriously as I had an earlier knee injury and went from spending the following week in agony to painless more efficient riding, albeit with a mid float setup.

[@dougduchateau443]

...so for some light hearted quarantine entertainment - next week let's see Conor ride Emma's bike...

[@ooldmka]

OMG hahahahah

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@paddyorourke5829]

Love this video not to much technical jargon easy advice to follow for us folks who are new to this and GCN please remember this as the pros out there already know a lot of these tricks where as we do not so keeping it simple like this works great video maybe a spin of channel like GCN amateur might be an idea 😀

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@fatkhurrokhman6218]

Thanks for the video... Top

[@rickschute7021]

Thanks so much Conor! I have been having some patella-femoral and some achilles issues over the last year...and your bit was a helpful reminder to me that staying smooth will help to keep the legs healthy.

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@lockharj]

This guy is a great addition to the team

[@jascollinscork]

Fantastic Informative video!!! Connor in such a natural in front of the camera and good with well spoken too 😃👏🏻

[@trevorhayes5414]

single leg pedalling on the turbo is great for smoothness & improving technique. Riding a track bike/fixie too is also good for that constancy of pedal motion.

[@55Reever]

Great video. The cycle fit is something I really need to pay attention to.

[@SprayIgniteBoom]

Great tips!-) Thanks~

[@thepathfinders1049]

Thank for the video man

[@gcn]

Thanks for watching!

[@fridomartens8155]

Nice music, love it!

[@ethanklein5177]

Video: How to pedal smooth Final tip: Pedal smoother In all seriousness I love your content keep it up!

[@logicaldad1917]

Got to agree on this comment. Doing stretches helps everything about riding. How about some classic examples specific to pedaling motion like race your buddy 1 mile in your lowest gear (it exaggerates your pedaling flaws and forces you to correct.). BTW, I completely disagree with the recommendation not to pull up on the up stoke. To be smooth you need consistency and saying to not pull up on the down stroke creates the impression people should only push down.That creates a very choppy picture in ones head. Better to think "push down, pull back, pull up, and push over the top" as if it is a complete cycle rather than "push left, push right, push left and push right"

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@dietcokeheadd]

@@logicaldad1917 totally agree about "push down, pull up and push over the top"

[@tombachmann5784]

Another nice how to video. thanks, i really like them. And I also have a (maybe weird) request: Could you make a how to crash/fall like a pro video? I had some bad luck recently leading to a couple nasty crashes with broken bones and I was always wondering if I could have done something different in those split seconds while going over the handelbar. Maybe the pros have some advice what they did.

[@sophiescyclingandwalkingch4294]

Thanks really good.

[@unifreiburgTV]

Oval Chainrings make the Pedalstroke a lot smoother, Trier ist, love it and never go back to round ones. Greets to Froome ☝️

[@mupenkz]

Nice...very useful. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[@martinromeo1006]

Good video my friend well done 👏 thanks

[@abhilashreddy897]

Good channel sir I love it

[@unlisportstv5309]

Thank you, Global Cycling Network

[@c.initiative2705]

helpful vid! thanks.

[@gcn]

You're welcome

[@themelted4614]

Power yoga and cycling are the perfect partners ,balance , strenght ,core strenght and indurance. Forearm plank is great but dont disenguage your core like our narrator keep it rigid. If anyones does have 1 leg longer, check your hip joint alignment as in most cases the long leg appears longer as the hip joint is out.If so find a Holistic healer as its easy fixed. Great vid and advice Thanks !

[@NicSynaes]

At 5:32 - that’s actually the M25 he’s planking across...

[@weler2491]

He is so tall he blocks the entire road

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@zachh7796]

What a great presenter, definitely grew into the role fast Conner! Your are fun to watch...although 5:25 is more of a Tipi than a plank lol

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@MikeSmith-ni5eh]

Great advice. Thanks guys. Will try that little session tomorrow morn on way to work. With NZ Police so able to ride to work!!

[@HoldenAdventures]

Great video. Can’t wait for Hanks rebuttals in a future episode.

[@xchopp]

Ima gonna try some of these peddlin techniques.

[@osbogosley]

The best way to smooth your pedaling is to do one leg riding on a trainer or on gradual climbs. I was still beating 30 yr. olds when I was 50. I'm 70 now and finally riding again in retirement.

[@reddiver7293]

Cheers, Osbo. I, too, am 70 and retired. I watch KZbin cycling videos too much and ride too little. But I still ride!

[@MosesPlays]

What a great fkn video, Love you guys.

[@diverg3]

I think this is the best technique video you’ve made so far! Great advice!

[@MichaelAlcantara23]

Great tips. New Biker on cleats.

[@joshuaprice8171]

You look like you're riding a bike with 26" wheels. As a completely ordinary guy at 5' 9" tall I've always wondered what it would be like to see things from your perspective. Great video sir!

[@dougduchateau443]

Another great topic, thanks. Years ago, I can remember talk of Greg Lemond using an horizontal technique, likened to "wiping your feet" from 3:00 to 9:00 on the stroke, vs. a more piston-like vertical stroke. Any talk of this type of thing these days, in terms of efficiency?

[@roadrunnercourierco6997]

Oval hyperglide 80s old school style ChainRings r back in vogue won the last dozen or more tours these Shaped non round Rings up front have Yoda speak there that final sent ace b4 sorry Forgive Me U Must! He he

[@roadrunnercourierco6997]

Oval Qrings team

[@granjaciafarms]

interesting, i always feel like i want to get ahead of my bike in that way

[@leopoldodonnell1979]

Great easy to follow advice. I've seen and heard so much bad advice given out by 'experts', so it's great to see some advice that will actually help cyclists in under 8 minutes.

[@bernardorinconceron6139]

Thank you. Techniques are really important non only to improve, they are useful to avoid injuries. The first part although was not very clear. At the gym, we had a teacher who made some drawings, anyway, all those tips are very useful, thanks again.

[@rap122462]

It's nice to see that the folks at GCN are once again recognizing the importance of a good pedaling technique. I saw a recent video where Simon made the absurd claim that pedaling technique is not important. A smooth, round pedal stroke is critical to producing a more powerful and efficient stroke. The reason many pro cyclists make pedaling look so effortless is because, due to their good pedaling technique, IT IS relatively effortless. Working on pedaling technique is one of the most important things you can do to improve your speed, power, endurance and most of all FUN.

[@calebgonsalves2970]

You'll get a smooth pedaling stroke through simply riding your bike however, it's a subconscious effort that takes time to perfect. If you're making a concious effort to change you posture, something is wrong

[@robertpreato3891]

@@calebgonsalves2970 A good pedal stroke is not intuitive at all. If you practice pedaling squares you will get good at pedaling squares. So simply riding your bike is not going to turn a bad pedal stroke into a good one. It will make a bad pedal stroke even worse and harder to correct later. This is true of any mechanical motion you train, not just pedal strokes. Every see a bad golfer get good simply by playing more bad golf?? If you want a smooth pedal stroke it takes a conscious effort to develop the muscle memory, then once this is ingrained, it will become more natural and require only occasional attention to keep it fine tuned. This has absolutely nothing to do with POSTURE so I'm not sure why you even introduced posture in your comment. I've been riding road bikes for over 45 years and have been a student of pedaling dynamics for most of that time. I know a thing or two about what makes an efficient pedal stroke.

[@mohsinbeigh9525]

Great advice bro!

[@dalewortham]

Really helpful, any suggestions for counting my pedaling? Cadence? 🙏 Thanks.

[@mervincortes2139]

my saddle position technique is to always position my saddle parallel to my hip whilst standing....and it works and never fails me everytime😌

[@joek.7819]

As a follow-up to this piece, would like to learn how Climbers vs. Puncheurs apply force in different parts of the pedal stroke. Thanks as always!^♡^

[@sayeesaran]

5:35 Man just dominated the whole width of the road there

[@MrSouzy]

Conor sure looks really good on a bike. I am tall too but not quite a tall as him. Now I am really a roadie at heart but I mostly ride a 29" wheel mountain bike for my daily training and rides out. 29" has been a revelation for larger riders in the mountain bike scene. The larger wheel size means that the frame looks in proportion to the wheels and on top of that there is no getting away from the increased stability it brings by effectively lowering the centre of gravity. Its probably got a lot to do with UCI rules but you could make an argument that road bikes for taller people would also be better off with slightly larger wheels too.

[@bryand8892]

That was so interesting tips I try now to earning money to buy bike to do that

[@aaronmeehan8161]

omg that headtube

[@homoinspirus]

It sounds as though cameraman rides along on a lawnmower ;)

[@user-pr4ww4pt1x]

finally someone else noticed

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@31.8mm]

deja vu! i've seen this title before

[@andrewwhite1065]

Late to comment, but my first semi competitive road bike was a track bike, fixed wheel 87" gear and a front brake. A fixie over the first 12 months though forced me to be fluid at speed not just in the legs but on the seat. Also improved my bike skills. For me it's still the ultimate whole body workout (no gym), even though i use my road bike & fully rigid and lightweight mtb on alternate days for work etc.

[@maximk6252]

oh the soundtrack in this episode !

[@quentinarundell6589]

I've been riding for decades and a smooth pedal stroke and still upper body are my mantra. Good advice here.

[@metpham]

great

[@MrKurogane29]

he is so tall ,the 700c wheel set looks like a 26er or a 24 on his bike 🤩

[@MKV1196]

More like a aero 20" folding bike lol

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@erno1d]

Smooth like butter.

[@patrickgannon8190]

Thank you, great tips, just one issue...I like to cycle as much as I can but the saddle is an issue even in the gym that makes me uncomfortable sitting on one side that I gotta stop ☹️ any tips on what to do (ever come across this problem) 🤔. Cheers 🍻

[@rainman955]

6:28. Connors best tip ever to ride smoother, DONT JERK at the same time. I`ll remember that, allways find it hard whit Bib shorts and changing gears and steering etc.....

[@kenguie]

So I’m new and riding a few miles everyday right now. I ride in a park in NYC but I can only go so fast. I find I can pedal until I reach a safe cruising speed to go around the park but I need to maintain that speed. When I am at speed, the tension falls away from pedaling and I start jerking and peddling squares as you say until I need to corner and pick up speed again. How can I stop this and feel like I’m peddling smoother? Hope that made sense, thanks!!! Love the gcn videos! Lots of good advice for my level. Thanks for that too!!!

[@raybarber9526]

Would the cadence drills be a good one for the turbo?

[@jimbrittain7083]

Excellent Video and Great Presenter. Keep these coming!!!

[@justinn6865]

Yes lads

[@SingleMind]

I started biking 2 days ago and i never imagined it to be this complicated. hahaha

[@Adrian-xh2ld]

Are you getting it now?

[@SingleMind]

@@Adrian-xh2ld so far yes but sadly i stopped cycling for a while now. 😔

[@Adrian-xh2ld]

@@SingleMind awh what’s your hobbies as of now?

[@SingleMind]

@@Adrian-xh2ld currently none but before biking i like badminton why you asked by the way?

[@Adrian-xh2ld]

@@SingleMind curious, and yeah I love badminton too , it’s so fun

[@karmmaguitar]

What's the size of that frame omg like 4XL

[@ericreis2]

Ya, lol!🤣

[@naldyano]

Looks like a giraffe lol

[@colostomybag9367]

That fork is like half fork have steer tube.

[@brauljo]

@@colostomybag9367 Lmao for real 6:06

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@syebez3492]

Good video. I would say you would naturally pull up a little and you should do to some extent otherwise you would weight the pedal on the up stroke, causing a negative power as it acts against the down stroke. Dual Power meter with pedal smoothness, torque effectiveness or a wattbike maybe be good measurement/guidance tools .

[@jonmcgoey1772]

I heard this advice similarly described to newbies as, "lift your rising foot a bit, otherwise your downward foot has to lift it for you."

[@jhaspermedina288]

hi goodmorning from Philippines I'm your solid supporter im so dead dreaming to have a bike like yours, nice contents and nice videos thank you for the ideas and knowledge. hoping for your reply.

[@ivarbrouwer197]

My Achilles’ tendons are quire short, as such my toes tend to point down automatically when entering the upstroke, with a little extra push backwards, handy when climbing in the saddle . (Also, because of this, I’m bad at doing squads, but it doesn’t seem to hamper my overall power, but it might explain why I like climbing out of the saddle)

[@3dr1ch]

Nice to have a GCN video that isn’t trying to sell me something for a change. 👍

[@tomkelly500]

I like to pedal with a pull force at the same time as a push force sometimes for variation (tho not most of the time) and I am curious as to why that is apparently wrong. Any idea? I would have thought constant rotational force is good!

What tires is Conor running ? They seem extra wide yet they fit on a rim brake bike, I'd love to have a pair of these.

[@jeffreygutierrez12]

I hope One day i have a Road bike like yours 🤧

[@AnggaSukmaP]

Mmm... I haven't try to reach until 120 rpm while practicing cadence. Nice tips, thanks.

[@deanrobbins8102]

Does that apply for recumbent trikes as well?

[@Skaughtto]

Cheers to the GCN orchestra for their work on this video

[@stefanloh7994]

Hmmm, Sounds good. But all that Stretching and Core excercising didn‘t really do the trick for me. But when I started weight lifting things finally improved. Not only do you get stronger legs and upper body But also the range of motion improves. Kept it on the schedule ever since.

[@davenixon1920]

How about riding rollers? I’ve always heard that is a sure fire way to improve pedaling smoothness.

[@lightningll2991]

Improves smoothness bike handling and makes you more relaxed on the bike. I have all my students learn how to ride rollers.

[@traveler15]

I got a new bike last week and went clipless for the first time. Realized very quickly how terrible my pedaling technique was. Clipless definitely forces you to fix glaring issues immediately. Focusing on it has made my rides much more enjoyable, and less painful afterwards. And just the one fall clipping in🤣

[@octanekoh9462]

what was the speed you were traveling while speaking and recording the video?

[@marty9464]

Good video, but I'm a little surprised no mention was made of how to develop a smooth spin. I could the best way to to pedal in smooth circles is at the end of a ride spend 5-8 minutes pedaling with one foot then the other, to force you to pedal in circles. I've shared this tip with others and they've found it very useful. Anyway, just my 2 cents worth !!!

[@ridewithgae1467]

I love the Red Pinarello Bike, I hope one day I will win a lottery LOL

[@KenSmith-bv4si]

Hi Conor , Ken here . Your bike looks so tiny . I practice yoga everyday , it really helps my biking .

[@arnenl1575]

One of the best tips I read (don't remember from whom it was): think about pedaling fast, not strong.

[@tommccafferty5591]

My pedal stroke is not too smooth at all, especially at the beginning of a ride. I have an artificial left knee, which is slightly range of motion limited, due to how damaged my knee was when the replacement is made. It takes a few miles to get it loosened up to where it doesn't raise my left hip at the top of the stroke. My right knee will need to be replaced in the next year as it is bone on bone and it is pretty painful when under hard pedaling. I have a relatively slow cadence. Left to my own devices it averages in the 63--65 RPM range. If I really concentrate, I can get it into the middle 70s over a multi hour ride, and I can do 80-105 for very short spurts. Nice video Conor. Thanks for the tips.

[@Bunnyjunior68]

Quite frustrating not to meet the cyclist that is coming at around 2:10 :(

[@brauljo]

GCN does this a lot, you rarely see them actually getting overtaken by traffic and interacting with other cyclists. Maybe it's for the immersion? It'd be interesting to have videos played out in more real time.

[@saahomotivation9606]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIfOkIiGid2AbZo

[@driesvandevelde9778]

Which tires do you have on the bike?

[@artifexjoinery9323]

Smoother than a cashmere codpiece!

[@chosenhero13]

Can we get a review on those Pirellis?