I know that there has been alot of negative reviews of overspeed training exercises like downhill sprinting and high speed treadmill running in this forum. How about high speed stationary cycling? Does it help? I heard that it helps increase stride rate. What are other people’s thoughts on high speed stationary cycling?
Excessive cycling can lead to shortening of Hams so beware of that …
I have tried using cycling for lactic tolerance - not speed, but even with pulling back in the dead zone to activate the hams, my quads burn before I can feel my hams even fatigue mildly. This says to me cycling is far too quad orientated…or is it just my technique. Ricky, can you comment this? Cheers.
Stride rate is all about ground contact, not how fast you can cycle your legs. So my answer to the original question is no, fast cycling in not a good method to improve stride rate.
I agree with THEONE regarding stride rate…it is ground contact time which dictates here, and I’m quite sure cycling wouldn’t help.
does ground contact time not decrease with improved strength levels?
i remeber someone (dcw?) talking about an aussie who sprinted 3x a week and biked everywhere. he ran 10.4 100 as a junior i think. not quite world class but still fast.
tdrake, try it and find out.
stationary bikes are not just for girls, they do have their place ie; cardio vascular, overall strength, lactic tolerance. I agree with Jamaal, ground contact time does decrease with improved strength levels, and aren’t you recruiting fast twitch muscle fibers. The past two years i had been on the fence about running track anymore, but just in case i maintained a good weight lifting program, and did farlek type workouts on a stationary bike 3 days a week, then i would run in occasional all comer meets just to keep the competetive nature, i am amazed that my times dropped at a good rate and i ran within .08 of my 100 meter pr.
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Originally posted by THEONE
Stride rate is all about ground contact, not how fast you can cycle your legs. So my answer to the original question is no, fast cycling in not a good method to improve stride rate.
Like I said, get off your girls exercise bike and onto the road with a quite high intensity, lol… And you too will start seeing the difference.
Originally posted by Tdrake
I know that there has been alot of negative reviews of overspeed training exercises like downhill sprinting and high speed treadmill running in this forum. How about high speed stationary cycling? Does it help? I heard that it helps increase stride rate. What are other people’s thoughts on high speed stationary cycling?
I think it will help you get you really fast at stationary cycling. Also there may be a neural cost that will detract from work in other areas that could help you run faster. You aren’t developing any power and strength in the muscles that you use for sprinting. The better you are at defeating gravity, maintaining form and propelling yourself forward the better you will be at sprinting.
Dcw23, get off your girls exercise bike and onto the road with a quite high intensity.
Originally posted by THEONE
Dcw23, get off your girls exercise bike and onto the road with a quite high intensity.
You lost me with that one… for a second 
Ricky doesn’t actually mention what he does on the road with high intensity. Maybe crossing it to ask the chicken which came first? Finally we may answer that question.
So while riding a stationary bike you aren’t developing strength in the quad and hip flexor muscles, i beg to differ, you are, and those muscles are used for sprinting. You can also build strength in your hamstrings. I think biking is good to break up the monotony of track workouts sometimes.
Dazzer, Tdrake is talking about very high speed work in a bid to improve the neural interface speed. There would be very little force output in this.
Maybe you could crank up the tension and slow everything down, but even then, you’d really just be doing concentric quad work, not really much help to sprinting.
You might get some hip extensor development if you stood up and leaned forward? but people might think you are a bit unusual. I don’t know? There’s only so much training time and there are so many better choices of ways to spend your training dollar!
since i’m in PT 3x’s a week for my shoulder and i can’t run yet, i’ve been hitting the stationary bike. from my experience, it really gets blood into the quads (especially the VMO) and provides a decent cardiovascular workout. just make sure your feet are fastened to the pedals and not pointing inwards.
i can’t imagine that all four heads of the quad aren’t getting work from bike riding. I also believe you can get work in the hip flexor without standing up and leaning forward, i am not saying make biking your main source of training, im not even saying put it into your regiman at all, but i am saying for someone like myself who didn’t want to train on the track and just wanted to run in some meets for fun, please explain how i was able to maintain speed within .08 of my 100meter pr. I would really like to know. Stationary biking is no longer a part of my training because i have since decided to compete at an elite level of track and decided to “get serious.” But I would like to know just for a frame of reference.
Originally posted by dazs
but i am saying for someone like myself who didn’t want to train on the track and just wanted to run in some meets for fun, please explain how i was able to maintain speed within .08 of my 100meter pr. I would really like to know.
What was your PR? Depending on where it is (and your natural talent), simply being fit can allow you to maintain it.
I understand what you are saying and where you are coming from but I think most people are on here want to smash their PRs though… just like you do now and you’ve realised that the stationary bike is not the best method to do this! Anyway, good luck with your new goals! 
10.38,
yet the 100 wasn’t really my race, but it is the race of choice for all comer meets. point well taken about people being on here to smash their pr’s. I just wanted to hear some opinions about it.
Originally posted by dcw23
I think it will help you get you really fast at stationary cycling. Also there may be a neural cost that will detract from work in other areas that could help you run faster. You aren’t developing any power and strength in the muscles that you use for sprinting. The better you are at defeating gravity, maintaining form and propelling yourself forward the better you will be at sprinting.
Are you telling me you don’t develop any power and strength in the muscles that you use for sprinting when your on the bike???. That has to be the most stupid thing I have read to date. I’m not a sprinter but proper pedalling technique will hit the calves, Quads, Hams and Hip Flexors. If them muscles aren’t used in sprinting, what are?.. Triceps???..
LIKE I SAID, GET OFF YOUR GIRLS EXERCISE BIKE, HIT THE ROAD FOR 6 HOURS AT A HIGH PAIN THRESHOLD WITH GOOD PEDALLING TECHNIQUE IN A STIFF GEAR, AND COME BACK AND TELL ME YOUR LOWER BODY HASN’T HURT THIS MUCH IN MY LIFE…