Talkback: Cycling Commute: Training Benefits

isn't mono-pedal a little dangerous on the main road?

For my money the advice to practice one legged is rubbish - why waste your time training one leg when you could be training both.   Even the pros aren't actually pulling up on their pedals they just unweight the pedal on the upstroke so it isn't resisting the downstroke on the other side.  

 If there is something in it though you'd have to do an awful lot to actually make a difference to your pedal stroke - and realistically is anyone going to spend hours a week riding one legged.  You used to be able to get those power cranks where each was independent so to do it properly I think that would be the way to go - but they've never really caught on.

Honest question - have you got any evidence it helps ?  It seems unlikely (to me anyway) that a few 5 minutes here and there is going to make any difference to pedalling efficiency against hours spent pedalling normally.    

That's assuming that one legged pedalling has the potential to increase efficiency at all - which again I haven't seen any evidence for.   

I'm open to persuasion though - do any serious (ODP etc) riders do significant amounts of 1 leg stuff or are there any studies supporting it ?

My cycling has certainly improved since starting it.. how much of that is down to improved pedaling efficiency I can't say. It did help me develop more of an awareness of the importance of cadence and power loss in my stroke. I'm also fairly confident that one leg drills while tucked in an aero position has helped a lot. Initially it was very uncomfortable and as that became more natural, I felt much more comfortable in that position while pedaling normally. Maybe it helps improve your core strength and flexibility?

Personally I wouldn't do it on a road. On a turbo trainer it mixes up your warmup and might help a little so why not.