Below is the VERY DETAILED DISCUSSION (REPOSTING) of my "Resistance Climbing Equivalence" posts, & analysis of occasional past flags of my 1-legged trainer ride efforts.

1-LegRides Cont.- 40.0mi@14.9mph;196w. "Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth; Oh, sing praises to the Lord, to Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old! Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice." Psalm 68:32-33

This is the Resistance Climbing Post for the last 3 days of 2025 (M-T-W): [(2X40+) +50+] =130.8mi [See details below & on posting of 1/1/24, or repost tomorrow, 1/1/26]

1-LegRides Cont.- 50.6mi @14.0mph;179w. Finished this 1-Legged 2025 Yr.@ 16,437 miles, & 869,000ft. (equiv.) climbing. Thanking the Lord he has kept this old broken-down body going still! "Your God has commanded your strength." Psalm 68:28a

1-LegRides Cont.- 40.1mi@14.0mph;178w. "The Lord said, 'I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, that your foot may crush them in blood, & the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.'"

RESISTANCE CLIMBING DESCRIPTION (& DEFENSE of past flags of my 1-legged trainer riding efforts):
Though it’s been a long time since someone last flagged a ride of mine, I feel it's again time to repost the more extensive analysis of my unique situation to educate others with more specifics. [I'd encourage anyone with the time to read, or at least skim, my extensive Strava Bio, accessible on my profile page—one must click on "view more" under my name, upper left side.]
Until late 2017 I had not often pondered how the many miles I'd ridden since my debilitating accident of 1/8/2016 (with my 1-legged-only driven recumbent trainer) could be thought of as having "climbing elevation values." After all, it's all stationary & goes nowhere, certainly not up any hills. Until I realized that:
1. There IS a resistance, which is CONTINUAL (my 'effort setting' resistance level is certainly not anything close to "free-wheeling"!), simulating uphill movement effort [the now common Zwift, & other, stationary riding programs found all over Strava attests to such resistance climbing equivalences]. And think with me: Also realize that on, say a 100-mile ride, with a constant 1% Grade resistance equivalence, the total ‘climbing’ would be the same as an equivalent ‘real bike ride’ climbing a 2% Grade for 50miles, since the ‘total up’ must = the ‘total down’ (coasting) in such a ‘real’ out & back ride. (The ‘real’ ride would be harder, but for only half the equivalent distance…and the constant trainer ride would be easier, but for the full ride).
2. Unlike riding a normal bike, when pedaling is stopped the recorded 'digital mileage' is stopped--there are NO free "coasting miles" which one enjoys much of when riding 'over hill & dale' or even on a 0% grade (In essence, there are no ‘free miles’ while resting).
3. Researching "trainer vs real bike ride" comparisons, I found that (generally) riding a trainer takes 25% more effort...e.g., 20 miles on a bike is roughly like 25 miles on a trainer--obviously with many variables. A key thing I've become acutely aware of is lack of efficient evaporation/cooling which one gets (& I miss sorely!) when gliding through the breeze experienced when riding 'normally.' And the 'excitement' of the required keen awareness (hopefully!) of one's ever-changing environment on a 'real bike ride' has no comparison for most riders if they attempt, say, 50 miles on a stationary trainer (I have addressed many times how the Lord has 'solved' this issue for me...100+ miles on a 1-legged stationary? Lots of riders now do it regularly on Zwift.). [And I HAVE discovered the benefits of using a fan, & riding OUTdoors on my patio.]
4. On a stationary bike there is NO SUCH THING as a DRAFTING advantage... researching this finds that the effort when drafting going X miles/hr. is about X % LESS that the effort without drafting. As an example, drafting at 20 mi/hr requires an effort of 100 - 20 = 80% of the effort if solo (ie, going 20 mi/hr drafting is roughly the effort of going 16 mi/hr solo). The faster the speed, the more drafting helps...unless you're on a stationary trainer!
5. & this is to say nothing of the fact that I must do all the cranking with only 1 leg...So please, before you might decide to complain about my mileage or climbing on 'just' a stationary recumbent trainer bike...try it yourself...with only ONE of your legs.]
And so I have addressed this issue as follows:
Understanding that a Strava or other (roadway sign, etc...) reference to a % Grade, Gradient, Incline, etc. is NOT THE SAME as the ANGLE of incline or slope, one must make the conversions to get the proper "elevation" or "vertical climbing done" for a given distance ridden. One need not be a math major in college (as I was), just able to handle some simple trigonometry to do the figuring: By definition: the % grade or slope = the tangent (call it V/H, where V = the vertical elevation, & H = the horizontal distance covered) of the angle (call it A) of incline...the ('uphill ride') distance traveled (call it D) is the hypotenuse of the right triangle formed. Since the Sine of A = V/D, then V = D x Sine A. So....[Here one must trust that, if you have read my lengthy Strava Bio &/or checked my extensive 25+ year (2-legged) riding experience with nearly 300,000 miles & many years of 1 million feet of climbing, I can be an accurate judge of just how the 'trainer resistance' I feel daily can be transferred to 'climbing equivalence.'] With much thought, I have arrived at the following: I ride at a MINIMUM equivalence to a (constant) 1% Grade, which converts to an "incline angle" of only .573 degrees. Since the Sine of such a (small) angle is only .01000057 and since 1 mile = 5280 ft., 10mi = 52,800ft. etc, then 10 miles is 10 X 5,280ft X (.01000057) = 528ft. of climbing; 50 miles is 50 X 5,280 X (.01000057) = 2640ft. of climbing, etc, etc. [thanks for reading all of this....God Bless you!!]
Next, I've given much thought to what would lead some rider to flag my 1-leg, stationary, recumbent trainer ride posts (including the manual resistance climbing equivalence posts).....Here is the sum of my thoughts: 1. Ignorance? (not checking out my whole story well enough to understand the situation correctly)
2. Distrust? (thinking this Christian man would be dishonest in posting my digital readout info)
3. Jealousy? (not liking that a 82+ yr. old guy could put in more miles, with just 1 leg, than his own hard-ridden 2-leg miles in the Strava (open) Club "competitions")
4. Not a 'fan' of my Jesus? ("They'll hate you because they hated Me first.")
5. Anonymous Cowardice? (no need to be known that he is any of #1, 2, 3 or 4......just flag 'em & disappear)
6. Other???? Pretty sad, whatever the reason!!
Thankfully, Strava Support has always been quick to fix the 'uneducated, or just plain mean, flags' I've received. Praise God. May God bless all your rides this next year, & KEEP YOU SAFE!!


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WILLIAM ANDERSON

Below is the VERY DETAILED DISCUSSION (REPOSTING) of my "Resistance Climbing Equivalence" posts, & analysis of occasional past flags of my 1-legged trainer ride efforts.

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Below is the VERY DETAILED DISCUSSION (REPOSTING) of my "Resistance Climbing Equivalence" posts, & analysis of occasional past flags of my 1-legged trainer ride efforts.

1-LegRides Cont.- 40.0mi@14.9mph;196w. "Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth; Oh, sing praises to the Lord, to Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old! Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice." Psalm 68:32-33

This is the Resistance Climbing Post for the last 3 days of 2025 (M-T-W): [(2X40+) +50+] =130.8mi [See details below & on posting of 1/1/24, or repost tomorrow, 1/1/26]

1-LegRides Cont.- 50.6mi @14.0mph;179w. Finished this 1-Legged 2025 Yr.@ 16,437 miles, & 869,000ft. (equiv.) climbing. Thanking the Lord he has kept this old broken-down body going still! "Your God has commanded your strength." Psalm 68:28a

1-LegRides Cont.- 40.1mi@14.0mph;178w. "The Lord said, 'I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, that your foot may crush them in blood, & the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.'"

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