When would be the optimal time of year to start training on Powercranks?In the Northern Hemisphere, this time of year is typically devoted to base training, meaning low intensities and increasing mileage, to build an aerobic base. If You decide to go full on with the Powercranks concept of de/retraining Your neurological pattern, You gotta resist the temptation of training on fixed cranks for a while - and maybe for good!!!
The enevitable reduction in mileage, after introducing Powercranks, makes it tempting to go and get the additional miles on Your normal cranks, but I´ve decide to do all my bicycle training on the Powercranks and hopefully be able to do the planned-for 3-4 hour rides soon...
I´ve had 4 Powercranks sessions, of 20 minutes, on the hometrainer in the 48 hours since I put them on my bike - that´s a AM and a PM session, to try and stimulate the nervous system as much as possible, without tiring it out and struggling.
I´ve also used the sessions as warm up for my runs and it´s easy to tell the effect on Your running frequency, but more on that topic later.
Today I decided to ride outside, 5 degrees Celsius, to see how long I lasted... The first few miles were VERY frustrating as I had a hard time getting the legs in synch with the familiar (optimal?) 180 degree pedaling motion and when I seemed to get it right, my right (meant to be dominant) failed to keep up to my left leg, that just spins tirelessly.
I discovered that riding low cadence and high gears made it a lot easier and it was a relief to gear up instead of upping the rpm´s.
But that meant increased intensity and I not the easy spin that I was planning for, I was actually on the big chainring all through the ride.
Going uphill out of the saddle was reasonably easy when the cadence was low, but as the road flattened and the rpm´s increased, I had a hard time keeping up and ended up standing with both feet in the 6 o´clock position!
But the hardest part of riding out of the saddle is definitely getting back into the seated position without interrupting the pedalling - I had to sit down, reset to seated motion and start pedalling again. At the end of the ride I could actually "sprint" out of the saddle - not flawlessly, but not hazardous either.
I put in some "double leg pushes" (admittedly to show off downtown...) and to my big surprise it actually facilitates the desired 180 degree pedalling pattern, and I found it progressively easier to instantly get back into the rhythm.
After 90 minutes I started to run out of daylight, water and power in my hip flexors, but I returned with a big smile and very tired after one of the most intense near-full body training sessions I´ve ever had!
Besides the always rewarding feeling of physical fatigue, I had an even greater feeling of knowing that I´m able to go on hour long work outs and be able to get a satisfactory weekly mileage.
My 10 km run off the bike felt easy, despite the worn out feeling when I dismounted the bike.

I´ll soon share some thought on motor learning and complex vs (seemingly)simple movements.
I´ll also look into the effects of implementing heavy/explosive strength training on endurance performance in elite cyclists.
Hopefully there´ll be some observations on the effect on running performance and rehabilitations on running related injuries.