Bike gears

[Jules001]

I am very unfit and very rarely use my bike however I have been for a 6 mile bike ride today and I found it very hard going. I tried working through the 5 gears on my bike to see which gave the easiest ride, but to be honest, I couldn't feel any real noticeable difference. Can anybody help me by telling me which is the highest gear, common sense tells me it is the 5th gear, however I have been told that the highest gear in number is actually the lowest gear in reality. Can anybody please help explain in simple terms for a confused numpty :)

[Hawkwalk]

Usually 1st gear is the easy one that gets you up hills or to pull away with just like a car. Then the peddals get harder to turn with 2,3,4 and 5 but you will be able to go faster.

The problem may be that you only have 5 gears so thay are all quite hard to turn. Many modern bikes have 18 or more so you have a much wider choice to select one that is suitable for your needs.

[pug100]

I assume you have derailleur gears and not the hub type.
Look at Wikipedia if you need to know
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derailleur_gears

If you take a look at the rear sprockets, when the chain is on the largest one, thats the lowest gear (the easiest to pedal when setting off). When it is on the smallest sprocket, that's the highest gear and the hardest to pedal.

Other types of gears are the hub type, this lik shows the difference between the two

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_gearing

Hope this helps.

[RATTER15]

I don't think anybody made a five gear hub (but I could be wrong) so it would be a derailleur. The above details are right but you should notice a difference between 1st and fifth, check that the chain is changing between the cogs on the back when you change gears, it should flip from one cog to another when you change gear.

[RATTER15]

Wow, I just looked at the wikipedia link to see they now have a 14 gear hub!!!!!

[Loosehead]

Ok on the back, the bigger the sprocket the easier it is to turn, on the front it's the opposite. If you have only 5 gears then you have only 1 front sproket and 5 back ones. The big one at the back should be much easier to push than the smallest one.It is also worth adjusting your seat height, this is nearly always wrong on most cyclists. Sitting on the saddle with one foot at the bottom of the pedaling circle you should have a slightly bet knee. If you can touch the ground sitting on the saddle the seat is too low. This can effect ease of peddling.

[Teddio]

The cadence is very important. You're better off adopting a much faster rate of pedaling, it's much less tiring and more efficient. Is the seat adjusted properly? When pedaling, your leg should almost straighten.

[SlackAlice]

It's also important to use the 'ball' of the foot on the pedal, it maximises the effort of your leg muscles. The flat of your foot is no good, waste a lot of energy that way.