Should I change the cassette?

"I wish I didn't have this extra low get-out-of-jail cog and instead was able to have ever so slightly smaller gaps between some of the ratios" said nobody, ever. Get the 11-32.

I researched gearing using a gear calculator for my new bike.  I wanted it to be comfy, easy gearing for climbing mountains, big ones and also quick enough for club runs and sportives.  I ended with XT setup with 40/28 and 11-32 or 11-40 cassette.  This gearing range allows me to spin up (80+rpm) mountains and still have one or two bailout gears if needed.  It is still fast enough for club runs where it will go at 26mph in 40/11 gearing at 90rpm on the flat and over 30mph once cadence rises over 100rpm.   If that gearing doesnt cover just about every scenario other than flat out racing then I dont know what does.  

For TTs I  use a 53t crank and 11-25 cassette.

I'm on the same configuration; in fact, my bike came with a 34T cassette, which I've recently swapped out for a 12-28T. I've kept the compact crankset though. It sounds to me that you simply need to persevere. There are a few hills on my regular weekend routes that I have a love/hate relationship with because they are so knackering! I think there comes a point with some hills where you just have to accept that they're hard, even on the best of days. Of course, if you do them regularly enough, they become less hard. I can fly up some hills that used to kill me.

Ultimately, you're the best judge of what kind of exertion you are comfortable with. If you find you aren't progressing as fast as you'd like, or those hills are just too damned hard with you current gearing, then definitely experiment with different cassettes and chainrings. I think every seasoned cyclist should have a variety of cassettes, chainrings and range expanders (if mtb) in their arsenal.

My experience is that a 32 gives you the opportunity to sit and spin.

Somewhere or other I picked up that sitting down was a good thing so when I am on a group ride I do resist standing up and use gearing to get up. I find that I can beat the grinders and am not toast at the end of the experience. Not super-fit, but aim for a cadence of over 80 and with getting used to it, I can do short bursts on small steep sections at over 100.

Either way, I am out of breath. WIth a HRM I look at short climbs and get within 10% of max heart rate.

I stand for three purposes, to regain cadence when I've bottomed out, to change muscles, and to rest. When standing, I try not to max out effort, but try and cruise up.

Big cogs are necessary when you are hitting long or super-steep 100 Greatest Climbs territory - 25%+ and regardless of fitness, the bigger boys will go for big cogs on super-steep climbs. Having helped on a 100 Greatest Climbs attempt, 36T is not wimpy but practical when you are hitting slopes where you need technique just to stay on the bike.

I ride Warwickshire and Worcester and there simply aren't any big hill where you NEED compact + 32, but riding a 32T this winter on an 11 speed, I don't avoid it.

Ignore people who say/imply "I can get up X hill with Y gearing, so if you think you need anything lower you're wrong/stupid/lame"! They are not taking into account a number of factors including differences in weight, fitness,  preferred cadence etc. The advice from others about maintaining cadence is much more helpful and is particularly important, IMHO, if you're attempting longer rides as  grinding up hills really kills endurance in my experience.

I have ridden a number of sportives and am always amazed at the number of people walking up hills with traditional road cassettes. Unless you're pro-level fit, what makes you (and the bike manufacturers that spec them) think gearing used by pros will suit you? And these days even the pros use sensible cassettes on serious hills.

I reckon in 5 years time far less bikes will be being sold with lowest gears of 34-30 or below, especially entry level bikes.

It's weird. You can ride the same hill for ages and not get significantly faster up it.

Sometimes you need to attack stuff in a particular zone to get your energy systems to make the necessary adaptations. If a gear is too hard for you, you won't be able to maintain the length of time needed to do that. Your leg strength will let you down while you can really get into it.  Though it will still be a nice muscular endurance workout.

It's actually quite complex. You say you want to get fitter, which is a good start, but lets say you were more specific - for example, "I want to improve by ability to hit a 5 minute hill hard" - then we know it's actually your lactate threshold that we need to make sure you're geared for on these hills. Too hard a gear means you won't turn it over long enough to get a decent workout at that level. 

We'd really need to know a little more. Heart rates for the Strava segment would be a good start along with your max HR and maybe a bit more about your goals. If you knew your lactate threshold, max HR etc, then yes you can really get really amazing specific advice on how to hit that hill, what gear/cadence and how long to hold it for. 

Like Python said earlier though, being out of breath may mean you're working in a good zone. Depends what that means. 'Out of breath' but can talk, 'out of breath' but shaking and feel like you're about to puke/cry? These are different zones and they have different places in getting fitter. 

It is worth it for you to press on with this and work it out though. You could get the gearing right, hit the hill, go down it again and repeat two more times, and you've basically done a proper 3x hill repeat in the right zone. Even just once a week, would probably add no more than 15 to 20minutes ride time per week to your routine. And you would very quickly notice how much stronger you were getting over the coming months. You'd literally end up flying up that hill like a kid within a few months, wheras if you grinded up it for years, as you are now, you'd make little real progress, comparatively.

The heck are you taking about? The first few posts are people talking about how they did this and that on harder gearing.

Get an 11-32 - even the pros use them. Ignore the supermen/women in this thread boasting about being able to climb Everest on a fixie or whatever. You might need a longer rear cage though.

The only issue I have with such wide cassettes is that the jumps between gears often prevent me spinning at the right cadence for a given power, but thats it.

Those who are light enough to use a compact and 11-28 that is great. I have found I like to spin and keep spinning up hills, so I geared my bike with a 40/28 crank and 11-32 Cass for general riding and 11-40 for riding up Mt Teide. I was able to hold 80+rpm for several hours. I didn't suffer from knackered legs or knees are was able to climb over 30,000 ft in one week and still weigh 100kg. Find a method that works for you

As a few others have said, cadence is the thing. If you're grinding the pedals very slowly for an extended period (i.e. not just powering over a short 'ramp') then you're not using your physical capacity efficiently. And while it's not bad for you, you're building thunder thighs rather than lithe limbs, which isn't usually what cyclists are after (unless you want to be Chris Hoy).

Being a bit breathless is fine but do it a brisk cadence, not a grunting grind!

Are you running out of cogs up the harder hills?

One of my "tests" of climbing ability is to see for how long you can keep climbing without using your lowest cog. On my 12-30T cassette for example, the two next largest cogs are a 24 and a 27 - I reserve the 30 as a bailout gear.

The aim is to climb hard hills in the 27 first, then gain enough fitness to climb same hills in the 24. Might be worth a shot.

if you live in the pyrenees and are facing 2 and a half hours of climb, then change the ratio.

if the climb is 5 mins, then don't.

When I first started on the road I was in exactly the same boat, Compact and 11-28 would get me up just about anything but I was completely spent at the top.

I got fitter and faster but still found my cadence dropping off significantly as the ratios increased.

Long story short, I got a winter bike with Compact + 11-32. The bike was significantly heavier but I smashed all my PBs and found it much more comfortable.

So if your cadence is dropping a lot it's well worth switching. You'll enjoy riding a lot more and may well be faster too!

I absolutely suck at climbing. I have got better at getting up the bastard hills over the last few years, and have even taken on Alpine and Pyrennean challenges over the last couple of years (which involved grinding - slowly - up HC climbs).

However my lowest gears on the cassettes have only been getting bigger.

But I am okay with that. I am never going to 'dance' up the climbs, but, as far as I am concerned, any serious climb that I can get up without climbing off or walking is a victory, no matter how long it takes. And my low gearing has allowed me to overtake a bunch of overgeared folks on various sportives as I spin past them like an incredibly slow Froome.

I use my lowest gear less than I used to, but it's still nice to know it's there. And my lowest ratio is closer to 1:1 than I suspect your 28 biggest cog is.

The velominati may sneer, but I don't care!

I say go lower!

If it makes cycling more enjoyable then do it. That should be your prime motive.

If you are getting up them with the 28t then you might as well stick with it. You won't get fitter by fitting a 32t or bigger, you'll just ride them slower, though maybe in slightly less discomfort. This can be useful when touring or on a long sportive but it's not ideal if you're trying to get fitter.

Pedalling and breathing techniques are really important. Breathe deeply the whole time, relax your upper body, try to pedal efficiently. Once at the top spin gently to recover, avoid snatching breaths. The more you practice the quicker your body will adapt.

Depends on the hills you climb and the amount of weight you lug up it. I'm 93 kilos I can generate a fair amount of power and hold it for a while, but get me on exmoor things like the steep version of porlock hill and a route over the moors a 32 is required.

I've gone from Buxton to Barnsley and back on a 25 at the rear, then did it again on a 32 so much better than grinding it out. 

It's normal to breathe harder going up, but you don't mention whether you can maintain your usual cadence*  on this hill using  your existing gears.

Basically, If you find your  cadence decreases at the steepest part of the hill—i.e. you have to push harder and can't turn the pedals as quickly as you naturally would on the flat—then yes, think about getting yourself some lower gears by fitting a bigger cassette at the back and/or smaller chainrings at the front.

Your objective should be to find gears that let you keep spinning all the way to the top of the hill, even if that means you are going slowly.

Many road bikes come fitted with a chainset and cassette that're ideal for a Tour de France rider; but unfortunately the legs to go with have been omitted

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*the rate at which you turn the pedals, in revolutions per minute, rpm)

Fit what you fancy.  I used to do Blaze Hill in the peak district on a 25 cassette.  After fitting a 29 cassette I could walk properly at work!