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Reader question: Please explain “foot off the pedal” in this sentence: “The players were accused of taking their feet off the pedal in training.” What pedal? My comments: The pedal is a metaphor. No real pedals are being talked about here. The pedal, of course, is what makes the bicycle go round and round. Many types of machinery have pedals but, for our purpose, let’s take the bicycle for example. You climb on a bicycle and start pedaling, each foot pushing the two pedals down one after another. The pedals move the chains which in turn move the wheel and the bicycle advances. The harder and faster you are able to push the pedals, the faster the bicycle moves forward. The pedals of the bicycle, you see, is where the power is generated which moves the bicycle. The real source of this power, though, is from the cycler, from his/her feet to be exact. Now what happens if the cycler takes their feet off the pedal? The bicycle will lose momentum, sure. It’ll slow down and, eventually, to a halt. Back to our example. What do they mean when they accused the players of taking their feet off the pedal in training? Yes, you guessed it. They mean to say the players have stopped training hard – not as hard as before. By taking their feet off the pedal, they stop giving the effort. They’re easing, relaxing, slackening, cruising, coasting. | 
