Cadance

bodyworks

Have just put a cadance meter on the bike. Have only been riding the road bike for 3 weeks, after several years on mountain bikes. Bloody hell its hard work to keep it above 80 rpm. First time out averaged 66 rpm on a 1 hour ride. Yesterday did a hilly 45km ride and managed to get the average up to 72. On the flatter sections I really made an effort to keep above 80. Started to get a bit of cramp in the calf, (never had that problem before.) How important is a high cadance for a ride of less than 2 hours anyway? In addition to this I seem to run out of gears on a 9 speed tiagra with double, do I change cassette/chainrings or wait till I get fitter and/or lighter and accept that the cadance will increase with it?

redddraggon

Don't worry about cadence, just ride.

freehub

Low cadence can mash up knees though.

redddraggon

freehub wrote:

Low cadence can mash up knees though.

Only an idiot will carry on pedalling away at 20rpm if it's hurting.

freehub

But it does not always hurt straight away. It can do damage without you even knowing for a while. If you don't think it's true go and try it.

redddraggon

freehub wrote:

But it does not always hurt straight away. It can do damage without you even knowing for a while. If you don't think it's true go and try it.

Will you really are a bit thick. You don't use a cadence meter, so you can't say you know what you are pedalling anyway.

If you pedal at your natural cadence your knees will be fine. You don't need a cadence meter, to tell you that you are grinding away.

Cadence naturally increases with training anyway, so worrying about what "number" it is, is pointless....

Alex_Simmons/RST

It's not cadence that hurts knees. It's poor position on the bike.

for the OP - just keep on riding. It gets easier the more you do over the years.

freehub

redddraggon wrote:

freehub wrote:

But it does not always hurt straight away. It can do damage without you even knowing for a while. If you don't think it's true go and try it.

Will you really are a bit thick. You don't use a cadence meter, so you can't say you know what you are pedalling anyway.

If you pedal at your natural cadence your knees will be fine. You don't need a cadence meter, to tell you that you are grinding away.

Cadence naturally increases with training anyway, so worrying about what "number" it is, is pointless....

I had a cadence meter untill 2009.

redddraggon

freehub wrote:

I had a cadence meter untill 2009.

So that's why you've mashed your knees? You're pedalling at too low a cadence just because you haven't got a number telling you what you are pedalling at?

freehub

No point saying anything you don't understand.

jgsi

bodyworks wrote:

Have just put a cadance meter on the bike. In addition to this I seem to run out of gears on a 9 speed tiagra with double, do I change cassette/chainrings or wait till I get fitter and/or lighter and accept that the cadance will increase with it?

I'd keep things simple at this stage..if you are struggling to maintain an 80+ cadence
either
the way you have your bike set up is all to co ck (as has been mentioned)
or
you have a very low base fitness level

Infamous

freehub wrote:

But it does not always hurt straight away. It can do damage without you even knowing for a while. If you don't think it's true go and try it.

I've been down to 23 rpm on a very steep hill (48 x 14), no knee problems but it's hard work, feels like a leg press machine.

avoidingmyphd

can we have a special sub forum set up for will and redd's flirting?

i don't mean to banish it - I'd like it to be easier to find rather than hidden within threads with innocent titles like this one!

nice to see you back btw will.

Infamous

freehub

I don't think low cadence can be helped on some hills.

DomPro

freehub wrote:

I don't think low cadence can be helped on some hills.

Thats for darn sure.

I've given up monitoring my cadence. I gained nothing from trying to achieve a certain RPM - despite this I always avoid mashing/grinding whenever I can - except for steep hills of course.

Dunkeldog

Sometimes it's better to forget your Cateye/Garmin/Halfords bargain cadence counter and just get out and enjoy the bike and road! I've been to the point where if I'm not keeping a certain cadence and hitting a certain split time I feel like giving up on the day and going home. You can suck all the enjoyment out of your ride with stats if you're not careful.

bodyworks

Sometimes it's better to forget your Cateye/Garmin/Halfords bargain cadence counter and just get out and enjoy the bike and road! I've been to the point where if I'm not keeping a certain cadence and hitting a certain split time I feel like giving up on the day and going home. You can suck all the enjoyment out of your ride with stats if you're not careful.

œ

Yeah it does all seem a bit anal

teagar

Back to the OP...

Your cadence will gradually get faster the more you ride.

Don't forice it too much. Do what feels natural, and maybe once you're comfortable you can gradually increase it. It took me a good few years to get around 90-110rpm...

rolf_f

redddraggon wrote:

Will you really are a bit thick. You don't use a cadence meter, so you can't say you know what you are pedalling anyway.....

Hang on a mo! Surely you'd have to be a bit thick if you do need a cadence meter to tell you what your cadence is. I know what mine is and I don't have a cadence meter. I count! If you can handle counting up to a hundred in a minute (or 50 in half a minute if you can't get that far!) then you can determine your cadence without pratting around with a meter.

Sometimes we seem too dependant on LCD displays and not dependant enough on our underused brains

fnegroni

There is a better way:
calculate speed at target cadence for each gear combination using Sheldon Brown's calculator.
Then tape the compact chart to the handle bar.
Hey presto!
After all, speed is ultimately the only important stat! ;-)

zedders

Rolf F wrote:

redddraggon wrote:

Will you really are a bit thick. You don't use a cadence meter, so you can't say you know what you are pedalling anyway.....

Hang on a mo! Surely you'd have to be a bit thick if you do need a cadence meter to tell you what your cadence is. I know what mine is and I don't have a cadence meter. I count! If you can handle counting up to a hundred in a minute (or 50 in half a minute if you can't get that far!) then you can determine your cadence without pratting around with a meter.

My thoughts exactly. Most, if not all of us have a cycle computer, so its easy to time a minute, and work it out? Why have another bit of kit you don't need? Simples!

Most of the time I can't be bothered, but every now and then I'll count for thirty seconds and work it out. Most of the time I'm riding at somewhere between 70-80 rpm. Which for me is happy days!

rolf_f

zedders wrote:

My thoughts exactly. Most, if not all of us have a cycle computer, so its easy to time a minute, and work it out? Why have another bit of kit you don't need?

Aside from anything else, calculating cadence manually is a good alternative to shooting yourself halfway up a big hill