Cadence, inclines and gearing

vernthemerciless

Ok so i'm very new to this and went out for my first outing on my new road bike yesterday.

I did 17 miles but it took something around 1 hour 15 (left my computer at home, doh).

Up a sharp but short incline towards the end of my ride it felt rather like my legs gave out and I had to stop for a bit, that surprised me.

Throughout the ride the speed of my pedalling was going up and down as i went round the roads near me in East Hampshire, over what's probably best described as undulating, (there's little amounting to a real hill but it's rarely perfectly flat). I could feel my breathing and heart responding accordingly.

Firstly does that kind of time sound about right for a beginner of moderate fitness at 27 years old?

Secondly should I be aiming to keep my cadence the same throughout the ride and just change the gearing all the time or is it better to grind up the hills with my legs going a a slower speed?

Bronzie

vernthemerciless wrote:

Firstly does that kind of time sound about right for a beginner of moderate fitness at 27 years old?

14mph isn't too shabby for a beginner

vernthemerciless wrote:

Secondly should I be aiming to keep my cadence the same throughout the ride and just change the gearing all the time or is it better to grind up the hills with my legs going a a slower speed?

Use the gears to keep your cadence comfortable - you don't have to spin like a loon, but using a lighter gear will stop your legs fatiguing as quickly

bompington

Yes but you need to post your wtf, ffs and b/s scores for us...

Anonymous

bompington wrote:

Yes but you need to post your wtf, ffs and b/s scores for us...

After 52 days continous, of course.
Check.

chrisw12

Bronzie wrote:

but using a lighter gear will stop your legs fatiguing as quickly

yes 'cause you'll be going slower.

Come on Bronzie, you should know better than to post cadence advice, it's a red herring remember.

Alex_Simmons/RST

Focus on effort level and choose a gear that feels good.