Cadence

pastryboy

I've had a look on google and can't find that much information. What's the deal with cadence in terms of what's good/bad/great? Do you measure it on a commute or is it for serious roadie types?

I recently started riding my fixed gear at 42/16 way down from the 50/17 I had before to change things up and it's much more enjoyable this way - it got me wondering about how fast I'm pedalling.

At 29mph (about as fast as I can get it on my commute) I'm spinning at 140 though not for long. I can hold about 22 without any trouble in good conditions which is 107. I think that's quite high, but what's reasonable/average?

pianoleo

I'm not a fixie rider so I couldn't be specific, but from what I can tell, most nodders and novices will default to about 60rpm. Somewhere between 80 and 90 you start using fast twitch muscle fiber as opposed to slow twitch, and that puts more strain on your cardiovascular system and less strain on your legs.

Faster pedalling = sustainable for longer periods of time. On my (geared) bike, I aim for 100 and average about 95. Anything beyond 120 just seems silly to me - I find that one leg's pulling the other round.

Fixxxer87

I've heard that anywhere between 80 - 120 is considered the target zone; and that most people fall way below this (I assume that 'most' people includes BSO riders, fair weather cyclists and everyone else who rides in a blue moon).

I'm going to by the Polar Cadence sensor when I get a chance, but my current estimate is that on an avg speed of 25km/hr whilst moving (about 15 - 16 mph), I usually run at those sort of revolutions. Going down the hill on Finchley Road I expect to hit 130 - 140 at 35 - 40km/h.

I also ride 42/16 (Spesh Langster standard setup. Tried 42/14 but it wasn't spinny enough).

It's somewhat important for fixie riders, because if you're constantly running on too low a cadence you can damage your knees, apparently. I usually just count how many times my leg spins in the space of 1 second, just to check I'm in the right ball park.

EKE_38BPM

pastryboy wrote:

I've had a look on google and can't find that much information. What's the deal with cadence in terms of what's good/bad/great? Do you measure it on a commute or is it for serious roadie types?

I recently started riding my fixed gear at 42/16 way down from the 50/17 I had before to change things up and it's much more enjoyable this way - it got me wondering about how fast I'm pedalling.

At 29mph (about as fast as I can get it on my commute) I'm spinning at 140 though not for long. I can hold about 22 without any trouble in good conditions which is 107. I think that's quite high, but what's reasonable/average?

I run 50/18 and a MAMIL (all the gear and no idea) couldn't keep up with me on the flat. When he caught up to me at a set of traffic lights, he commented on how fast I was spinning. I was holding a little in reserve (partly because I wasn't really in a rush, partly because I wasn't clipped in).

I think around 100 is a good place to be for an average. Nodders grind away at about 60-80. Lance was known for being a spinner and he would spin at about 110, but that was up mountains and for hours on end!
Track guys go much faster than that!

50/18 at 100 rpm = just under 22mph. If I cruise at ~22mph with a bit more in the tank, I'm happy.

meanredspider

I average around 90 on my commute (on a proper bike with gears) which is what I target (shift down at 80 - shift up at 100). I spin out at approaching 130 but that's 43mph which is quite fast enough.

Blue Meanie

I just dropped from 49/17 to 49/19 to get a gear 70" as I was 'spinning' to slowly, now back to avg 100 rpm, which is about 20mph.
There's a 'peer-pressure' speed camera outside local school about 3 miles into commute, I can set it off at about 25-29mph, which is almost 150rpm, but I begin to lose 'form' ( @rse bouncing on the saddle).

Yup, 90-110 is best for cv work and to protect your knees

pastryboy

Yeah I've noticed when I'm going really quick (did about 145rpm today) I feel like I'm about to fly upwards out of the saddle.

Looks as though most of my cycling is in the 'good' range then.

Chrissz

I tend to go with what feels comfortable - I can usually manage 50 miles at 18-19mph and 80rpm. I have been trying to spin more up hills but being 16st tends to prevent too much in the way of speedy ascents. I find that much over 120rpm has me bouncing out of the saddle - my comfort zone for flattish sections seems to be between 80-90rpm but this very quickly drops once the incline starts to increase.

shouldbeinbed

I'm just starting to get into mine with a cadence meter I've always been more an Ulrich grinder than Armstrong spinner and was pleasantly surprised to find my basic was ~80. I'm trying to get my average up to 90+ by deliberately dropping a gear or two and can feel the difference when setting off and flitting in slow traffic

c0ugars

on my ride to work i try to keep between 80 to 90 but sometimes on the way back after a hard day on my feet and a strong head wind it may be alot lower

daviesee

Go with what is comfortable - with a nod to thinking about distance/sustainability.

Until I got a cadence meter, I thought I pedalled at a normal rate. I now know two things.

1. I was pedalling too slow in too high a gear. It also explains the size of my thighs.

2. I couldn't cycle much more than 40 mile before blowing out. Because I was in too high a gear. Having power is no good if it doesn't last the distance :oops:

For short distances or going up hill in my opinion, it is okay to grind out that high gear. If you are thinking of doing distance however I think keeping between 80-100 rpm is best. Obviously everyone is different and I won't argue with anyone that thinks 80 is too fast or 100 too slow.

Pigtail

Up until 6 months or so ago I have been an occasional leisure cyclist on a mtb. I always went for a high gear and ground it out.

Moving onto a road bike I decided that grabbing the highest gear might not be the best way to do it so I read up a bit on cadence. I don't have a sensor, but I've done a lot of work on a gym bike and found 76 to be the most comfortable. Over several months I've gradually raised that to about 86. I can hit that fairly accurately without looking at the display, but I don't know how that translates to being out on the road. I suspect there is still quite a bit of variability on the road and that I often drop below 80.

James

fossyant

Anywhere between 80-100 is good. I average 80 plus on hilly rides, and nearer 90 on flat rides (using the Garmin).

Not so sure of the average on the commute (don't take the garmin) using the fixed, but I generally run above 90 to about 110 on the flat. Over 110 then it's usually wind assisted.

Down hill then upto about 160 in a short burst.