cadence

juliana1 said:

😕 How many revolutions of the crank per minute does a good cycler accomplish on flat land, while sprinting?..... while traveling a long distance? I sure would appreciate any help you can give me on this. Thank you. Julie

I don't have a clue how you're defining a "good cycler".

I average about 100 miles a week at about 17mph (27kph) average speed with about 2-4k of climbing feet per week.

This is on a flatbar (with bullhorn bar ends) hybrid Giant Cypress, 700X28's.

My cadence is avg is in the low 90's - going as low as 60, and as high as 110,
But my belief is that if you use your gears correctly (and you have the correct gearing) you should strive for the spin.

juliana1 said:

😕 How many revolutions of the crank per minute does a good cycler accomplish on flat land, while sprinting?..... while traveling a long distance? I sure would appreciate any help you can give me on this. Thank you. Julie

sprinting is not about rpms, it's about power (power is the combination of high force and high rpms). just because someone can spin 200rpms, doesn't mean they are a faster sprinter. although if you are on the track, high rpms are essential for a fast sprint because you have only 1 gear. (elite track sprinters will do 160rpms in the saddle during a sprint). on the road, the optimum sprint cadence for a flat sprint, out of the saddle, is around 110-120rpms.
i am not sure why you are concerned with this. everybody is different. what matters is how fast you are, not how many rpms you do.

juliana1 said:

😕 How many revolutions of the crank per minute does a good cycler accomplish on flat land, while sprinting?..... while traveling a long distance? I sure would appreciate any help you can give me on this. Thank you. Julie

Julie,

If you are new to cycling and just want to know a good training cadence to work toward, I would suggest you try work on getting a good consistent 90 rpm. Once you can comfortably do that, working on higher cadence comes easier.

But along with cadence, you should also work on pedaling technique and endurance.

Hmm.. really confused about all of this you know...!

Bought a cycle computer with cadence function on it the other week and really quite surprised by the results!

Always thought I had quite a high cadence, but it turns out that I typically ride at around 75 on the flats, 80 on long gradual inclines and as low as 60 on long climbs (typically a 4.5 mile 10-12% gradient). Really quite shocked - thought maybe the computer was mis-reading!

Tried increasing cadence on flats and uphill but absolutely hate it! Feels really unnatural and like I'm wasting loads of energy. I know that you have to keep practicing to reap the benefits, but the higher cadence just seems to translate into a considerably slower speed for alot more energy requirement.

Will quite happily do 25+ m.p.h. average on the flats over the course of a 30 mile ride without really going for it, and don't feel any strain on knees etc, even when climbing steep inclines, even though cadence obviously pretty low.

As such, should I persevere to get into the 90+ rpm average bracket? Will it be of benefit to my performance or am I just one of these mashers who happens to perform better at a lower cadence?

Cheers for any advice!

p.s. been cycling for the last 12 months and been averaging somewhere between 80 and 120 miles per week over the summer period. Also, used to do alot of cycling in the early and mid-90s. Does this translate into just being fixed in my ways or is there a good physiological reason for cadence choice as well?

It indeed takes some getting used to spinning at a higher rate. You may also be slower than the "grinding" that you have been doing up until then. Ideal cadence/cadence preferred by most people is 85-95 rpm, one of the reasons of which is physiological. You should eventually be able to go faster once you get to a higher rpm, but, there's always a chance that you won't.

keydates said:

It indeed takes some getting used to spinning at a higher rate. You may also be slower than the "grinding" that you have been doing up until then. Ideal cadence/cadence preferred by most people is 85-95 rpm, one of the reasons of which is physiological. You should eventually be able to go faster once you get to a higher rpm, but, there's always a chance that you won't.

Dude - you are totally right; really been working on a higher cadence over last few weeks and has already made a great difference to my climbing ability and overall sustained performance on the flats. Alot more comfortable now areound 85 - 90 (sometimes 95) on the flats and 75 - 80+ on inclines. Anything slower than 80 on flats now just doesn't feel right!

Cheers for pointer

When I first started riding I asked a friend, who has been riding for years, about optimal cadence. He said 60. So when I got a comp w/cadence I strived for 60. It took a couple of weeks but I was able to sustain the 60 rpm.

Then after reading these forums I found that 60 is low & I should try to reach 80-90. Well knowing that I wouldn't be able to get there overnight I set an interim goal of 75 rpm. It took me 6 weeks to get there but now less than 75 just seems unnatural. 75-85 is my norm. 🙂

My next goal is 85 rpm sustained. Hopefully I'll make it before the end of the relatively warm riding season. 😎

My average speed has risen as well but not as much as I had hoped. After I hit the 85 speed is what I'll work on next.