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My first coach ss7d the optimal cadence is self selected the reason to train at other cadences is to insure you can do it if needed before you return to self selected. If you listen to Brett Sutton he says save your hear for the run and if I recall generally recommends a cadence In the low 80's.
"see the world as it is not as you want it to be"
My coach has me doing lots of works at 95-105 rpm. My normal / don’t think about it pace is usually 85
My buddy using the same coach has his workouts around 75-85rpm. His noodle place is with a cadence @ 110
When I asked coach, he said he’s trying to have us both work on other cadences to develop us to be more well rounded. Maybe that makes sense?!?
I've trained with Jurgen Zack and his squad in Phuket Thailand and they do a similar thing being a session he calls 'push and spin'. Once a week they ride laps of a short loop where you have to push basically your biggest gear up the hill of a few hundred meters and then spin at over 100 cadence down the more gradual decline on the other side of the loop.
Thanks for all the replies, it’s been an eye opener on a topic I’ve never really given much though until now.
It seems the general consensus is that there’s not too much wrong with a high natural cadence, but it would do no harm to bring it down slightly for a lower HR over distance.
I shall make it a focus this week and see how it feels!
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matt.pocknell: May 9, 21 23:39
I thought I had a "high natural cadence" until I got on a plan that included serious strength endurance work on the bike.
My cadence dropped from 92+ to around 80 over a few months, and this is what feels "natural" now.
I used to have real problems on the run in most events longer than a sprint. We'll see on Sunday, hopefully, if things have gotten any better. I think they have.
"FTP is a bit 2015, don't you think?" - Gustav Iden
Mechanical speaking, a high cadence is less efficient. For the same output power, you're moving your legs a lot more. Try spinning your legs with zero resistance on the pedals. It still takes energy, and faster takes more.
Power = Torque * Angular Velocity
For a given output power, increasing cadence allows you to reduce torque, and vice-versa.
Where does the optimum balance lie between sustainable torque that will not fatigue the leg muscles quickly, and additional demand on CV system to spin faster? (I'm assuming that faster muscle contraction while applying lower force is less fatiguing than slower contraction at higher loads.)
I don't know how to calculate this, and I suspect none of us have sufficient data to do so. Correct?
So I think we're realistically limited to depending on either a rule of thumb, or what feels right. I go with feel.
For long rides, I 'd say my average cadence tends towards 76-80 type range. For shorter, fast rides it will be a bit higher but still typically well below 90. For short efforts above threshold power, and not climbing, I may settle in the 90-100 range but this would generally only be for several minutes at most unless I made a conscious decision to do so for some reason. When I started riding I did try to get used to riding at a higher cadence than I would have naturally chosen, and became comfortable cruising at 90-95. This became the range that felt natural, but as I became a stronger rider my average cadence gradually dropped over a period of maybe 2 years to the current range. I don't know if that's my original preference re-asserting itself, or if it's due to physiological changes. I've ridden similarly now for years.
cadence has always interested me. My old bike racing coaches would have me doing cadence drills all the time.
When i was a bike racer only my cadence would normally sit from between 90-100 and higher when racing on a velodrome (I rarely ever did TT's except in stage races).
Now that for the past 15 years i only do Tri's and focus a ton on my TT ability my cadence has dropped substantially and the last few IM's i have done i was about 78 average cadence at the end of the ride.
My FTP is about the same as it used to be but my 10 second to 5 minute power is quite a bit lower now.
I have a 59-50 on the front chainring specifically because I love low cadence and live in Chicagoland -- 12-25 in the rear.
I had reasonable bikes at IMs in Florida, Lake Placid, Arizona, CdA, and Arizona with that configuration. I believe I was able to run well off the bike based on my results at each of the IMs so it didn't wreck my legs.
Swim - Bike - Run the rest is just clothing changes.