Cadence: The #1 Running Form Cue I wish I knew when I first started.

I used to think that mileage and long runs were KING for running improvement. Until I discovered how to run with rhythm and cadence! This video is that story and how I figured out how to tackle the common pitfalls we all experience when changing run form and cadence so I could run lighter, smoother, and easier for longer periods of time. 

Link to Run Cadence Challenge in the app!

Thanks to GoodFOR Pain for sponsoring today’s video!

I pro-actively apply GoodFOR pain before my runs to my feet and calves on these tough workouts. GoodFOR isn’t a numbing agent, that’s not what we advocate here. It works with our endocannabinoid system in a pretty powerful way to regulate chronic pain, decrease inflammation, and help with recovery. 

But I still want to learn more, so I interviewed and recorded this conversation with their Chief Medical Officer Dr. Paul Bregman. We discuss pain and chronic pain, the latest research on how we understand pain in the body, what to do if you’re injured, and how runners can use GoodFOR safely and effectively on their own bodies. 

Try it for yourself with an exclusive Buy One Get One Deal. Purchase a Pain Pump (this thing is awesome) and get a box of Grab n Go GoodFOR packets to stuff in your shorts, your car, or to give to your friends for FREE (worth $25).

Metro Timer Metronome:

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[smbrumbaugh]

Cadence was huge for me to address some issues with knee pain when I started running a little over a year ago. I didn't realize it, but I was over-striding, and at 215 lbs it was leading to high impact. I downloaded a metronome for my phone, set it to 165 bpm (I was timing both feet), and ran to that through my headphones for a good long time until that became my standard. That combined with some exercises for knee pain that I picked up on this channel, and I've had no problems since then. I tried finding some music that was in the right bpm to run to, but it turned out the metronome worked better for me.

[scp]

Keep in mind that the magical 180 SPM number that everyone cites (or 90 on one side as Nate mentions) is drawn from observations of professional athletes running at top speed in championship races. If you're taking it easy, or even if you're taking it steady, you definitely should not be upset about running under that number.

[leighannebrown-pedersen]

Music...Spotify has bpm but rock my run does this best. Has helped me more than anything.

[richardwitt]

As a SPIN instructor, I learned the necessities of BPM for cycling cadence. What I found is that I was OVER 180 steps per minute (SPM). Many of my running playlists begin around 170 and settle around 182/186. For my half marathon playlist, the final 20 minutes (4k) was well over 190. I noticed this phenomenon as I looked over my cadence run data and connected why my cadence was changing over the duration of the run. I really CAN'T stride out of the beat to the music. 170 feels so to me. Good discussion!

[st]

As a group fitness instructor, I have been teaching cadence for years. When I started running, it was natural for me to include cadence with BPM calculated music mixes. Happy to see this emphasized with your video.

[AdvancedLiving]

Running in time to music! Is there a term for it..? NO! As a former drummer I refer to it as “rhythm running” and do it all the time. I think ALL my playlists are running-oriented. I’m glad someone is finally covering it.

[mikemooney]

I found that as I increased my cadence, I needed to not only decrease my stride (which I'd mostly done) but mostly decrease the push from my foot. To manage this, I set my watch to display my cadence and current pace; then for short distances, I would practice running at my target cadence and pace. At first, my pace would be too high. I'd adjust the amount of force my foot pushed off with until I found my target. Once I found that, I'd see how that felt and try to remember that. On my next few runs, I would target that feeling and maybe do a brief check on my watch to confirm. Mostly, I tried to ignore my watch during my run (except for those deliberate segments where I was practicing). I tried to check on the stats afterwards.

[ralphangeloreyes]

A few weeks ago I tried adjusting my cadence faster and yes there is a lot of energy saved and get to land on my feet equally more, and legs feel lighter, though I still need to get used to it!

[RunAllTheMiles]

When I had pain at the bottom of my back within the first mile of a race, I adapted and shortened my stride and increased my cadence, felt frustrating at first but after a few miles I noticed I wasn't getting tired ended up getting a half pb and made me see the benefits of a higher cadence, these days regular training runs are 180-185 and fast pace is 195 ish, a few years ago my cadence was usually around 167

[KenJones]

Podrunner and Rock My Run are my two go-to's for cadence-based running music.

[KevinCornwell]

Thanks for what you do Nate! I just moved back east last year but lived in Norcal for 6 years. Always nostalgic seeing SF in your videos. Lots of memories there - Metallica, Escape from Alcatraz Tri, amazing Italian food, Amoeba records and tents in the tenderloin.

[dannyjacobs]

While running a marathon the other week, a girl passed me that was using the beeping gizmo, which was annoying.
But the main point is, she passed me! 😕. So there must be something to it! 😉😁

[JSVillatoro]

Another helpful tip that I’m looking to try out is running on a treadmill. Since the speed is fixed it’s impossible to over run at a specific cadence target

[saragonmcenany]

This really helpful with running mechanics and reducing heel strikes

[yiannis_christodoulou]

Very helpful and should be a focus in anyones training

[Raucherbeinknacker]

I didn't walk the cadence way, but I realized that my technique had to be refined. Luckily some weeks ago I discovered the first bug. I found my legs micro squatting every step and my Fix was skipping downwards a little faster to land on a more stretched and almost straight leg, which doesn't bent that much hitting the ground.
This was feeling stiff and bouncy and I got the best elastic recoil!
I was running midfoot yet, and my posture was quite alright.
But with too much flexed knees I had to do unnecessary muscle work.
This raised my cadence from about 150 to 160. And when I straightened my lower back a little more, I then took the full advantage of the new recoil!
This also raised cadence about 10s/m.

[Simon-phnf]

cadence is why music is great for me and this video explained it very well.

I have a cheap 4GB mp3 player (done about 5000km over 10 years by my side) has 5 tracks that are about an hour long each. Essentially some random house music (strictly no vocals) from the archives of 2010.

Each track is a different bps and I use this to help stop myself creeping up my pace during my run.
If I want to change my pace, I just flip my track and ease into it.

I also have a bonus track that is my turbo, so I flip eye of the tiger for that last 1km of the race.

What's your turbo song?

[mrsmichelledaniels]

I’m curious if you guys have ever done videos about people who run with strollers. What it’s doing is it making running harder? Etc Very excited to try this!

[nicholashernandez]

Should I really try to adjust my cadence? Or should it naturally improve/increase as I become a better runner?

[alexbond]

Cadence depends on running speed. Just focus on landing the feet below the pelvis.