I thought I was pedalling efficiently. I was wrong.

My Newsletter:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Social Media:

[Gryffes]

Every cadence study seems to show self selected is better than any prescribed cadence.

[Cyclingismywholelife]

I remember when I got into cycling 15 years ago and my LBS suggested that my cadence should be between 90-110. I couldn’t do it and I thought something was wrong with me. I gave up and just pedaled at what felt right for me, my cadence is at 70 Rpm on average. I have completed many centuries and have done hundreds of 30 mile rides and let a 40 year old Clydesdale give you his 2 cents, if it doesn’t hurt and it works for you, do it. Another example, is when I used chamois butter on one time and I got horrible saddle sores. I know many people swear by certain things in life, sometimes the majority, but if it’s not right for you, that’s okay. Trial and error is a part of life.

[davidtomasetti]

Each person has a different combination of fast twitch to slow twitch muscles, I imagine that the ideal cadence will be different for everyone based on that

[rangersmith]

I'm 64 years old, 5'11" and 176 lbs, about 10 pounds above my optimal weight. I like to ride fast, not because I'm in competition, but because it's fun. For me, turning a consistent cadence in the mid 80s while keeping my heart rate around 156 results in the best sustainable speed. I can easily ride for 90 minutes or so averaging 16mph or 30 minutes at 17.5mph. I'd like to achieve 2 hours at 18mph or 1 hour at 20mph. That's a goal for Spring 2025, before I reach my 65th birthday.

[mjrobins]

There is some good information here and it’s great you’re seeing progress. I think that over time you may come to ride without thinking of cadence too much. There is never an ideal cadence across the board. Give yourself the freedom to select whatever cadence feels right in the moment. Freely changing cadence will keep you comfortable on long rides and take the need to focus on *one* thing away. Cadence is quite literally the last metric I give any attention to during or after a ride. It’s just not really an indicator of anything other than what it measures- it’s like knowing your average RPM on a car trip… not helpful but sure you can measure it. Yes too high or too low is problematic but there is really no ideal number at any given time or as an average. It may be better at times to be lower, or higher, but that’s different from saying that it should be 80, or 90, or anything specific at any given point. Your bike fit will go a long way too… it looks like your saddle may be a little too low and you may be putting too much demand on your quads while not putting enough on your hamstrings. Your pedal stroke should be smooth and you seem to be a little on the choppy side, a frequent result of saddles being too low. Stay riding and good luck out there!

[dewindoethdwl]

Millions of years ago, when I raced and time trialled around Tyne & Wear (with Sunderland Clarion CC) I learned there were two groups. Mashers and Twiddlers, low and high cadence riders. I never found the naked grunt to mash effectively but couldn’t spin like the twiddlers without bouncing on the saddle. Middle ground revs was where I rode. It was effective, I did well in races & time trials and began to notice none of the riders around me, in the top 10% of the event, did extreme mashing or twiddling. If you train your best, you find your style l

[paulmcknight]

.Slow twitch muscles are the aerobic fibers. They deliver oxygen to the muscles directly and expel lactic acid. Fast twitch muscles use glycogen, a finite resource, that to recover rider has to slow down. As you found out, climbing with a lower heartrate, rapid cadences train the slow twitch aerobic fibers. The legs can't jam down on the pedals. They don't have enough time. They must follow the crank around. The heart and cardio system get a splendid workout, increasing VO2 max, speed, strength, and endirance. The legs expel lactic acid and can go forever. Following the crank around in slow cadences is also more efficient aerobically. Doing spin intervals does the trick.

[theroadsnearyou...]

If you aren’t pedalling in circles, you’re making it hard work!

[leiflarsen]

When I start cycling on my first racebike some 45 years ago, the older riders teach me, that in early spring, go with light gears and a high cadence, it will make your hole system ready for going fast and long with lower cadence when season start, today when I practice on my indoor setup, the goal is allway minimum 85 rpm, goal 90, and outdor it will be aroud 75-80 rpm, with the same speed

[meibing]

Reduced my pedel length to 165mm and increased cadence with 10 rpm to 80-90. Works for me. YMMV.

[jwells]

Thanks Leonard, this video was very timely for me. I just got a power meter and am riding with power data for the first time. I was just thinking during my ride this morning about the interplay between cadence, power, gearing and speed, so this video was really helpful.

[mohamedmansor]

Hi, Leonard. Many thanks for your great and useful videos. I am 57 and adore my Format Con 10 road bike. I cycle 63 kilometers a day to and fro my work. I cannot understand such cadence but I measure my speed in kilometers. My average speed is 33 km/h.

[joannelouiserodriguez]

its tough atm i get out on weekends only and my power isnt great compared to others in my club fab video lee as always x

[mudgie]

I just ride as I feel and sometimes my cadence is faster or slower. Up until I hurt my back 12 months ago (just getting back from injury) I was cycling on average at 19-20mph at 57 years of age. I only took up cycling during the pandemic so I was pretty happy with that. I'm now back to just over 16mph average having completed 5 weeks of training 2-4 rides per week. As I'm also never going to be a racer its all about just keeping fit for me.

[MazingerZX]

I like lower cadence and focus on higher torque by staying on the front big ring. After getting used to generating more power for longer time, then try 1 lower gear and slightly increase your cadence.

[germanhugger]

Hi Leonard- Was just looking at the footage of you cycling along and I am convinced that you would really benefit from changing to longer spindle pedals.. Speedplay, Time, SQ Lab, . I'm fairly broad across the beams, and changing to Speedplay Zero pedals was an absolute game changer for comfort and power...

[SpecialEd.]

I'm pretty sure I'm more of a sprinter, yet I prefer around a 110 cadence for distance, low cadence burns out my legs. Almost broke 200 rpm at 35mph in high gears just messing around the other Day, not bad for an old man.

[petetrundell]

I’m in my fifties and recently added a single speed bike to my collection. The gear I chose allowed for reasonable speed downhill but the trade-off was a steady-state cadence about 20 rpm lower than I’d normally stick to on my geared bike. I was surprised how easy it was to adapt to pedalling with a bit more umph and I’m sure that I would have struggled to find that cadence comfortable when I was younger.

[johndawson]

I’m 66 12 stone 7 lbs 5’11” …I average 60-65 cadence here in hilly West Cumbria Lake District England which I’m happy with. I can get up those lumps eventually 😅. I agree with what’s been said be happy at what you’re comfortable with.

[richwun]

There is this saying in Karate "The way is the training", and another saying from my Kung Fu master is "You play you'll be okay". All which is very valid and inspiring, so 1. Train sensibly for all the varibles necessary to improve, 2. But have fun doing so, because it's how one chooses to explore one's weakness and strength in order to discover what we are made in our quest to experience our enjoyment for being healthy, wealthy and wise. I am 70, I started riding a bike since I was 9 on a Shwinn Stingray, I had a paper route from 9 to 11 and 13 bikes later I have never stop riding, biking has always been my greatest joy as a kid and as an old dude, so I ride to stay in touch with being alive for the fun of it. My 2 cents.😃