Active Community: Message List - How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

Re: How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 02:11:05 GMT

Hey Kevin,

It took me a long time to bring up my average cadence so I know what you're working on here.

There are a bunch of articles within active:

- Joe Friel shares ideas/tips in this one, including spin-ups where "over the course of 30 seconds or so, gradually raise your cadence until you start bouncing on the saddle."

http://www.active.com/cycling/Articles/Off-season_drills_to_boost_your_pedaling_skills.htm

- And this one is good, FastPedal intervals, similar to spin-ups.

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Three_supercharged_early-season_cycling_workouts.htm

- I remember one of the past studies about bike cadence impacting the run, that there was an advantage early on the run segment for cyclists for quicker cadences, but that evened out before the finish line.

I hope your training is going well,

Sara

Re: How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 17:10:46 GMT

As I said, one-legged drills are much easier and safer on a trainer. However, out on a stretch of flat road with little traffic, either unclip one foot and hold it out or up out of the way of the revolving pedal (awkward) OR just concentrate on applying force through the pedal rotation with one leg for 30 seconds, equally weight both for recovery then do the other leg.

Re: How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 10:48:58 GMT

Thanks guys for the tips..

BT Rob

How do I perform the one legged drill? Is it the same as trying to pedal on one leg on the bike at one time?

How can I do that on the moving bike since I do not own a bike trainer at the moment?

Many thanks for the advise.

Re: How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 22:37:28 GMT

Dr. Miles is right on. You need to practice high RPM intervals. Maybe as short as 30 seconds on, one minute off. Do as many as you can and still maintain the high cadence for the entire set. Once you can't, it's time to recover. Over time, the number you can do will increase. Then start increasing the length of time. If you have a trainer you can set the bike on, all the better. You are not worrying about your actual speed at this point, just an efficient pedaling motion. Also do one legged drills (best on a trainer) so you develop equally on both legs.

Re: How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:20:32 GMT

One of the better workouts I've seen for cadence is to overcompensate quite a bit in intervals. Try riding at 110+ for 2 minutes - don't worry about what gear you're in. Go two minutes fast, two slow, repeat five times. After a few rides doing that, you should be able to comfortably bring up your "natural" cadence a few RPM. There isn't a magic cadence you need to hit to be successful, though. I've read that higher cadences lead to better run splits, but I haven't noticed it for myself.

How to maintain 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling?

guest — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:47:07 GMT

Hi guys,

I having troubles to maintain an average of 85-95 rpm cadence during cycling..

I tried with various gear combination with riding on flat road, but only able to sustain an average of 75 rpm.

I believe my riding is not effective for long distance.. Is there any workout or methods to bring up my average cadence?

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

Regards.

Kevin