View New Forum Topics
Today's Forum Topics
Set as homepage

		Cycling Forums > Tech Corner > Cycling Training
How important is the cadence in the training?

Mark Forums Read

Welcome to CyclingForums.com

You are currently viewing our website as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions. You will have to register before you can post to this thread.

By joining our free online community you will have access to post new topics, communicate privately with other cyclingforums.com members (PM), respond to polls, upload photos and access other special features like product reviews and classifieds.

How important is the cadence in the training?

Reply

Search this Thread

30-09.-2007, 04:11 AM	#1
jsirabella Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: NYC, USA Posts: 571	How important is the cadence in the training? If you feel to have more energy, speed and power when riding with a lower cadence than the program recommends am I missing out on the benefits of the workout? i.e. If for a Saturday I am suppose to do 190-225 watt 2 to 2.5 hour ride at times suppose to be easy and at other times seems hard, I find it easier to stay in these watts with my 53 X ?? and a 75-90 rpm than the 90-95 rpm stated in the program. If I go down to my 35 X ?? I will be spinning passed the 90-95 rpm in most parts of the road. I feel my only answers would be to switch my 35 with something a bit larger or do it all in my 53 and lower cadence. What do you guys think? -Js i.e. On a side note what type of watts must I generate and hold for a minute to be on the dang nabbit power profile anywhere...and I do mean anywhere!

Old

30-09.-2007, 05:59 AM

#2

daveryanwyoming

Registered User

Join Date: Oct 2006

Posts: 1,506

Default

Re: How important is the cadence in the training?

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsirabella

If you feel to have more energy, speed and power when riding with a lower cadence than the program recommends am I missing out on the benefits of the workout?...

In general cadence is secondary to sustained power. You'll get a lot of training benefit from just completing the intervals near the target power. But as a newer racer who seems to do a lot of fast crit/circuit race courses it pays to train yourself to deliver power at both moderate and fast cadences. Your trying to train new movement patterns and that means it won't feel comfortable or easy at first. If it did you wouldn't need to learn how to do it. So sure you can get most of the physiological benefit by riding larger gears at moderate cadences but you can get some race specific focus by doing at least some of your long repeats in a smaller gear and spinning a bit faster. You shouldn't need to drop to your small chainring, just dropping a cog or two should allow you to spin much faster. What are you carrying for a rear cluster? I do a lot of TT intervals in the 53:13-53:16 but work on leg speed by doing long repeats in the 53:16-53:21 on the flats. Unless I'm climbing a steep hill or battling a really strong headwind I don't need to drop to the 39 for Tempo, SST or L4 work.

Quote:

...i.e. On a side note what type of watts must I generate and hold for a minute to be on the dang nabbit power profile anywhere...and I do mean anywhere!

5.64 times your weight in kilograms should get you a blip on the one minute radar and 6.79 * kilos gets you up to "fair". So if you weigh say 154 pounds (70 kg) you'll want to average ~395 watts for a full minute to make the charts and ~475 watts to make it into fair. Divide your weight in pounds by 2.2 to get your weight (mass really) in kilos.

-Dave

daveryanwyoming is online now

Reply With Quote

Old

01-10.-2007, 10:35 AM

#3

jsirabella

Registered User

Join Date: Jan 2005

Location: NYC, USA

Posts: 571

Default

Re: How important is the cadence in the training?

Dave,

My rear cluster is a ten speed 12-25 cassette. I notice that when I can not keep up a cadence I would like usually below 80rpm, I can shift down one and increase with the same force usually about 10 rpm or so.

One thing I am starting to get better as it is getting out of the saddle for a minute and push those hard gears until you get a good cadence going and than try and keep it. I find in the really hard gears 53:13 - 53:16 I feel I can really move even though my cadence falls below 80 and into the low 70s. Sometimes on the shorter steeper hills I see guys really spinning out the smaller geards but if I push hard on those harder gears I can stay with them or pass them.

I guess it will be a little time before I see that blip, right now I am in the low 400 range each time while not focusing on it. At 173lbs I need just a bit higher to get that blip.

On a different subject, in the race here at CP I find that they can do 4 laps with an average of 14m30sec per lap and about 25 miles per hour. If I can do about 19 miles per hour on my own in CP without a pack, should I be able to do 25 with a pack?

-Js

Quote:

Originally Posted by daveryanwyoming

In general cadence is secondary to sustained power. You'll get a lot of training benefit from just completing the intervals near the target power. But as a newer racer who seems to do a lot of fast crit/circuit race courses it pays to train yourself to deliver power at both moderate and fast cadences. Your trying to train new movement patterns and that means it won't feel comfortable or easy at first. If it did you wouldn't need to learn how to do it. So sure you can get most of the physiological benefit by riding larger gears at moderate cadences but you can get some race specific focus by doing at least some of your long repeats in a smaller gear and spinning a bit faster. You shouldn't need to drop to your small chainring, just dropping a cog or two should allow you to spin much faster. What are you carrying for a rear cluster? I do a lot of TT intervals in the 53:13-53:16 but work on leg speed by doing long repeats in the 53:16-53:21 on the flats. Unless I'm climbing a steep hill or battling a really strong headwind I don't need to drop to the 39 for Tempo, SST or L4 work.
5.64 times your weight in kilograms should get you a blip on the one minute radar and 6.79 * kilos gets you up to "fair". So if you weigh say 154 pounds (70 kg) you'll want to average ~395 watts for a full minute to make the charts and ~475 watts to make it into fair. Divide your weight in pounds by 2.2 to get your weight (mass really) in kilos.

-Dave

jsirabella is offline

Reply With Quote

Reply

« Previous Thread | Archive | Next Thread »

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads You may not post replies You may not post attachments You may not edit your posts vB code is On Smilies are On [IMG] code is On HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

All times are GMT +10. The time now is 08:47 AM.

Links to websites we like:
Pezcyclingnews | Cyclingnews.com | Wine Zone | iinet