Road Cycling - cadence?

This topic may have come up before, but... Lately I have been trying to increase my average cadence to at least 90. (Comfortable for me seems to be about 80.) I've found that my heart rate really goes up with the higher cadence, even on the flats. I've tried using an easier gear, but my heart rate is still high. From what I've been reading this doesn't seem right. Am I doing something wrong, or still trying to push too high a gear? I'd love some input from those who know better. (or just have some more experience)

I was in your situation a couple of months ago. I started at 75 as a comfy range, and today I am at 95rpm and getting better by the day.


The two things I did: a) fitted the bike better especially the seat (fore/aft/up/down), and b) time. It gets better fast. I ride to the office 3 times a week (18miles round trip), and 6.5 miles (to the Gym) the other 4 days.

I am comfortable at 95, but every so often I sprint to 110, to get my heart going..

Try adjusting the seat and give it time...

BTW, what kind of bike do you have?


A

I did try to spin more up hills this season, and I noticed my heart rate seemed to increase. I thought it might be that spinning shifted power usage more to the aerobic side (heart/lungs) than the more anerobic mashing-up-the-hill style. Just a guess.

Roadie Gal,
You may still be trying to push a little too much gear for right now. Check the fit as cgonz mentioned. You might also want to check my thread on pedalling in circles and some of the replies.
Regards,
Raymond

Thanks for the responses. It was Raymond's thread on spinning that made me ask this question.

I have my seat set up the only way that works for me. I have some problems with one knee that require me to set my seat back just a little farther than the usual recommendation. (about 1/2cm) Any further forward and I get pain.

I ride a Sampson Silverton that fits me very well. I have it set up with Campy Chorus 10. The cassette runs from 13 -29. I should be able to find a low enough gear with that.

I agree that it's probably the change in style of riding that's hiking up my heart rate. We'll see what happens when I get used to riding this way instead of mashing the big gears slowly. And I will make an effort to use lower gears.

Roadie Gal,
When working on cadence, don't hesitate to use an embarassingly low gear. You want a gear that allows you to maintain your target cadence with little or no perceived resistance. Unless you are actively training for something, I might forget the HRM and focus on spinning technique. One less distraction.
Regards,
Raymond

Like sorebutt sez, it'll get easier, give it some time. Your muscles need to develop a capillary base to keep them sufficiently supplied with oxygen. One way to increase your cadence without spending a lot of time thinking about it is to drop to one gear lower than what feels "right" while maintaining the same speed.

here is a great site for bike fit.

http://www.kevinlippert.com/bike_fit_202.htm :dance:

Your HR will naturally go up with high cadences, so it's possible that nothing is wrong. In fact, the highest HR's I see with myself are also associated when my cadences are highest (over 120).

One thing to be aware of us that when you're riding, it's quite normal to have your HR climb significantly. What do you consider high, and what's your resting HR?

Start taking omega 3 pills (fish oil). Thins the blood!

I would say you're still used to mashing gears and you naturally want to use more torque when pedalling. Start by finding the easiest gear you can use without losing total control of your pedal stroke and concentrate on keeping the cadence nice and even. It's a lot harder pedalling smooth on a low gear that doing the inverse.

Start taking omega 3 pills.

Will they help prevent 8 year old threads 10-08-01, 01:25 PM from coming back from the dead ?

Will they help prevent 8 year old threads from coming back from the dead ?

Yes.

This topic may have come up before, but... Lately I have been trying to increase my average cadence to at least 90. (Comfortable for me seems to be about 80.) I've found that my heart rate really goes up with the higher cadence, even on the flats. I've tried using an easier gear, but my heart rate is still high. From what I've been reading this doesn't seem right. Am I doing something wrong, or still trying to push too high a gear? I'd love some input from those who know better. (or just have some more experience)

HR will increase with cadence, this is normal/typical. dont worry about your HR. unless you have alot of knowledge on how to interpret HR #s to evaluate what is "high", "low", and responses to stimuli, it's a red herring obfuscating your training.

Agree with all that's said. Don't be afraid to shift a lot while you're still training. If you drop below 90 for even a few seconds shift to an easier gear. You can always go back. Also remember to spin out going over the tops of hills. If you had to drop your cadence climbing it has to get made up somewhere and the best place is going over and down. GL