FujiKid

So,
I recently picked up a cheapy cadence monitor for my back wheel and have been monitoring my RPM's on my rides every time I go out..

I'm a newb and only have about 750+ road miles in the past couple of months under my belt, so I might be "doing it wrong". But I've noticed that when I am behind the "older" road bikers (I'm 17) I seem to blow past them.. on pretty moderate/steep hill climbs.

My cadence on hills is usually between 75-85 RPM's and my cadence on flats is usually between 93-100 RPM's..

Now my goals are to lose a bit of fat, and get faster .. (5'8 , 136lbs)..
I do about 50+ Miles a day 3-4 times a week, and usually get over 275+ miles a week in general.

So I guess my question is would having higher cadence on hill climbs get my heart rate up higher than say, lower cadence (But really pushing hard) on hill climbs?
What are your guys's cadences on hills/flats?

Thanks guys

Forza

In general yes, higher cadence will = higher HR.

Kudos on the mileage that you are getting in

PinkBabyMonster

Depending how long it's been since you started riding, you probably don't really need to worry about cadence yet. As long as you feel like you are either a) not bouncing around in the saddle from pedaling too fast, or b) feel like you're really mashing on the pedals, then you're probably doing it right. If you try to push too high a gear on hills and overall, you may end up straining or injuring yourself. I would just say keep riding a lot, and try to think about all the little things less. Hope this helps somewhat.

climber7

those cadences sound exceptionally normal.

cadence is really personal and whatever feels comfortable is probably right (as long as it's not like 20 RPM or something). i usually hold around 90 on the flat for a regular ride. higher for hard flat efforts, lower on hills.

higher cadence might get your heart rate up, but 75-85 is a good range for hills if it feels natural to you. i'd guess you don't want to go too high or else you won't build much strength in your legs. if you want to get your heart up a little more, mix in short periods of climbing out of the saddle. i think you'll find your heart rate spikes maybe 5-10 beats higher than it was while sitting, and it'll give you a nice extra burn in your quads.

kimconyc

No.
I don't keep track of cadence.

JimF22003

You're not fat.

Looigi

It's RPM, not RPM's.

GirlAnachronism

More than likely not, but hard to say over the internet. I am leaner and more muscular at 5'7" / 135 than I was at 125.

slims_s

You climb faster than others because you're a pretty light guy. I climb faster than some of my riding partners that are way faster than me on the flats (i'm 5'8 and a little over 130lbs). It's all about power/weight ratio

Andy Somnifac 

Saying you're 136lbs @ 5'8" and you want to lose weight is only going to make us fat guys hate you. Well, at least once we catch up to you on the descent.

FujiKid

Heh, thanks for the "interesting" responses guys.

I agree I'm not fat, I just like seeing the results getting faster/stronger and hopefully I can do it.

So, I think the general point that I've gotten out of most of you is that

-my cadence seems to be fine on my climbs
-I should climb out of my saddle here and there to get my HR up

Anything else?

kimconyc

You can get the same result seated by either pedaling the same gear faster or a harder gear faster.

gregf83 

Why the focus on getting your HR up? It's irrelevant. Concentrate on increasing your power and reducing your time up the hill. Your heart will take care of itself.

FujiKid

I agree with increasing Power and Reducing my time up the hill.

Correct me if I'm wrong.. But doesn't Higher HR = Higher % Calories burned?

kimconyc

Heart rate is not the most accurate measure of your exertion while cycling--for that, you have to find out your lactate levels. This is why Power Meters have been popularized by competitive cyclists--a lot more accurate to find out your lactate levels with a Power Meter than with a heart rate monitor. But you don't need either of these two things.

A lot of books, websites, etc. talk about target HR for fat burning but basically, I'm assuming by "lose a bit of fat" you mean you want to lose weight.

You are going to burn more calories working at a higher intensity than a lower intensity, just that the % of fat calories burned will be lower. But you will still be burning more fat calories total for a given amount of time compared to riding at a lower intensity (or "fat burning HR").

Basically, if you burn more calories than you take in, you will lose weight, not that complicated. Don't worry about all the "fat", just ride a lot and you will get stronger and faster. Don't forget to eat right and also rest for your body to rebuild itself.

You also said you want to get faster. You seem to ride a lot already so 1-2 times a week, try to work in a hard ride--maybe find a fast group to ride with to make it more fun and meet new people.

kimconyc

No.

FujiKid

Wow Man,

I understand the Calories in vs Calories out thing as well, (Used to be 215lbs but lost a ton of weight over the past year and a half).
I just always thought that working harder (Pedaling with more power) burned more calories and more fat. But I guess I was wrong,

I'll try and work in a few hard rides once or twice or week, but I'm just a beginner/recreational cyclist (I do ALL of my rides solo) so I don't even know anyone that rides and I don't belong to clubs/or groups that ride.

Thanks man

kimconyc

That's pretty much what I said. HR only correlates to your overall work effort (which cyclists use Watts these days as the gauge).

IMO just try to have fun and not get caught up in all the techno gizmos, unless you get enjoyment out of that stuff as well and get a kick out of drawing blood.

AgentRedlum

Very helpful.

bostongarden

Ah, and it's RBI, not RBIs. But, still, we get it

bostongarden

I was going to have another half of sandwich at my office TGIF lunch party. Now, I feel super heavy and think I need to abstain

gregf83 

Higher power = more calories burned. Power is loosely correlated to HR but it is not a strong correlation. There are many factors (stress, dehydration, temperature etc.) that can raise your HR without changing the amount of calories burned. At 136 lbs it doesn't sound like you need to be concerned with losing weight. Focus on power and forget about how many calories you're burning.

mmmdonuts

You should continue to focus on getting faster. At 17 you shouldn't worry about the weight. Continue to ride as you are, RPM range, etc. And find faster people to ride with so the hills and flats make you work harder. You are still developing and have weight to gain but you will also get stronger. Don't get caught up in the weight thing or power/weight ratio.

FujiKid

Alright, I guess I wont worry about the weight issue..

I pretty much took what everyone said and conquered some hills today. Wound up doing 67 miles..

Riding gets more and more fun, with each time that you do it.

DRietz

Dude, 5' 8" and ten pounds heavier than me? I'd kill to GAIN that weight and be versatile in most ranges of cycling. I'm the same height as you but I weigh 125, and really pretty much suck at everything that's not a hill.

Consider yourself lucky. You don't need to burn fat. Not to be blunt (well, I'm a blunt person), but hearing that reminds me of some of the eating disorder kids I race with.