Originally Posted by
12strings
Sorry I'm short on numbers, I ride without a computer, so I'm going totally on feel, and I sometimes try to estimate cadence by counting: "1 Mississippi 2...."
I am 5'9, 160lbs with 20+ years of soccer playing in my legs.
I guess I'm looking.g at overall trends here, not hard science...
It would seem if I'm really breathing hard up a hill, but my legs are ok, I might should go to a harder gear, less leg movement, make my legs work more than my lungs...
It seems sound, since going to the extremes (120-130 rpm) would definitely wear me out more quickly, even if power output was the same as a lower cadence...
Most people don't have low enough gears to ride at 120RPM up a hill so you're likely looking at something closer to 90 as a highish cadence and most will climb somewhere between 80 and 90.
If you've played a lot of soccer your legs are strong enough and it probably doesn't matter what cadence you pedal at you're going to be panting if you go up the hill fast enough. You're supposed to be breathing hard when you go up hills. The only way to slow down your breathing is to go slower and put out less power.