Cadence & Riding Cold Days

[OakLeaf]

Most people feel the ideal cadence for road riding is around 92. Obviously it's going to be lower when you're climbing any significant hills, but you want to try to keep it over 65-70 to protect your knees (and your drivetrain). But once you're in your bottom gear and the hill's just getting steeper, you do what you can

When I was doing cadence intervals on rollers, I would start at 100 just because it was slightly higher than my usual cadence. I got to where I could maintain 160 pretty smooth for a minute. That was definitely "back in the day." But aim as high as you can! You can do cadence intervals on rolling hills too - once you crest the hill, don't upshift, just stay in your low gear and spin as high as you can on the descent. If you're trying to improve your cadence, definitely get a monitor. There are some pretty inexpensive ones out there - I use a Cateye Astrale 8 which was like $30 at the LBS.


PS Liza... eeeek! Before we started flying south for the winters, my toes would literally be blue from December through April, and that was just from staying in the house and working out indoors! Aren't you afraid of ice???