Low Cadence Training (Compiled Info)

Personally I do low-cadence work seated, at tempo power, and 50-60rpm. You need to find what works for you.

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Depends on your actual needs and goals for your fitness. Think about the power, effort and cadence you need to use in your planned events. If you plan to spend time at lower cadence, then try to mimic that within reason. If you have ERG, this may include selecting particular gearing that aims to replicate the force and power demands you want to mimic.

The drills in the workouts are good ideas in general, to help broaden the capabilities of riders. But they may lack the specificity you really should be aiming to add into your training. When I had some long, steep and low cadence climbs for a planned event, I replicated the conditions with Sweet Spot effort, at really low gearing in ERG and mixed standing and seated. This lead to a great result and a prepped body for the day I needed it.

So, look at your needs and see how you may actually need to implement low cadence with more specificity to your needs.

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another interesting article on cadence:

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Does TR have low cadence specific training? I looked at some (not all) of the Tempo workouts and read the description and it says to keep cadence between 85-95.

As mentioned above, there are some workouts that recommend cadence in the 60-75 rpm range.

There is no list or program, but you can search in workouts to find some specific mentions of “low cadence”

Or use “rpm”

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I think how low you drop cadence depends on what you plan to ride.

And difficulty will be driven by length and intensity of the interval.

I have a section of trail near me, half mile, averaging 16%, that I’ll ride in the snow (when conditions allow). 2.5mph for 10-12 minutes above threshold at about 40rpm. Very hard.

I find low cadence a good way to build leg strength for long steep climbs.

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Thanks

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I am one who would definitely need to spend time working on low cadence, which I intentionally do in some of the workouts, because I like higher cadences and those low cadence are not knee friendly for me, so it’s not something I do a lot or like to do all the time.

When I’ve heard/read of low cadence drills Pros do and used to do, a lot of the time they are doing low cadence drills at tempo/low sweet spot pace. So something in the, say, 75-90% of FTP range. Not high sweet spot or threshold. Which would make it easier on the knees.

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I got in some low cadence work today during Polar Bear -3 work out. It’s much easier on the knees with endurance workouts.

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https://www.fastlabs.com/fasttalk125/

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Hello,

Monday i will try a low cadence workout indoor.

I will do 3x3min low cadence with 6min rest and after that 3x10min low cadence with 6min rest.

2 questions:
-How much rpm do i have to aim? 50 or 60?
-Is 6min rest after 10mn low cadence enough?

@PattyP, I moved your post under the specific one I made to address this issue. Check out my OP and following discussion and see if that addresses your questions.

In short, I think you might be looking at interval lengths that are too long for new Low Cadence users. More importantly, I think you should establish your specific goal and needs outside, and use that to help direct your plan for LC work inside.

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50-70rpm. I would don’t 10 minutes though, at least starting out.

Start with like 3x4’s around tempo wattage, 2-5 minute rest, depending what you feel.

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Yes i know…i will choice enough power and keep the HR low.

My coach wrote a blog post with details:

These are done at lower power - tempo/z3 - and stop immediately if it causes any knee issues.

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Thanks for the link. :smiley:
I will add this in my OP at the top.

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CTS is where I first learned about muscle tension intervals, another good blog post on the subject:

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Sweet, added that as well!

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