HOW TO CULTIVATE CADENCE LIKE… BRADLEY WIGGINS
Playing around with revolutions per minute will transform your cycling
Cycling cadence is the rate at which a cyclist pedals to turn the crank a full revolution per minute. It’s the simple act of converting your effort into making a bike go faster; it became an art form beneath the successful chamois of Sir Bradley Wiggins.
Because cadence is pivotal to riding a bike fast, elite cyclists devote much of their training time to improving this simple technique. Whilst a lot of effort goes into trying different ways of optimising cadence and improving pedalling technique, you should bear in mind a few basic laws. A good range is between 80 and 100rpm. When looking to perfect your cadence, it pays to take a longer view and work on it both during the off season and on training rides. 1 GAIN STRENGTH Adopt a strength training programme, especially in the off season. This isn’t with a view of bulking up or increasing muscle mass; instead, it’s to improve the neuromuscular link. This strengthens the muscle without adding mass, which can hinder your powerto-weight ratio. Simple drills using heavy weights – leg press and squats are ideal as they mimic the pedalling action and recruit all the major cycling muscles – have been show to improve cycling economy. 2 MAXIMISE THE FORCE Once you’ve established a good strength base, you need to turn that into cycling strength. This can be done with the inclusion of SFR or slow force repetitions, and involves riding on a moderate gradient at a low cadence of around 50rpm. Start with 3 x 5mins at 50rpm on a slight incline. Progress this throughout the base period so you accumulate 40 mins’ worth of work. 3 GET HIGH You need to train both ends of the cadence spectrum, so complement the lowcadence work with highcadence work. The ability to spin at a high cadence is most evident on the track and is often referred to as the foundation for ‘souplesse’ (fluid pedalling style).
If you have access to a fixedgear bike, undertaking blocks of high-cadence work on the rollers is a fantastic way to increase your ability to spin. But it’s a tricky skill and requires practice. You can also do it on a road bike. Break the ride up into intervals where you work on nudging your cadence up. Aim for one-minute blocks where you maintain as high as possible cadence. The key is to be on the edge of ‘bobbing’ up and down in the saddle. That’s the point where you can no longer maintain good technique. 4 TRAIN FOR TERRAIN Your optimal cadence will depend on terrain, muscle make-up and the power that you’re riding at. Ride a short, steep climb, in the saddle at a low cadence of 60rpm. As you crest the climb, ramp up the cadence so that you really spin your legs out into the descent.
WHEN OUT OF THE SADDLE FOCUS ON YOUR FORM. HOLD YOUR CORE TIGHT AND FORCE THE PEDALS DOWN...
This mimics what you would encounter on hilly sportives where you have to transition from high force, low cadence to low force, high cadence.
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STAND AND DELIVER When riding out of the saddle, rather than getting too hung up on what cadence you’re maintaining, think more about your form on the bike. Hold your core tight, open up your hip angle and think about forcing the pedals down through the stroke in a smooth manner.