"ROWCHUCK" <
[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[email protected]...
> I have been a rower, but have moved to an area with no water and now
learning
> to bike for exercise and pleasure. I am 78 years young. How do I train
to get
> my cadence to a higher level? Today, I reach but 40 t0 45 comfartably but notice others doing much
> more. Thanks in adavance. Rowchuck
Take your time, and don't worry too much about it. However, a few tricks are useful to improve
cadence, and they all more or less involve self-discipline.
Essentially, lower the gear you're in by one or two notches. Being in an easier gear, you'll have
the feeling it's "too easy" and you will spin a little bit faster. When I trained to improve my
cadence a few years ago, I was especially careful wen I was facing a headwind. One is used to ride
in the "high gear", and even in wind, one tries to labour in the same gear instead of trying to spin
in an easier gear.
20030324174107. Count the number of downstrokes by the right pedal. For a shorter interval, count
them during 15 seconds and multiply by 4. Don't aim to high. If you crank at 40-45
rpm, aim at 50-60 rpm (only). Then, when you are comfortable at that level (say in
3-4 weeks), you can aim a bit more. If has been said that tourers and commuters are
generally more efficient and comfortable when spinning at around 90 rpm, with the
"ideal" number being anywhere between 75-100 rpm. However, I would suggest that
anything above 60 rpm is good on your knees and also fairly efficient. In other
words, if you reach 60 rpm, great! If you reach 70 rpm, perfect!
20030324174108. A cycle computer is a good morale booster. You don't need a fancy one which
measures cadence; just a basic one. Even basic cycle computers display distance,
speed and time lapsed (or time of day), usually with seconds. It becomes fairly
easy to compute cadence. As an added bonus, you will notice that when you spin a
bit faster, you don't get tired but you go faster. For instance, on a given road,
if I pedal at 50 rpm, I'll go at 15 km/h; if I spin at 60 rpm, i'll go at 20 km/h
and if I spin at 70 rpm, I'll go at 22 km/h. Instant gratification! A bit of the
carrot and stick theory...
Finally, don't sweat it. The most important aspect is to enjoy bicycling!
Regards,
Michel Gagnon