Re: Re: The effect of age on cycling Pedal Cadence

[Guest guest]

Giovanni wrote:

Your observation regarding uphill - modifying the posture and hamstring

that start burning - is extremely interesting. Is your observation that the

quads engage harder or not? How do you know when you have downshifted

enough going uphill?

**************************

The question of uphill riding is a little more complex. The answer depends on a

number of factors.

Is it a long hill with a gradual incline or is it a short but steep hill. Is

the individual riding in a group, racing, leisure riding or is the hill part of

a race? If it is a race, is the race a short 20-25 mile criterium or a long

60-100 mile road race.

I guess you are asking specifically whether the quads are engaging harder on the

the hills, as opposed to on the flats? My generic answer is no the quads should

not work any harder than they do on the flats unless the hill is at the end of

the ride or race and the rider is not concerned about using up too much energy

to soon.

On short steep hills if the rider wishes to maintain a certain speed he/she may

wish to power over the hill but generally you would want to maintain the same

power output going up a hill as you would on the flats.

The key to riding hills is to try and maintain a steady pace both with regards

to power output and cadence. In approaching a hill I have learned over the

years to down shift before my cadence begins to decrease and to continue to down

shift until I run out of gears. Generally as I approach the bottom of the hill,

if I am pedaling at a cadence of 85-90 I will down shift to a lower gear so that

I hit the bottom of the hill at a cadence of 95-100 and as my cadence begins to

drop down towards 85 I will shift again. I will continue downshifting until I

am at my lowest gear ratio. At which point, if there is still more hill to climb

I will settle into a steady pace and pay close attention to my HR monitor and my

respiratory rate. The reason bicycles have so many gears is to allow the rider

to keep lowering the gears to maintain an optimum gear ratio.

RGMD

***********************

Giovanni wrote:

As I said before, I agree about the different usage of different fiber

types, and why it makes sense. However, the passage from Michele Ferrari

doesn't address where do we stop for an optimal rpm cadence. If I, you and

Ferrari e just followed the circular reasoning that faster pedaling was

better, than 100 rpm would be better than 90 rpm, 110 rpm would be better

than 100 rpm and so on, ad infinitum.

*********************************

Concerning question about cadence, it is generally accepted amongst the racing

cyclists that the optimum cadence for racing is between 80-100 with some finding

the 80-90 being most comfortable and other 90-100 better. I personally prefer

to maintain a cadence between 85-95.

The individual’s preferred cadence will depend on a lot of variables including

their state of training, cardiovascular fitness, type of race etc. Since

pedaling at a higher cadence puts more work on the ST fibers an individual who

has not spent enough time training the ST fibers may find this higher cadence

more difficult to sustain. HIgher cadence puts greater stress on cardiac

output, the pulmonary system and the vascular system. Again if an individual

finds these systems are being taxed they might find it easier to shift to a

cadence that will put greater stress on the FT fibers. This individual should

avoid long road races with long hill climbs. This individual might be better

suited to race criterium races which generally last less than 1 hour and are run

on relatively flat courses.

RGMD

*******************************

Giovanni wrote:

There must be a speed where the gain in using type I fibers is completely offset

by some other types of loss (sliding filament theory). And none of these authors

seem to address it.

***********************

The gain in using type I fibers is offset by it being less economical (with

regards to use of Oxygen) The heart has to pump more blood and Oxygen to the

muscles. There are a number of studies that address this very issue. I have put

some references below. Perhaps the most complete is #12.

To the racer with a high VO2 max and well developed type I fibers this is not an

issue especially since they can better utilize fat as the primary source of

energy. Glycogen is in short supply so any work that can be done utilize fat

saves glycogen.

The recreational cyclists out for 1-2 hr ride may not be as concerned about the

limited glycogen supply.

RGMD

************************

Giovanni wrote:

I postulate that even for the same athlete different power output have each

different optimal rpm.

*******************************

Perhaps you can clarify what you mean by that statement. On the bike maximum

power output can only be achieved at the higher cadences.

I think that it is safe to state that all other things being equal (terrain,

wind etc) speed of a bike will be proportional to power output.

Below are some calculations maximum speed attainable at various cadences. I

used the standard gear ratios (53/13) used on most bicycles. Competitive

cyclists can outfit their bikes with bigger gears..

53x13...@40 rpm...13.1 mph

53x13...@60 rpm...19.6mph

53x13...@80 rpm...26.2mph

53x13...@90 rpm...29.5mph

53x13..@...

53x13..@120 rpm...39.3mph'

175 mm cranks

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/gears/

Ralph Giarnella MD

Southington Ct USA

************************

References:

1)The most economical cadence increases with increasing workload,

Øivind Foss1 and Jostein Hallén1 Contact Information. Institute of Sports and

Biological Studies, Norwegian University of Sport and Physical Education,

Ullevål Stadion, PO Box 4014, 0806 Oslo, Norway. Accepted: 25 May 2004

Published online: 1 July 2004

Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the most economical

cadence in elite cyclists increases with increasing workload and to explore the

effect of cadence on performance. Six elite road cyclists performed submaximal

and maximal tests at four different cadences (60, 80, 100 and 120 rpm) on

separate days. Respiratory data was measured at 0, 50, 125, 200, 275 and 350 W

during the submaximal test and at the end of the maximal test. The maximal test

was carried out as an incremental test, conducted to reveal differences in

maximal oxygen uptake and time to exhaustion (short-term performance) between

cadences. The results showed that the lowest oxygen uptake, i.e. the best work

economy, shifted from 60 rpm at 0 W to 80 rpm at 350 W (P<0.05). No difference

was found in maximal oxygen uptake among cadences (P>0.05), while the best

performance was attained at the same cadence that elicited the best work economy

(80 rpm) at 350 W (P<0.05).

This study demonstrated that the most economical cadence increases with

increasing workload in elite cyclists. It was further shown that work economy

and performance are related during short efforts (~5 min) over a wide range of

cadences.

2)Cycling cadence alters exercise hemodynamics

Auteur(s) / Author(s)

GOTSHALL R. W. ; BAUER T. A. ; FAHMER S. L. ;

Affiliation(s) du ou des auteurs / Author(s) Affiliation(s)

Colorado State univ., dep. exercise sport sci., Fort CO 80523,

ETATS-UNIS

Heart rate, stroke volume, cardiac output and blood pressure were increased, and

vascular resistance decreased, with increased cadence.

Cardiac output increased (34%)in excess of the increase in oxygen uptake (15%)

as shown by the decrease (-14.5%) in the arterial-venous oxygen difference

occurring with increasing cadence. Apparently, even though the workload was

constant, the increase in pedal cadence resulted in a more effective

skeletal-muscle pump which increased muscle blood flow and venous retum

3) Cycling Cadence and Pedaling Economy

by Ken Mierke on September 12, 2005 in Bike

Spinning at higher cadences reduces the watts-per-pedal-stroke, a measure of the

force required to produce a given wattage. This makes the workload more

tolerable for the muscles. Most experts believe that this is because fewer

fast-twitch muscle fibers must be recruited to create the high torque levels

required at low cadence. Pedaling with a too-low cadence increases reliance on

fast twitch fibers, causing premature lactate accumulation.

4) Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise:

APPLIED SCIENCES: Biodynamics: PDF Only

Effect of cadence on the economy of uphill cycling

SWAIN, DAVID P.; WILCOX, JONATHAN P.

We conclude that uphill cycling is more economical at a high versus a low

cadence.

5) Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise:

September 1997 - Volume 29 - Issue 9 - pp 1225-1232

Applied Sciences: Biodynamics

Effect of cycling experience, aerobic power, and power output on preferred and

most economical cycling cadences

MARSH, ANTHONY P.; MARTIN, PHILIP E.

The preferred cadences (PC) of all groups were significantly higher than their

respective most economical cadences at all power outputs. Changes in power

output had little effect on the most economical cadence, which was between 53.3

and 59.9 rpm, in all groups. It was concluded that cycling experience and

minimization of aerobic demand are not critical determinants of PC in

well-trained individuals. It was speculated that less-trained noncyclists, who

cycled at a higher percentage of˙VO2max, may have selected lower PC to reduce

aerobic demand.

6)Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise:

June 2004 - Volume 36 - Issue 6 - pp 1048-1054

APPLIED SCIENCES: Physical Fitness and Performance

In Professional Road Cyclists, Low Pedaling Cadences Are Less Efficient

LUCIA, ALEJANDRO; SAN JUAN, ALEJANDRO F.; MONTILLA, MANUEL; CAÑETE, SILVIA;

SANTALLA, ALFREDO; EARNEST, CONRAD; PÉREZ, MARGARITA

to determine the effects of changes in pedaling frequency on the gross

efficiency (GE) and other physiological variables (oxygen uptake (V̇O2), HR,

lactate, pH, ventilation, motor unit recruitment estimated by EMG) of

professional cyclists while generating high power outputs (PO).

Conclusions: In professional road cyclists riding at high Power output,

GE/economy improves at increasing pedaling cadences.

7)Muscle recruitment pattern in cycling: a review

Physical Therapy in Sport, Volume 6, Issue 2, Pages 89-96

R.So, J.Ng, G.Ng

There is a unique cadence that minimizes the muscle activation level at a

specific level of power output. This cadence will increase as the power output

increases.

8)Muscle fiber type effects on energetically optimal cadences in cycling

Journal of Biomechanics, Volume 39, Issue 8, Pages 1472-1479

B. Umberger, K. Gerritsen, P.

Abstract

Fast-twitch (FT) and slow-twitch (ST) muscle fibers vary in their mechanical and

energetic properties, and it has been suggested that muscle fiber type

distribution influences energy expenditure and the energetically optimal cadence

during pedaling. However, it is challenging to experimentally isolate the

effects of muscle fiber type on pedaling energetics. In the present study, a

modeling and computer simulation approach was used to test the dependence of

muscle energy expenditure on pedaling rate during submaximal cycling.

Simulations were generated using a musculoskeletal model at cadences from 40 to

120revmin−1, and the dynamic and energetic properties of the model muscles

were scaled to represent a range of muscle fiber types. Energy expenditure and

the energetically optimal cadence were found to be higher in a model with more

FT fibers than a model with more ST fibers, consistent with predictions from the

experimental literature. At the muscle

level, mechanical efficiency was lower in the model with a greater proportion

of FT fibers, but peaked at a higher cadence than in the ST model. Regardless of

fiber type distribution, mechanical efficiency was low at 40revmin−1, i

9) Cadence and performance in elite cyclists

Journal European Journal of Applied Physiology

Publisher Springer Berlin / Heidelberg

ISSN 1439-6319 (Print) 1439-6327 (Online)

Issue Volume 93, Number 4 / January, 2005

Øivind Foss1 and Jostein Hallén1 Contact Information

Institute of Sports and Biological Studies, Norwegian University of Sport

and Physical Education, Ullevål Stadion, PO Box 4014, 0806 Oslo, Norway

This study demonstrated that elite cyclists perform best at their most efficient

cadence despite the maximal energy turnover rate being larger at a higher

cadence.

10)In Professional Road Cyclists, Low Pedaling Cadences Are Less Efficient

LUCIA, A., A. F. SAN JUAN, M. MONTILLA, S. CAÑETE, A. SANTALLA, C. EARNEST, and

M. PÉREZ. In Professional Road Cyclists, Low Pedaling Cadences Are Less e

Purpose: To determine the effects of changes in pedaling frequency on the gross

efficiency (GE) and other physiological variables (oxygen uptake (V̇O2), HR,

lactate, pH, ventilation, motor unit recruitment estimated by EMG) of

professional cyclists while generating high power outputs (PO).

Conclusions: In professional road cyclists riding at high Power output,

GE/economy improves at increasing pedaling cadences.

11)Muscle recruitment pattern in cycling: a review

Physical Therapy in Sport, Volume 6, Issue 2, Pages 89-96

R.So, J.Ng, G.Ng

There is a unique cadence that minimizes the muscle activation level at a

specific level of power output. This cadence will increase as the power output

increases

12) Muscle recruitment patterns regulate physiological

responses during exercise of the same intensity

MICHAEL R. DESCHENES,1 WILLIAM J. KRAEMER,2 RAYMOND W. MCCOY,1

JEFF S. VOLEK,2 BENJAMIN M. TURNER,1 AND JOHN C. WEINLEIN1

Department of Kinesiology, The College of & , burg, Virginia

23187

and 2the Human Performance Laboratory, Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana

47306