General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Bike cadence, trainer vs road Rss Feed  
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2015-11-23 7:08 PM

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Master
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Overland Park, KS
Subject: Bike cadence, trainer vs road
I tried searching the topic already but couldn't find anything.

On my outdoor ride today my cadence had an average of 91 (34 miles, about 1600 feet of climbing). Max. cadence was 117. On my trainer the last few times my average was in the 71-72 range. I did a 20' test to establish CP/FTP and during that test my average cadence was around 80, max was 93.

So I'm seeing a pretty big difference in cadence between the road and trainer.

This is my 3rd winter using the trainer (KK Road Machine) and so far I haven't had any issues with regards to outdoor riding after each of those two winters.

Should I be trying to ride at a higher cadence on the trainier?
Is this even an area of concern?

Both my trainer rides and outdoor rides are comfortable and that's the way I've been riding but now since I have a gadget I'm wondering if I'm giving something up by not riding at a higher cadence on the trainer.

Any input and/or reommendations would be appreciated.



2015-11-24 7:02 AM
in reply to: reecealan

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Not a Coach
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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road

Originally posted by reecealanIs this even an area of concern?

Nope.

2015-11-24 7:51 AM
in reply to: 0

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Master
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Washington, DC Metro
Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road

My trainer rides are constantly at a lower cadence than my real rides.  ~ low 80s for the trainer and ~low 90s for the road.

Specific drills on the trainer to develop proper peddling mechanics are much easier (i.e. spinning drills, one-leg drills, etc.) but all in all I wouldn't worry about the difference between the two for "normal" trainer sessions.



Edited by Sous 2015-11-24 7:52 AM
2015-11-24 1:17 PM
in reply to: Sous

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Pro
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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road

On the trainer I ride at about 80 and on the road 90-95.  One thing I have noticed though since I started using a heart rate monitor is that on the trainer I'm at about 135 bpm while on the road I'm about 155 bpm.  When I am monitoring my actual speed on the road I think I just naturally work harder and thus the higher rpm's.  I find it too easy to find a comfortably hard RPE on the trainer when for the amount of time I spend on the trainer I should be at a higher intensity.

2015-11-24 11:38 PM
in reply to: reecealan

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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road
Interestingly enough I find the opposite.

Cruising the roads I might be at 80, where easy trainer ride I'm 90+

Concentrated efforts can be much higher, and my best 10 mile time trials tend to be an average of 100-110.
2015-11-25 4:14 PM
in reply to: #5153430

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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road
I'm the same, for a given RPE I can't hold nearly the same cadence on a trainer as I can on the road. I've been compensating by dropping gears until I hit my target, though I've always wondered if that's the right approach. I suppose I could also lower tension on the trainer?


2015-11-25 8:56 PM
in reply to: Fourteenkittens

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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road
What setting I have the trainer on makes no difference to my cadence, it just forces me to use a different gear to get a good power/cadence mix.

I have mine currently set to 8 ( out of 10 ) and on my second easiest gear it already puts me at about the top of my zone 2, with a 90-95 cadence.

That said, I have used the trainer specifically in the past to improve what used to be a low cadence with some spinervals sets that included cadence work, so high cadence comes naturally now on the trainer, and now the road too.
2015-11-26 6:08 AM
in reply to: reecealan

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Subject: RE: Bike cadence, trainer vs road
Originally posted by reecealan

I tried searching the topic already but couldn't find anything.

On my outdoor ride today my cadence had an average of 91 (34 miles, about 1600 feet of climbing). Max. cadence was 117. On my trainer the last few times my average was in the 71-72 range. I did a 20' test to establish CP/FTP and during that test my average cadence was around 80, max was 93.

So I'm seeing a pretty big difference in cadence between the road and trainer.

This is my 3rd winter using the trainer (KK Road Machine) and so far I haven't had any issues with regards to outdoor riding after each of those two winters.

Should I be trying to ride at a higher cadence on the trainier?
Is this even an area of concern?

Both my trainer rides and outdoor rides are comfortable and that's the way I've been riding but now since I have a gadget I'm wondering if I'm giving something up by not riding at a higher cadence on the trainer.

Any input and/or reommendations would be appreciated.




Reece, google around on "inertia" and trainers.
If you put the optional flywheel on your KK it would probably be more road like and your cadence would probably come up naturally.

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