You can be putting out exactly the power you planned, riding at the right heart rate and feeling like the bike is going perfectly, only to discover five minutes into the run that your legs have other ideas.
Sometimes the problem isn't your fitness. Its how you produced that power. One of the simplest variables you can change on the bike is cadence. Are you pushing a relatively big gear at 70–75 RPM, or spinning a little more freely at 90 RPM?
Both can produce the same speed and power, but they don't necessarily feel the same, and they don't necessarily leave your legs in the same condition for the run.
That matters much more in a triathlon than it does in a standalone cycling event.
Cycling cadence is simply how many times your cranks complete a full revolution in one minute. It's measured in revolutions per minute, or RPM.
So if your bike computer shows 90 RPM, your pedals are completing 90 full revolutions every minute.
Cadence is influenced by your gearing, terrain, speed, fitness, and riding style. Change into a harder gear and, assuming everything else stays the same, your cadence will drop. Shift into an easier gear, and your cadence will rise.
The important point is that cadence isn't the same thing as power. You can produce 200 watts at 70 RPM, 80 RPM, or 95 RPM. What changes is how your body produces that power.
For many cyclists, 80–95 RPM is a useful general range, with around 85–95 RPM being a sensible starting point for many triathletes.
That doesn't mean you should force yourself to ride at exactly 90 RPM for every kilometre of every race.
Your optimal cadence is individual. It can change according to the course, gradient, intensity, fatigue, and whether you are riding in a draft-legal or non-drafting event.
USA Triathlon's coaching guidance gives 90–95 RPM as a practical race range for non-draft racing and 95–110 RPM for draft-legal racing.
The keyword is range. If you naturally ride comfortably at 84 RPM (or mid-70s like me) and suddenly try to hold 100 RPM because somebody told you that higher cadence is better, you might make the bike harder than it already is.
This is where cadence becomes particularly interesting. A lower cadence generally means more force is required from the muscles with each pedal stroke.
A higher cadence reduces the force required per stroke but increases the number of contractions and can increase cardiovascular demand.
For a cyclist who only has to ride, that's one equation. For a triathlete who has to run immediately afterward, there is another consideration: “What condition are your legs going to be in when you reach T2?”
That is why I don't look at cadence in isolation. I look at it as part of the total cost of the bike.
A slightly faster cadence can help you avoid grinding a big gear for long periods, particularly when you're tired. The objective isn't to spin your legs unnecessarily fast. It is to find a cadence that produces the required power without creating unnecessary muscular fatigue.
Research in trained triathletes hasn't shown that one cadence universally produces a faster subsequent run. Studies comparing cadences around 72, 85, and 97 RPM found no significant difference in overall 10 km run performance, although running velocity in the first 500 metres was higher after the preferred and faster cadence conditions than after the slow cadence.
That's an important distinction: higher isn't automatically better.
|
Cadence |
How it usually feels |
Main load |
Best used for |
|
Under 70 RPM |
Grinding, heavy |
Muscular |
Short, steep climbs or strength work |
|
70-80 RPM |
Powerful, deliberate |
More muscular |
Climbing or controlled efforts |
|
80-90 RPM |
Smooth and balanced |
Mixed |
General riding and racing |
|
90-100 RPM |
Light, quick |
More cardiovascular |
Flat racing and race-specific work |
|
Over 100 RPM |
Very quick |
Cardiovascular |
Short drills and specific race situations |
Think of the table as a guide rather than a set of rules. There are times when riding at 75 RPM is exactly the right decision. Likewise, there are situations where 95 RPM makes more sense.
The mistake is treating cadence as a target you must maintain regardless of what the road, your power, or your body is telling you.
Climbing is where many triathletes naturally see cadence drop. That's not necessarily a problem.
On a steep climb, maintaining your usual flat-road cadence may require an impractical gear or a major increase in cardio effort. Allowing cadence to drop slightly while keeping the effort controlled can be perfectly sensible.
The bigger issue is spending long periods grinding at a very low cadence simply because you're reluctant to shift.
The same principle applies when you're riding in the aero position. If you're trying to maintain a race cadence but don't have the gearing to support it, you can end up constantly changing position or producing unnecessary surges.
Good gearing should allow you to stay reasonably smooth and stable in the aero position. And because aerodynamics matter enormously in triathlon, your bike setup and clothing should allow you to maintain that position comfortably.
If you're reviewing your race setup, the SLS3 tri suit collection is a useful place to start when considering race-day apparel designed for the demands of the bike and run.
The easiest option is a bike computer (I use a Garmin Edge 530) paired with a cadence sensor or a power meter that records cadence.
Many smart trainers also provide cadence data, which makes indoor training particularly useful for learning what different cadences actually feel like.
If you don't have a sensor, you can manually count pedal revolutions for 15 seconds and multiply the number by four. It isn't as convenient, but it gives you a reasonable estimate.
If you're already using heart rate or power to control your training, cadence adds another useful layer rather than replacing those metrics. For a broader explanation of how these measurements work together, see Triathlon Heart Rate Training.
Don't try to increase your cadence by 10 or 15 RPM overnight. Your legs need time to become comfortable producing power at a different rhythm, particularly if you've spent years naturally riding a big gear. Instead, introduce short periods of higher cadence during otherwise normal rides.
Ride easily and gradually increase cadence over 20–30 seconds without increasing power significantly. Back off, recover, and repeat 5–8 times. The objective is control, not seeing how fast you can make the pedals turn.
After warming up, ride five minutes at your normal cadence, then complete five x two mins around 5–10 RPM higher than normal, with two mins easy between efforts.
Try two minutes at 80 RPM, two at 85, two at 90, two at 95, and two at 100. Then work your way back down. This teaches you to recognise the difference between cadence changes rather than simply staring at the number on your computer. (Use a flat route or a smart trainer)
During a steady tempo session, choose a cadence and try to hold it while keeping power and effort controlled. If you regularly use structured intensity, your Sweet Spot Training sessions can be a good place to experiment with cadence without turning the entire ride into a cadence workout.
During some longer rides, finish the final 10 min at the cadence you expect to use during your race. Then get off the bike and run easily for 5–10 min. This is where cadence becomes useful rather than theoretical. You're learning what that rhythm feels like when you're already carrying fatigue.
Ultimately, this is the test. A cadence that looks perfect on your bike computer is of limited value if it leaves you struggling through the first kilometre of the run.
That's why I like using brick workouts for triathletes when experimenting with cadence. Change one variable, keep the rest of the session consistent, and pay attention to how the run feels.
Don't just look at your run pace. Notice your stride, breathing, RPE, and how quickly you settle into your normal rhythm. Research has shown that the bike itself can impair subsequent running performance, while higher cycling RPE is associated with poorer running economy after the bike.
Remember, cadence is only one part of that equation, but it's a useful one because it gives you another way to manage the muscular cost of the bike.
There is no magic optimal cycling cadence that every triathlete should use.
For most athletes, 80–95 RPM is a sensible general range, with many triathletes finding somewhere around 85–95 RPM effective for steady racing. From there, experiment.
The goal isn't to pedal as fast as possible. It is to find the cadence that allows you to produce the power you need, stay controlled, and arrive at T2 with enough legs left to run.
The best triathlon cadence is not the one that makes your bike split look good. It's the one that helps make your entire race better.
