Cycling Pedaling: Cadence, Resistance, and Optimizing Your Ride

Is it better to pedal faster or harder?

The optimal pedaling strategy—faster (higher cadence) or harder (higher resistance)—is not universally "better" but depends entirely on your specific fitness goals, current conditioning, and the type of training you aim to achieve.

Understanding the Mechanics: Cadence vs. Resistance

To truly understand whether pedaling faster or harder is more beneficial, we must first define these two critical components of cycling performance:

• Cadence (Pedaling Faster): This refers to your pedaling revolutions per minute (RPM). A higher cadence means you are spinning your legs more quickly, typically against lighter resistance.

  • Feel: Lighter, faster, less muscular strain per stroke, more reliance on cardiovascular system.
  • Emphasis: Cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance, neurological coordination, lower joint impact.

• Resistance (Pedaling Harder): This refers to the gear or load you are pushing against. Higher resistance means more force is required for each pedal stroke, typically resulting in a lower cadence.

  • Feel: Heavier, slower, significant muscular effort per stroke, more reliance on muscular strength.
  • Emphasis: Muscular strength, power, anaerobic capacity, potential for muscle hypertrophy.

The Physiology of Faster Pedaling (Higher Cadence)

Pedaling at a higher cadence, often between 80-100 RPM for road cyclists, offers distinct physiological advantages:

• Cardiovascular Benefits: Higher cadences primarily tax the aerobic system, improving cardiovascular endurance, VO2 max, and the efficiency of oxygen delivery to working muscles. This is excellent for building stamina and heart health.
• Muscular Endurance: By applying less force per pedal stroke but performing more strokes, muscles develop greater resistance to fatigue over prolonged periods. This trains the slow-twitch muscle fibers.
• Reduced Joint Stress: Lighter resistance and smoother, faster movements can reduce the sheer force placed on joints like the knees and hips, making it a more joint-friendly option, especially for recovery rides or individuals with joint concerns.
• Improved Neuromuscular Coordination: Rapid, rhythmic pedaling enhances the communication between your brain and muscles, improving pedaling efficiency and fluidity.
• Lower Perceived Exertion (for the same power): Often, maintaining a given power output at a higher cadence feels less taxing on the muscles, though it might elevate heart rate more.

The Physiology of Harder Pedaling (Higher Resistance)

Pushing a heavier gear at a lower cadence (e.g., 50-70 RPM) shifts the physiological demands:

• Muscular Strength and Power: Higher resistance forces your muscles to generate more force with each stroke, leading to improvements in muscular strength, power output, and potentially muscle mass (hypertrophy), particularly in the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes.
• Anaerobic Capacity: Harder efforts quickly push you into your anaerobic zone, improving your body's ability to perform without immediate oxygen and clear metabolic byproducts like lactate. This is crucial for sprints, climbs, and high-intensity intervals.
• Bone Density: Weight-bearing activities, including higher resistance cycling, can contribute positively to bone mineral density.
• Increased Metabolic Demand: Higher resistance training can lead to a greater post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), contributing to a higher calorie burn after your workout.
• Potential for Joint Strain: The higher forces involved can place more stress on joints and connective tissues, increasing the risk of injury if proper form is not maintained or if done excessively without adequate conditioning.

Optimizing Your Ride: When to Pedal Faster or Harder

The "better" choice is determined by your specific training objectives:

• For Aerobic Endurance and Cardiovascular Fitness:

  • Focus: Higher cadence (85-100 RPM) with moderate resistance.
  • Why: Develops your heart and lungs, improves stamina, and is sustainable for longer durations. Ideal for long-distance cycling, general fitness, and active recovery.

• For Muscular Strength, Power, and Hypertrophy:

  • Focus: Higher resistance with lower cadence (50-70 RPM).
  • Why: Mimics strength training, builds stronger leg muscles, and enhances explosive power. Excellent for hill climbs, sprints, and building muscle mass. Incorporate structured intervals.

• For Weight Management and Calorie Burn:

  • Focus: A combination of both, often through High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).
  • Why: Alternating between high-cadence, moderate-resistance intervals and high-resistance, lower-cadence bursts maximizes calorie expenditure during and after the workout (EPOC).

• For Joint Health and Recovery:

  • Focus: Higher cadence (90+ RPM) with very light resistance.
  • Why: Minimizes impact and stress on joints while promoting blood flow for recovery. Ideal for warm-ups, cool-downs, and active recovery days.

• For Cycling Performance (e.g., Racing):

  • Focus: A varied approach, training both ends of the spectrum.
  • Why: Successful cyclists need to efficiently produce power across a range of cadences to handle various terrains (climbs, flats, sprints). Often, a "sweet spot" cadence (e.g., 85-95 RPM) is found for sustained efforts, but the ability to push high resistance at lower cadences is vital for power bursts.

The Concept of Power Output

Ultimately, cycling performance is about power output, measured in watts. Power is the product of force (resistance) and velocity (cadence).

• Power = Force x Velocity (or Resistance x Cadence)

This equation highlights that the same power output can be achieved in different ways:

• High force (harder pedaling) at a low velocity.
• Low force (easier pedaling) at a high velocity.

Elite cyclists often find their most efficient power production at a specific cadence range, which balances muscular effort with cardiovascular demand. Training across a range of cadences and resistances allows you to improve your power production across various scenarios.

Finding Your Sweet Spot

There is no single "correct" cadence or resistance for everyone. Your ideal pedaling strategy will evolve with your fitness, goals, and even the type of bike and terrain.

• Listen to Your Body: Pay attention to how your muscles and cardiovascular system respond. Are you feeling undue joint pain? Are your muscles burning excessively, or is your heart rate too low for your goal?
• Experiment: Vary your cadence and resistance within your workouts. Try intervals where you focus on high RPMs, and others where you focus on heavy pushing.
• Structured Training: Incorporate different types of rides into your weekly routine:
  • Endurance rides: Moderate resistance, higher cadence.
  • Strength intervals: High resistance, lower cadence.
  • Sprint intervals: Max effort, often a mix of high force and high speed.

Conclusion

The question of whether to pedal faster or harder is not an "either/or" but rather a "when and why." Both high cadence and high resistance pedaling offer unique physiological benefits that contribute to overall fitness and cycling performance. An expert approach involves understanding these benefits and strategically incorporating both modalities into your training regimen to achieve a well-rounded, adaptable, and robust physique, capable of handling diverse demands.