What is your cadence on your long runs? (Read 1019 times)

When I started training for my first marathon, I knew nothing about carbo loading or the 180 cadence thing. I also started my training on a treadmill. I used to run 10 miles on a treadmill on a Friday night. Fun stuff. Nowadays, my cadence is around 184 steps per minute. It wasn't like that when I first started. I noticed that as I got tired, my stride shortened but since I was on the treadmill, I had to increase my cadence in order to keep up with the belt. I happened upon the 180 thing on my own. Maybe you too will do that as you up your mileage.

I also started my training on a treadmill. I noticed that as I got tired, my stride shortened but since I was on the treadmill, I had to increase my cadence in order to keep up

Good point!

Scout - where are you?

180 bpm...but with shorter strides so you go 1.5 minutes slower than 10k pace.

I try to synchronize it with my heart rate. It's tough to do because when I am sitting down, my step cadence slows down more than my heart rate does. But it just takes practice.

Daniels stated that people should consider running at a higher cadence to try to avoid injuries. Speed was not his primary thought. There is no magic number. Even the elites run at varying cadences. Additionally, all but a few beginner runners are within 10% of 180. If we are talking about speed, the biggest determinant is force applied to the ground. The greater the force, the longer the stride and the faster the turnover. If you want to improve your turnover, RUN MORE. If you want to specifically work on your stride mechanics (length and rate), run up and down hills. Going up, focus on long strides. Going down, focus on a higher cadence. (Just for Globule, Science Crap Here) As for your cadence, it will naturally vary to some degree depending on your speed. If you're out for a leisurely jog, it will be slower than if you were running the mile all out.

Daniels stated that people should consider running at a higher cadence to try to avoid injuries. Speed was not his primary thought.

Exactly. With speed remaining constant, the slower your stride rate the longer you spend in the air, which means the greater the impact forces with each foot strike. Since most running injuries are the result of repetitive impact forces, it's not surprising most experienced runners tend to have a faster turnover than newbies. It's survival of the fittest. While Daniels doesn't suggest we all run with metronomes, he does say that if you notice your stride rate is sinificantly slower than 180, you may want to work on shorter, lighter strides. He says imagine you're running on a field of eggs and don't want to break any. Imagine yourself flowing over the ground, not bouncing up and down on top of it. To me this is the only kind of "cadence" work any of us should do. Sometimes when I'm feeling beat up I practice what I call "stealth mode." This is where, on an easy run, I try to run while making no sound at all...I did the 2nd half of my run this morning in stealth mode as it turns out. I can never get totally silent but I can come very close. To do this you need to take short quick strides. If you practice this once in a while you'll likely find that your stride rate increases over time on it's own. The amazing thing about a stealth mode run is I always feel much better afterward than before...if my knees are feeling at all banged up and runners knee creeping in, one stealth mode run is generally all it takes for them to feel perfect again at this point.