What Is the Best Cycling Cadence? Why 90 RPM Isn’t a Magic Number

What Is the Best Cycling Cadence? Why 90 RPM Isn’t a Magic Number

If you have been cycling for a while, you have probably heard the same advice:

“Try to pedal at 90 RPM.”

But is 90 RPM really the perfect cycling cadence?

No.

There is no single cadence that is ideal for every cyclist, every terrain, every power output, or every type of race.

A better question is:

Can you produce the cadence the situation requires while maintaining power, breathing control, stability, and good pedaling technique?

That changes the entire conversation.

At Chávez Cycling, we don’t believe cadence should be treated as one number that a cyclist chases every day. Cadence is a trainable tool.

And different cadence ranges can be used for different purposes.

What Is Cycling Cadence?

Cadence is simply the number of complete pedal revolutions you make in one minute, measured in RPM — revolutions per minute.

But cadence alone tells us very little about how much work a cyclist is actually producing.

A cyclist can pedal at 110 RPM with very little resistance and produce modest power.

Another cyclist can pedal at 70 RPM against heavy resistance and produce substantial power.

That’s because cycling power comes from the relationship between how much rotational force—or torque—you apply and how quickly the cranks are rotating.

This is the first principle to understand:

Cadence is speed of rotation. Torque is rotational force. Power requires both.

And that relationship gives us several different tools we can train.

1. Low Cadence: Building Torque

Imagine climbing a steep hill in a large gear.

The pedals become heavier.

Your cadence falls.

Every pedal stroke requires considerably more force.

That is one reason structured low-cadence work can be useful.

In a controlled training environment, cyclists may deliberately perform intervals at lower cadence and higher pedal resistance to emphasize the ability to produce torque.

But low-cadence training isn’t about grinding every ride.

It is a specific training stimulus.

Good technique still matters.

The pelvis should remain controlled. The upper body shouldn’t be fighting unnecessarily against the bicycle. And resistance should be appropriate for the athlete and session.

We are teaching the legs:

Produce force while maintaining control.

2. Moderate Cadence: Sustainable Rhythm

For many cyclists, somewhere in a moderate cadence range becomes a comfortable place for sustained riding.

But this is where the famous 90 RPM rule gets misunderstood.

Ninety isn’t a biological switch where cycling suddenly becomes efficient.

Different riders naturally select different cadences depending on their physiology, experience, power output, terrain and fatigue.

A recreational cyclist, professional road racer and track pursuit rider don’t necessarily need the same cadence.

Even the same cyclist may appropriately use very different cadences during different portions of the same race.

Therefore, instead of asking:

“How do I always ride at 90 RPM?”

consider asking:

“How large is my usable cadence range?”

That’s a much more powerful question.

3. High Cadence: Teaching the Legs to Move Fast

Now we enter another training territory.

When resistance is controlled and cadence increases, the nervous system has to coordinate muscular contractions increasingly quickly.

High-cadence drills can therefore be useful for developing:

neuromuscular coordination, leg speed, pedaling control and the ability to change rhythm quickly.

But there is an important distinction.

Simply making your legs move as fast as possible isn’t necessarily productive high-cadence training.

If your hips begin bouncing, your upper body becomes unstable or your pedal stroke falls apart, additional RPM isn’t automatically an improvement.

The objective is:

Increase cadence without losing control.

Eventually, with consistent practice, something interesting can happen.

A cadence that once required concentration starts feeling normal.

That is adaptation.

4. The Missing Piece: High Cadence + Torque

This is where today’s lesson becomes especially interesting.

Imagine you’re already riding at high cadence.

Your legs are moving quickly and smoothly.

Now you need to accelerate.

Simply telling your legs to spin faster may work—to a point.

But acceleration requires additional power.

And additional power requires an appropriate increase in torque, cadence, or both.

So instead of destroying the fast pedal stroke by suddenly stomping on the pedals, a trained cyclist can learn to add useful force on top of an already-fast pedal stroke.

The sensation is very different from grinding a large gear.

The cadence remains fluid.

The hips remain controlled.

The pedal stroke stays coordinated.

But there is now more force behind those revolutions.

High Cadence + Controlled Torque = Powerful Acceleration

This has direct applications in racing.

From a 4,000-Meter Pursuit to a Final Sprint

Think about the final portion of a track pursuit.

After thousands of meters, fatigue is already present.

The cyclist isn’t beginning a sprint with completely fresh legs.

The challenge is to preserve speed and technique while asking the body for one final acceleration.

The same principle can appear during a points race, scratch race, criterium or road-race finish.

When the bell rings or the final sprint begins, simply spinning quickly isn’t enough.

And simply applying massive force isn’t enough either.

The cyclist needs to produce force at speed.

That’s why torque training and high-cadence training shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as opposing concepts.

They develop different pieces of the puzzle.

Eventually those pieces can meet:

Torque develops force.

Cadence develops rotational speed and coordination.

Training teaches the nervous system to control both.

Racing teaches you when to use them.

And when force can be added to an already-fluid, fast pedal stroke without destroying technique…

acceleration is born.

Why You Shouldn’t Train Maximum Cadence Every Day

This is extremely important.

Discovering that high cadence is useful does not mean every workout should become a high-cadence workout.

Training adaptations require different stimuli.

A well-designed program may contain recovery sessions, endurance work, torque intervals, high-cadence drills, threshold or sustained blocks, harder intervals, race-specific sessions and genuine recovery.

Each session has a purpose.

If a recovery ride becomes a competition against yesterday’s cadence, it is no longer accomplishing the same objective.

If a low-cadence torque interval becomes a 120 RPM interval because high cadence feels exciting, you’ve changed the stimulus.

And if every training day becomes hard, eventually the distinction between training and testing disappears.

Don’t turn an adaptation into a new number you have to chase.

Develop the ability.

Then use it when the situation requires it.

What Happens After Weeks and Months of Cadence Training?

This may be the most valuable lesson.

One workout doesn’t transform a cyclist.

Repetition does.

At first, high cadence may require tremendous concentration.

You consciously think:

Relax. Spin. Stay stable. Breathe.

Repeat appropriate training consistently for weeks and months and the nervous system can become increasingly familiar with the movement.

What once felt unusually fast can begin to feel controlled.

What required conscious thought can become increasingly automatic.

Then another layer can be developed: producing more force while preserving that fluidity.

This is why patience is one of the most underrated components of cycling training.

One workout creates a stimulus.
Repeated workouts create adaptation.
Months and years of intelligent consistency can build a different cyclist.

There is no shortcut for that process.

Don’t Copy Someone Else’s Cadence

If you watch a professional cyclist pedaling at 105 RPM, that doesn’t automatically mean you should ride at 105 RPM.

Their cadence is the product of years of training, physiology, equipment, event demands and personal preference.

The same applies to Chávez Cycling.

When we discuss high-cadence training, we are not prescribing one universal RPM for everyone.

The lesson is the training principle.

Develop a useful range of cadences.

Develop force.

Develop coordination.

Learn to breathe under load.

And gradually learn to combine those abilities.

Your appropriate numbers should come from your training history, fitness, technique and goals.

The Metrics That Help You Train Cadence Correctly

You don’t need a laboratory to begin understanding your cycling.

Several measurements can make structured training much more informative.

Cadence

A cadence sensor—or cadence measurement from compatible power meters and smart trainers—shows exactly how quickly you’re turning the cranks.

It allows you to distinguish between what feels fast and what actually happened.

Power

Power tells you how much cycling work you’re producing.

This becomes especially useful when comparing efforts.

Did your cadence increase while power remained constant?

Did you add power while maintaining cadence?

Did your power fall when cadence became excessively high?

Those observations teach you about your own engine.

Heart Rate

Heart rate provides another piece of the puzzle.

Two efforts producing similar power can create different cardiovascular responses.

Over time, combining heart rate with power, cadence and perceived exertion can help you understand how costly a particular effort is.

Breathing

And there is one measurement no electronic device should replace:

your breathing.

Pay attention to it.

Your breathing provides immediate information about how the effort is affecting you.

Numbers should support body awareness—not eliminate it.

Recommended Tools for Structured Cycling Training

This section contains space for affiliate links. Some links may earn Chávez Cycling a commission at no additional cost to you.

Smart Trainer

A quality smart trainer can provide controlled resistance and repeatable indoor workouts.

Recommended Smart Trainer: Wahoo KICKR V6

Best for: structured intervals, indoor training, controlled resistance and repeatable workouts.

Power Meter or Power Pedals

Power measurement allows you to see what happens when cadence and torque change.

For cyclists serious about structured training, it can be one of the most useful performance measurements available.

Recommended Power Meter / Power Pedals:
Dual-sided power meter pedals.

Best for: power-based training, outdoor/indoor comparison, pacing and performance analysis.

Heart-Rate Monitor

Power tells us what the bicycle is receiving.

Heart rate helps show how your cardiovascular system is responding.

Recommended Heart-Rate Monitor:
Heart Rate Monitor

Best for: monitoring cardiovascular response, endurance sessions, recovery and comparing internal versus external workload.

Cadence Sensor

If your current equipment doesn’t provide cadence, a simple cadence sensor can be an inexpensive way to begin structured cadence training.

Recommended Cadence Sensor:
Garmin Cadence Sensor 2

Best for: cyclists beginning cadence-specific training without a power meter.

Indoor Cycling Fan

Cooling isn’t a luxury during serious indoor training.

Heat accumulation can increase cardiovascular strain and make an otherwise controlled session considerably harder.

Recommended Indoor Cycling Fan:
Wahoo Kickr Headwind

Best for: indoor training, longer intervals and maintaining a more consistent training environment.

The Chávez Cycling Takeaway

Stop asking:

“What is the perfect cycling cadence?”

Start asking:

“Can I control my cadence across different demands while maintaining power, breathing and technique?”

That’s a skill worth developing.

Build torque.

Develop leg speed.

Improve coordination.

Respect recovery.

Learn your breathing.

Measure what matters.

And eventually learn to put force on top of speed without destroying fluidity.

Because cadence alone isn’t acceleration.

Torque alone isn’t acceleration.

The ability to coordinate force and speed is where acceleration begins.

And that ability isn’t downloaded overnight.

It is built.

One pedal stroke at a time.
One workout at a time.
One month at a time.

Presence. Precision. Patience.

Chávez Cycling — Build the engine. Trust the process.

Recommended Indoor Cycling Equipment

If you’re building your own indoor racing setup, I recommend investing in quality equipment that improves comfort, accuracy, and performance:

Smart Trainer
Heart Rate Monitor
Cycling Fan for cooling
Quality Bib Shorts
Cycling Shoes
Power Meter
Indoor Training Mat
Sweat Guard
Large TV or Monitor
Proper Hydration System
Energy Nutrition
Towels and ventilation

The right equipment doesn’t win races—but it helps you focus on what matters most: becoming a stronger cyclist.

Check our recommended Indoor Cycling setups:

Best Indoor Cycling Setup
Best Fans for Indoor Cycling
Best Smart Trainers for Home Training