Of Cadence and Speed

My goodness, how time has flown! Is it November 20? It’s 87 days before TBRDM 2014. Whoa!

Coach Lit. Photo by Jehan T.

I wasn’t able to attend last Saturday’s Bull Session but I got word that Coach Lit talked about cadence. Cadence can be determined by running for one minute and then counting the number of times your right foot hits the ground and multiplying it by two. Coach said it should be in the range of 172-180 steps per minute (counting both feet).

If your cadence is not within that range, try to focus on your cadence next time you run. You can download a metronome app and set it anywhere from 172-180 beats per minute. Experiment until you find the cadence you are comfortable with within that range.

If you have trouble viewing the video, click here.

Last Monday I ran in the gym and I determined my cadence: 178 spm. Great! It made me happy until I noticed the runner beside me. Our feet landed at the same time, meaning he also had a 178 spm cadence. BUT he was running at a faster pace. How? I’ve been running for two years but I haven’t really improved on my speed. Honestly, I didn’t know how. I went home with that question in mind.

In the March-April 2013 issue of The Bull Runner magazine, Coach Andy Leuterio wrote:

SPEED (PACE)= Stride Rate X Stride Length

He said, “If you already have an optimal cadence in the 180 rpm range but aren’t getting any faster, perhaps it’s time you worked on increasing your Stride Length.”

Ah, so that was it. I have to maintain a quick cadence and change my stride length. But how do I do it?

Lynn Mattix, a Certified Personal Trainer and Natural Running Coach said, “The stride angle increases behind you in the form of hip extension and you also will have increased shoulder extension. The foot does not reach out in front. Although the initial ground contact may happen slightly in front of your body’s center of mass, the foot should be loading underneath you. So as you speed up your pace, hip extension increases, the stride angle opens, but the cadence or turnover remains the same.”

This video is a great reference: