CadenceStride rate · Step rate

Cadence counts steps per minute in running, or revolutions per minute in cycling. In running it is usually reported as total steps for both feet; in cycling most people hold somewhere between 80 and 100 rpm depending on terrain and preference.

It matters because at a fixed speed, cadence and stride length trade off. Very low running cadence tends to go with a long, over-reaching stride and a heavy heel strike well ahead of the body, which raises braking forces and loading through the knee. Modestly increasing cadence shortens the stride and moves contact closer to underneath you.

In practice the widely quoted '180 steps per minute' is a target that came from observing elite runners at race pace, not a universal optimum — cadence varies with height, speed and individual mechanics. The useful version of the advice is to nudge your own habitual cadence up by around five per cent if you over-stride, not to chase a number.