Running Cadence: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Improve Yours Without Getting Injured

Ever looked at your watch after a run and wondered what that "cadence" number actually means, and whether yours is any good?

You're not alone. Cadence is one of the most searched (and most misunderstood) numbers in running. And here's why it deserves your attention: it's one of the simplest things you can change about your running form, and getting it right can lower your injury risk AND make running feel easier.

That's not a bad return for counting your steps.

So let's break it down properly: what running cadence is, what a good cadence actually looks like, how to measure yours in under a minute, and how to improve it without picking up a niggle along the way.

What Is Running Cadence?

Running cadence is simply the number of steps you take per minute (spm) while running. If you counted every single time either foot hit the ground for one minute of running, that number would be your cadence.

Most GPS watches (Garmin, Coros, Apple Watch, Polar) track it automatically, so there's a good chance you already have months of cadence data sitting in your app right now. We'll show you how to check it, and what to do with it, further down.

What Is a Good Running Cadence?

For most runners, a cadence somewhere in the region of 170-180 steps per minute is a healthy, efficient place to be. Elite runners often sit at 180+, and importantly, they stay up there even on their easy days. High cadence isn't a side effect of running fast; it's a feature of running well.

Here's the thing though: there is no single magic number. Your ideal cadence depends on your height, leg length, speed and running history. A 6'4" runner and a 5'2" runner shouldn't be chasing identical numbers.

The pattern we care about is this: most recreational runners naturally settle around 150-165 spm, and that lower cadence usually comes packaged with something that genuinely does raise injury risk. It's called overstriding.

Why a Low Cadence Can Lead to Running Injuries

When your cadence is low, your steps are long. And to take long steps, your foot has to land way out in front of your body, usually heel-first, with your shin angled back towards you. That's overstriding, and it causes two problems:

1. It puts the brakes on. Landing out in front of your centre of mass means every single step briefly pushes back against the direction you're travelling. You're literally braking a little with each stride, then using extra energy to get going again. That's why overstriding makes running feel harder than it needs to.

2. It turns up the impact. Overstriding increases what researchers call the vertical loading rate. In plain English, that's how hard and how fast the impact travels up your body when your foot hits the ground. Think of the difference between landing a small jump softly on the balls of your feet versus landing it stiff-legged on your heels. Same jump, very different jolt. Overstriding is the stiff-legged version, repeated roughly 160 times a minute, thousands of times per run.

That repeated jolt is a common thread behind many of the running injuries we see in clinic every week: shin splints (medial tibial stress syndrome), runner's knee, hip niggles and stress-related bone injuries.

When you lift your cadence, your feet naturally land closer to underneath your body, with your shin more vertical at contact. The braking force shrinks, the impact softens, and the load on each individual stride drops. Research has shown that increasing your step rate by even 5-10% meaningfully reduces the load going through the knees and hips.

Shorter, quicker, softer steps. That's the whole idea.

How to Measure Your Running Cadence

Option 1: Check your watch (30 seconds)

Open Garmin Connect, Coros, Strava or your watch's app and look at average cadence for your recent easy runs. One thing to check: some devices report strides per minute (one leg only) rather than steps per minute (both legs). If your number looks like 75-90, double it.

Option 2: The 60-second count (no tech needed)

1. Head out and settle into your normal easy pace, the pace you'd hold on your longest run

2. Start a 30-second timer

3. Count every time your right foot hits the ground

4. Multiply by 4 to get your steps per minute

5. Do it twice to make sure the numbers roughly agree

If you get something over 190 or under 140, chances are the counting went wonky. Run the test again.

What your number means

• 170-180+ means your cadence is in a healthy range and you're very unlikely to be a big overstrider. Carry on.

• 160-170 is reasonable, but there may be some easy wins here, especially if you've had recurring lower-leg injuries.

• Below 160 is worth working on. You're in the range where overstriding and higher impact are most likely, and a gradual cadence change could make a real difference to how your body copes with training.

How to Increase Your Running Cadence (The Safe Way)

Here's the golden rule before anything else: don't chase a 20 step jump overnight. Your tendons, calves and feet have adapted to your current style over years. Change the style suddenly and completely, and you don't prevent an injury, you just relocate it (classically, straight into the calves and Achilles).

Instead, aim for a 5-10% increase on your current number, built up gradually. If you're at 156 now, your first target is around 164-170, not 180.

Step 1: Get a beat in your ears

Download a free metronome app, or search Spotify for a running playlist at your target BPM (they exist for every cadence from 150 to 190). Set it to your current cadence +5% and try matching your foot strikes to the beat.

Fair warning: it will feel strange at first. Quicker, shorter steps feel "busy" when you're used to long and loping. Strange is fine. Strange is just your body meeting a new pattern. Painful is not fine, and there's more on that below.

Step 2: Add one minute per run

This is where most runners go wrong. They try the new cadence for a whole run on day one. Please don't. Instead:

• Run 1: one minute at the new cadence, rest of the run as normal

• Run 2: two separate minutes at the new cadence

• Run 3: three minutes, spread through the run

• ...and keep adding one minute each run

Over a few weeks, your shorter easy runs become entirely "new cadence" runs, and by then it won't feel new anymore. It'll just feel like how you run.

Step 3: Respect the plateau rule

If anything starts to ache during a run, after a run, or the next morning (commonly the calves or Achilles while they adapt), hold your current dose. Aching at 12 minutes? Stay at 12 minutes until the mornings are quiet again, then move to 13. That's not a setback; that's your body asking for a little more time at that level before the next step up. Plateaus are a completely normal part of changing your running form, and adaptation can take a couple of months. Consistency over time beats perfection in any one week, with cadence, same as with everything else in running.

Step 4: Re-test monthly

Once a month, do the 60-second count again (or check your watch average). Progress here is measured in small numbers. Gaining 4 or 5 spm and keeping it is a genuinely meaningful change.

Cadence Is One Piece of the Puzzle

Worth saying clearly: cadence is a brilliant lever, but it's not the whole machine. Injury-resistant running is built from several pieces working together: sensible training progression, strength work for the legs that actually absorb all that impact, enough recovery, and fuelling that supports the training you're doing. A perfect 178 spm won't protect you from ramping your mileage up 40% in a fortnight.

That's exactly why our online running coaching looks at the full picture (your running plan, your strength work, your recovery and your life around it) rather than just one metric. And if you're currently running with pain rather than trying to prevent it, that's a different conversation: our sports injury and physiotherapy team can assess what's actually going on before you start changing your form on top of an irritated tissue.

Running Cadence FAQs

Do I really need to hit 180 steps per minute? No. 180 is a famous benchmark, not a law. The evidence supports raising your cadence by 5-10% if you're a low-cadence overstrider, not forcing every runner to one universal number. Some runners are perfectly healthy and efficient at 172; very few are at 150.

Will increasing my cadence make me faster? Often, yes, indirectly. Reducing the braking effect of overstriding improves your running economy, meaning the same pace costs you less energy. Less cost per mile is more pace to spend, especially late in races.

Does cadence change with pace? It drifts up slightly as you run faster, but not by much in well-practised runners. If your cadence is 155 on easy runs and 175 in a 5K, that gap itself is a clue that your easy-run form has room to improve.

My calves are sore since I raised my cadence. Is that normal? Mild, short-lived muscle soreness while your calves adapt to quicker steps is common. Soreness that lingers into the next day's runs, or anything sharp in the Achilles, means you've moved too fast. Drop back to your last comfortable dose and hold it there. If it doesn't settle, get it assessed rather than pushing through.

What's the best cadence for beginner runners? Beginners shouldn't obsess over a number at all in their first months. Build the habit first. Once you're running consistently, measure your cadence, and only work on it if you're well below 160 or dealing with recurring impact-related niggles.

Ready to Run Stronger?

Your cadence is 60 seconds away from being measured, so that's your homework for your next easy run. Count it, note it, and you'll know exactly which camp you're in.

And if you want more than a number (a running plan built around your life, your goals and your body, with a coach checking in on you every single week), that's what the TAP Running Pathway is for. From your first 5K to marathon day, we'll get you to the start line strong, and to the finish line smiling.

Therapy and Performance Clinic: running coaching, physiotherapy and sports therapy in Warwick, Stratford-upon-Avon and online across the UK.