What is a good running form score?
A good running form score in Caden is a Total score out of 100 with a label such as Good, meaning most of your seven graded segments sit close to their coaching range, with foot landing usually the one that moves the number most.
How the score is built
Caden grades seven segments from a side view: where your foot lands, knee bend on landing, knee bend while landed, bounce, knee bend at push-off, upper body lean and head position. Each gets its own score based on how far it sits from a coaching range. The Total score is a weighted average, with foot landing counting for more than the others, because landing reach affects load and efficiency more than any single joint angle.
So a middling total can mean seven middling segments, or five green ones and two red ones. Look at the segments, not just the number.
What a good score looks like
The result screen shows the Total score next to a label such as Good. A higher score with a strong label means your stride sits close to what a coach would leave alone, with little to change. A lower score means one or more segments sit outside their coaching range, and Caden names which ones on the result screen, usually foot landing or head position for most recreational runners. Caden does not publish a fixed cutoff for each label. Treat the label as a quick read and the seven segments as the detail underneath it.
A low total is common in new runners and in people coming back from a break. It is not a verdict. It is a starting point, and a block of drills on the lowest segment tends to make the biggest visible change.
Why the score only compares like with like
A treadmill clip usually shows a shorter stride than the road, and a fast clip shows different lean and knee bend than an easy one. Caden only draws trends between runs filmed the same way: same view, same running direction, same analysis version. A 68 on the treadmill and a 75 on the road are not comparable and were never meant to be.
Pace matters too. Film your baseline and your re-check at the same easy pace.
What the score is not
It is not a fitness score, a speed prediction or an injury risk number. A high score does not mean you will not get hurt, and a low one does not mean you will. It says how your stride looks against a coaching range on the day you filmed.
How to check it with Caden
- Tap Run a new analysis and film 3 to 10 seconds from the side.
- On the results screen, read the Total score and its label.
- Tap the lowest segment to read what was measured and the cue.
- Open Stats after your next few runs. The trend only draws between runs filmed the same way.
FAQ
Can I get a 100 form score?
In theory. In practice most well-coached runners sit close to the top without reaching it, because the ranges leave room for individual differences in height, leg length and pace.
Why did my score drop when I ran faster?
Faster running changes lean, knee bend and cadence. Compare clips at the same pace. Caden lists the pace-related metrics on each result so you can see what moved.
Is a form score the same as a running economy score?
No. Running economy is measured in a lab from oxygen use. A form score is a 2D visual measure of the stride. Better form often improves economy, but the score does not measure it.
