Many people perform a home bike fit and I am sure a lot of them get it right. But there is a common mistake that many make. In this brief article I’ll explain what it is and how to treat it.
A painful home bike fit
As a bike fitter, I hear a familiar complaint from cyclists: pain. Their pain is maybe in their shoulders, knees, hips, hands, neck, bottom. In fact, their pain can occur anywhere that their riding position is placing them under strain. It may be dull and nagging, or it could build to a point where the only way to get relief is to stop cycling. They love riding and want to do more but pain is holding them back.
I’m not going to suggest that all cycling related pain has the same root cause, but much of it does. And what is the cause? The riding position is excessive.
Excessive positions
I think it must be the sought after ‘pro’ look that encourages people to go to extremes. This could be a saddle that is too high, or a reach to the bars that is too long and/or too low.
Saddles can suffer from being too far forward or too far back. And handlebars can be too narrow or too wide. But to be clear, I’m not talking about the difference of a centimetre here or there. These are excessive positions where the measurements need adjusting by a lot.
If you are a culprit of this doctrine of ‘more is better’ it isn’t entirely driven by vanity. Looking ‘pro’ has its attractions but you probably just want to be faster, more powerful and more aero. And to do that you need to be lower, narrower and longer – like a pro. Right? Well, to a degree, but you then reach a tipping point where performance starts to suffer. Power output falls off, drag may increase, and comfort suffers.
Softening the bike fit
You are never going to ride optimally if you are in pain. Granted, time trial positions are about being aero and won’t be as comfortable as a road endurance position. However, acute pain in a time trial position is going to inhibit your power output and could cause physical injury.
Whatever your type of riding, it is important to have a bike fit that is within your physical limits. This is why many of my fits involve ‘softening’ the position. That is, lowering the saddle height, raising the bars and reducing the reach. And what happens when I do this? Shoulders, knees, hips, hands, neck, bottom etc. are all much more comfortable with the additional benefit that the bike is easier to pedal.
Women’s bikes are often wrongly sized
I see many women struggling with bike fit issues; one of the most common being a bike that is just too big. Sometimes this is down to poor design or from riding a man’s bike that isn’t suited to their anatomy. But it can also be the fault of bike shops trying to shift stock and only roughly sizing the customer. Obviously, this can also happen to men, but smaller women more often fall prey to shoddy sales advice.
If you find yourself in this situation, what do you do? Argue with the shop for an exchange, which can be difficult if you’ve had the machine for some time? Reluctantly sell a bike you love, lose money, and then buy a better fitting one? Or try to make the current bike fit?
Of course, I explain the pros and cons to the customer and let them decide. In most cases, they choose to have the existing bike fitted the best it can be. This still involves expense as the bars, stem and seat post might need to be changed. And that’s not always ideal as these components can affect the bike’s handling. But it is a lot less expensive than selling and buying again.
See your bike fit as a project
I accept that in making improvements to comfort, aerodynamics may be compromised. Furthermore, people with physical limitations such as poor flexibility, muscle imbalances or physical injury could be far from their most effective riding position were they not to have these constraints. This is why it is important to fit the rider I have in front of me and not to some ideal position to which they aspire. This is where I believe many people make a big mistake in their home bike fit.
You should see a bike fit as something of a project. That is, as with every other aspect of your performance, it is something to be worked at. If you aren’t particularly aero now you could be in future with appropriate strength and flexibility training. Just accept the way you currently are and work on a plan to improve. Just as a novice can’t jump straight into 30 hours of training per week you can’t immediately expect to sit long and low on a bike.
The role of physical training in bike fit
In my experience, all cyclists benefit from some form of strength and flexibility training. Unfortunately, when you ride your bike you are not challenged to move in a full range of motion. This can lead to poor flexibility and lack of strength in certain muscles. You may find the problem is compounded by your work. If you spend a lot of time at a desk your hip flexors may weaken, you may develop low back pain and/or pain and tension in your shoulders and neck.
Strength and flexibility training will not only amend your posture and help you achieve a more aerodynamic position it can also help to improve your riding performance and prevent injury. In older cyclists I believe it is absolutely necessary and studies support the role of both aerobic and strength training in improving health outcomes.
Key points to remember when doing a home bike fit
These are my top pieces of advice when choosing a bike and performing a home bike fit:
- When you purchase a bike be aware that some shops are so eager to make a sale they will sell you the wrong size. This is true of bikes in less common sizes, end of season stock, or very expensive top-end stock which may affect the shop’s cashflow.
- You should never buy a bike from a height chart alone – these are very rough guides. At the very least you need to have a test ride. If you are still in doubt, see a bike fitter. Most should be able to pre-fit you on a jig and check the dimensions against manufacturers’ geometry charts.
- Avoid extreme riding positions that overstretch inflexible joints or that put strain on weak muscles
- Treat your bike fit the same way as your physical training. Take time to systematically work towards your bike fit goals.
- Improve your strength and flexibility with a targeted off-bike training program. This will help you to achieve a more effective riding position and could reduce your risk of injury.
- If you have any concerns about any aspect of your bike fit and comfort, see a qualified bike fitter for advice.
If you are interested in my bike fitting services please contact me.
