On the importance of fit…

[Dirt]

Awesome post, sir. Thank you.

[MCL1981]

I know what you mean. I will adjust the seat up and down by like 1/8″ while out on a ride trying to get it right when it gets out of whack. Eventually it clicks and you’re like “ahhhh”.

[jrenaut]

I think I may have this problem, too, but I recently raised my seat. It was definitely too low before (And in fact it was seeing myself in a photo that Dirt took in the PA Ave cycletracks that brought home how low the seat was). Today my knee hurts. The seat may still be too low, though it seems a little strange that I would have increased pain when I got closer to where I should be. Last week was a pretty typical week mileage-wise. I took an extra ride pulling the trailer on Saturday, but missed a trailer ride during the week.

Anyway, are there any good guidelines for determining proper seat height? I’m going to stop at the LBS on my way home, but I was just wondering if there was anything in particular that I can watch out for.

[Greenbelt]

I found this perspective helpful. I’m sure there are many others out there…

http://www.rivbike.com/Articles.asp?ID=247
https://www.rivbike.com/kb_results.asp?cat=23

[jrenaut]

Their instructions on measuring for fit are a little horrifying.

[SpokeGrenadeSR]

line the crank arm up with the seat tube, put your heel on the pedal and raise or lower the seat until your leg is completely straight.

[KLizotte]

@jrenaut 18623 wrote:

Anyway, are there any good guidelines for determining proper seat height? I’m going to stop at the LBS on my way home, but I was just wondering if there was anything in particular that I can watch out for.

Be sure to move the seat fore or aft when you change the seat height. If you move the seat upwards, you will have to move the seat slightly forward to keep your knees over the spindles (or where you feel most comfortable) and vice versa. The reason for this is that the seat post is on an angle.

[jrenaut]

@KLizotte 18632 wrote:

Be sure to move the seat fore or aft when you change the seat height. If you move the seat upwards, you will have to move the seat slightly forward to keep your knees over the spindles (or where you feel most comfortable) and vice versa. The reason for this is that the seat post is on an angle.

Hmm, I wonder if this is my problem, then. Or part of it.

[jrenaut]

On the bright side, my knee doesn’t hurt anymore, which suggests that as soon as I get the fit right, I should be fine. I was worried about jeopardizing my ride coming up.

On the negative side, it means it’s definitely the bike causing the pain, which is always worrisome.

[KLizotte]

@jrenaut 18646 wrote:

On the bright side, my knee doesn’t hurt anymore, which suggests that as soon as I get the fit right, I should be fine. I was worried about jeopardizing my ride coming up.

On the negative side, it means it’s definitely the bike causing the pain, which is always worrisome.

Seems strange that it is only one knee and not both. You may have accidentially pulled a muscle in your knee; I imagine pulling a trailer does strange things when riding a bike. I know moving the saddle forward or back can make a huge difference. Be sure you didn’t raise the saddle so high that you are now rocking your hips when pedaling.

[SpokeGrenadeSR]

@KLizotte 18648 wrote:

Seems strange that it is only one knee and not both. You may have accidentially pulled a muscle in your knee; I imagine pulling a trailer does strange things when riding a bike. I know moving the saddle forward or back can make a huge difference. Be sure you didn’t raise the saddle so high that you are now rocking your hips when pedaling.

the one knee bit isnt that surprising actually because when the saddle is too high or too low the rider naturally dips one side of their body slightly to account for the height, so only one side is actually stretched out.

[jrenaut]

@KLizotte 18648 wrote:

Seems strange that it is only one knee and not both. You may have accidentially pulled a muscle in your knee; I imagine pulling a trailer does strange things when riding a bike. I know moving the saddle forward or back can make a huge difference. Be sure you didn’t raise the saddle so high that you are now rocking your hips when pedaling.

That’s true. I am curious why it’s only one knee and not the other. I do notice sometimes, especially when climbing, that I feel a little lopsided, like I push a little differently with one leg, if that makes sense.

[jrenaut]

@SpokeGrenadeSR 18649 wrote:

the one knee bit isnt that surprising actually because when the saddle is too high or too low the rider naturally dips one side of their body slightly to account for the height, so only one side is actually stretched out.

The only issue with that is that I only feel lopsided when I’m standing, so seat height shouldn’t make a difference. Maybe it’s two separate issues.

[SpokeGrenadeSR]

here’s some top-rated, expert advice about fit

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/11/knee-pain/
^#5 in this article is what i was referring to with the height bit. i dont know why you would feel it when your standing though, maybe thats residual soreness from your body being adjusted to the improper seated position

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/04/the-right-side-bias/
^deeper detail about the #5 segment in the previous link

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/

[jrenaut]

@SpokeGrenadeSR 18653 wrote:

here’s some top-rated, expert advice about fit

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/11/knee-pain/
^#5 in this article is what i was referring to with the height bit. i dont know why you would feel it when your standing though, maybe thats residual soreness from your body being adjusted to the improper seated position

Based on that article, I wonder if it might be foot position. I use toe-clips, and my right leg (the one with the knee pain) is the one I put down at lights and whatnot. It’s rare for me to take the left off the pedal during my commute, and when I do it’s always the first back in (at a stop, too) so more likely to be firmly in the clip.

I’ve been thinking about making the jump to real bike shoes/pedals, so maybe this is the time to do it (though the idea of riding NYC with 30,000 people while learning to use shoes with clips is a little daunting).

[Author]

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