On the importance of fit…

[KLizotte]

@jrenaut 18655 wrote:

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).

I would advise against trying to learn how to use clipless in such a crowded environment where you will be doing a lot of stopping and starting. I know I would go splat but then again you may be far more coordinated than I am.

I read an article somewhere (perhaps in the above?) that states a lot of people have one leg slightly longer than the other; also, most people lean a little to one side irrespective of whether their legs are two different lengths.

Isn’t fitting fun?! Argh.

[acc]

Somehow I managed to adjust to big girl clipless pedals.
I fell a lot. I never got hurt but it was humiliating.
It took a year for me to be comfortable in Look cleats. It took a week to get used to Crank Brothers.
Just do it. It’s worth it but it’s hard.
However, I always tried not to clip in both sides when I was in a lot of traffic or riding with a group until I was comfortable with the setup. I never want to put someone else in a precarious position because I’m inept.

ann

[jrenaut]

I rode to my LBS, and my knee was much better. That’s weird, because the ride in is downhill, home is uphill, so I’d expect to feel worse on the way home. I made an appointment with the shop owner for a fitting on Thursday, but I’m less sure it’s bike fit than I was before. Maybe I tweaked the knee playing flag football? Slept on it funny? I don’t know. I figure the fitting can’t hurt.

[SpokeGrenadeSR]

@jrenaut 18661 wrote:

I rode to my LBS, and my knee was much better. That’s weird, because the ride in is downhill, home is uphill, so I’d expect to feel worse on the way home. I made an appointment with the shop owner for a fitting on Thursday, but I’m less sure it’s bike fit than I was before. Maybe I tweaked the knee playing flag football? Slept on it funny? I don’t know. I figure the fitting can’t hurt.

yea, that’s a good move, i’m getting fitted before my xc trip despite my being pretty comfortable with fitting myself. as long as they know what they’re doing, things can only improve right?

[Arlingtonrider]

I’m one more voice in support of a good professional fitting. I had been off my bike for several weeks a couple of years ago because of Achilles tendinitis and knee issues, and although the fitting wasn’t inexpensive and took over two hours, it was worth every penny. All the problems went away and never came back.

[jrenaut]

My knee feels fine today. Go figure. I felt a little twinge here and there when I pushed down hard, but that was it. I still think the fitting will be worthwhile, but I’m no longer convinced the bike caused the issue. Maybe just aggravated it.

Also, thanks to everyone for the advice. One of the best parts of this forum/community is how helpful everyone is.

[Greenbelt]

I don’t know if this is good advice or not, but it seems to work for me…

I’ve noticed as I’ve started riding lots of miles commuting, on mostly flat roads, that I tend to get in a lazy groove perched on the saddle and letting my knees do all the the work. A couple years ago, when I was mostly riding on weekends and a much shorter commute to Metro, I would sprint a lot and try to race up hills, and was getting up out of my seat a lot and changing positions etc.

Now, I’m mostly cruising at a moderate pace, and it’s easy to get too comfy and forget to use all the muscles. So, I try to remind myself to pick up the pace for a while or stand up for a while in a harder gear, and then ease off and truly rest a while on my commute, then repeat, trying to use my whole legs and body to ride, not just sitting on the saddle letting my knees do everything. Sort of like interval training (at a much lower level) on the commute I guess. The variability seems to help keep the legs fresher at the end of the day I think.

[jrenaut]

Well, I solved my problem. It wasn’t fit, it wasn’t foot position – it was tight quads. I called my sister, a physical therapist, and she suggested that I try stretching my quads. They were really tight, so I stretched some more, and then went for a ride. No pain. I stretched before the 40 mile Five Boro ride yesterday, and my knee felt great.

So, next time you have knee pain, try stretching your quads first. It’s cheaper and easier than a fitting. And if it doesn’t work, you’re not out anything.

[Author]

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