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bike comfort questions
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 2014-12-09 6:00 PM |
 48  Los Angeles, California |  Subject: bike comfort questionsso stupidity finally took over and I did my first ironman distance tri this weekend (3 months after learning about such thing as a triathlon). however slow (don't have official time yet but somewhere between 14-15 hours) I'm still bursting with pride  I swam way better than I expected and ran ok without pushing myself too hard as the goal was just to cross the finish line before the cutoff. bike was a whole different story. I mostly focused on running and swimming these 3 months and almost completely ignored the bike. I had only about 6 rides in these 3 month and longest two were 40 miles. so I had no idea what I'm getting myself into with regards to the bike. even though extremely slow on the bike (averaging 13mph) it would be ok if not for my "derriere". about half way through the ride I couldn't find a comfortable position on the bike anymore. it progressed from slightly uncomfortable to reeeealy burning uncomfortable where I would not even go aero anymore for that one reason only. so my question is just how much does your body adapt to riding? I can't imagine growing that much of a cushion since it's not really the butt but rather sit bones and the crotch that are affected. I was wearing tri shorts and plenty of body glide and while not professionally fitted I felt very comfortable on the bike otherwise. bike is a 2007 r2000 all stock with fizik saddle. I'm a rather skinny guy so I don't know if that affects things. so my question is how do you make long distance riding more comfortable? never had biking shorts but from what I've read it looks like cushion is too much there for a tri. Is there a saddle that might work better for me? all the higher end saddles seem to be rather skinny so I don't know if switching one for another would help all that much. any other ideas? Thank you! Edited by woosh 2014-12-09 6:07 PM |
| 2014-12-09 7:01 PM in reply to: woosh |
Champion 10668   Tacoma, Washington | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions If you tried that with running, wouldn't you expect your feet to complain a bit? You don't "grow cushion", but you do get used to it. It takes some time. And building up much like you do running. Yes, finding a saddle that agrees with you, and getting your position dialed goes a long ways, but you've still got to put in the time. The good news is that it does get better. |
| 2014-12-09 11:13 PM in reply to: woosh |
| 119 Groton, New York | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Crazy bastard! But congrats on the finish! I wouldn't even think of doing an IM without first having done the distances in practice at least once. I've swam 2.4 in the pool a couple of times....I just ran my first marathon in October. Next summer I will hopefully do my first century ride, and even then, I still plan to get two years of half-IMs in before doing my first IM. ANYWAY....if you want to get better, I'd get yourself a professional fitting. It will cost ya a few hundred bucks but you will optimize your bike fit with your body. With that, I would also try out some different saddles. The Adamo saddles are highly touted. I changed my stock saddle to an Adamo Prologue and it has been much much better, though it has taken some time to get used to it. Definitely worth the cash. Good luck! |
| 2014-12-10 6:27 AM in reply to: keqwow |
| 48 Los Angeles, California | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions alright, so I guess my next questions would be: 1) how long would it take the body to adjust? as in how much time (or distance) should pass so that I know the only improvement can come from the new saddle? just how much does the body adjust (does it get moderately comfy or will it always be a pain in the butt)? 2) should I experiment with new saddles while my body is still adjusting or wait it out? 3) what kind of strategies exist for getting at least some direction in terms of new saddle search? obviously you cannot try them all. are there any measurements that can help or some other characteristics? Thanks! Keg, I actually was totally intimidated by IM distance and first time I swam 4k I was ready to die So I thought I'd do IM in spring/summer. Then I realized running a slow marathon is not such a big deal so it all boiled down to the bike. Riding 40 miles on its own felt easy so I figured 112 can't be all that bad. I actually registered for a half on Halloween but it got cancelled so I never got to try half distance. full distance events don't seem to be all that frequent so when I saw one coming up locally I just couldn't resist trying what's the worst thing that can happen? As they say being dead last is better than DNF which is better than did not start I was mostly concerned with just surviving the swim, but bike ended up being the toughest part. so now the goal is to bring the whole thing down to under 10 hours good luck with your training too! |
| 2014-12-10 8:06 AM in reply to: woosh |
Member 1748 Exton, PA | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Most people I think would agree you did not have nearly enough time in the saddle before doing that ride. From the sounds of it your bike/saddle/fit may all be fine you just need to put more time in before riding long like that. Anyone that has only done a 40 mile ride and goes straight to a 112mile ride is going to be uncomfortable. If I were you, I would not change your saddle yet. just start riding longer and see how you feel. |
| 2014-12-10 9:20 AM in reply to: woosh |
| Member 587 | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Ride more. Lots more. Repeat. |
| 2014-12-10 10:57 AM in reply to: woosh |
| 467 , Wisconsin | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions First, congratulations on a huge accomplishment! Second, you are definitely crazy I agree with the posts that suggest logging a lot of miles before worrying about a different saddle. I just got back on a road bike for the first time in many years this past May. Initially, my butt would be feeling less than comfy after as few as 10-12 miles. About 1800 miles later, butt was fine on a 100k ride and felt like it would be okay for considerably more miles. You must be blessed with a strong engine! |
| 2014-12-10 1:13 PM in reply to: woosh |
New user 150 | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Congrats on your IM! Wow that is impressive... Have you had your butt (sit bones) measured? That, along with a proper fit, will go a long way, since you seem to enjoy the longer distances. My LBS has a mesuring tool, you just sit on a bench and it measures the distance between your butt bones (BTW this measures has nothing to do with your butt's width), then you can choose a saddle of the appropriate width. Although I'm a girl I ride a men's bike and I kept the original saddle my entire first season. I thought I would adjust and that I just needed to ride more. At the end of the summer, I was so hurting that bike rides were no fun anymore... So I had this measure taken and I bought a lady saddle of the appropriate width. My world completely changed, I realized I could be so comfortable and that with the old saddle I compensated by standing more on my feet to avoid sitting. BAD!! And it's not just a girl thing, my hubby also went for a measure, changed his saddle and now he can "almost" keep up with me on rides |
| 2014-12-10 1:51 PM in reply to: woosh |
| Subject: RE: bike comfort questions I agree that you likely just need to ride more. There are probably some small tweaks in the fit or saddle that all of us could make to slightly improve comfort, but if you were able to ride 40 miles okay, then it's not likely that something is terribly off. Now if you were constantly complaining of discomfort after 5-10 miles, then you likely need to take more drastic measures in dialing in your fit before trying to ride more. |
| 2014-12-10 2:12 PM in reply to: woosh |
Champion 7547 Albuquerque, New Mexico Bronze member | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Congratulations on finishing a long race. Get a fitting. If your seat is too high, you're rocking back and forth trying to reach the pedal at the bottom of the stroke. If you find yourself wearing holes in either your shorts or your skin (saddle sores) this may be a contributor. Conversely, if your seat is too low, you never really get your leg extended and almost all of your body weight is taken up in your seat rather than through your feet and legs. The result is often a numbness or general pain. Obviously, neither is good. Ride more before looking for different seats. Early in the season, my butt hurts after a 2 hour ride. By the end of the season, that 2 hour ride doesn't hurt so much but I really want off the bike after 5 or 6 hours. Big, squishy, saddles aren't the solution. You get the worst of both situations above, sliding around on them as they compress, leaving you too low to keep weight off your butt. |
| 2014-12-10 6:06 PM in reply to: McFuzz |
| 48 Los Angeles, California | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions McFuzz, you might actually be on to something. it never occurred to me that my weight should be on my legs (with run and swim I at least watched some youtube and did general research, with bike I was totally winging it so I'm an abyss of ignorance here). so I was just sitting in my saddle spinning. I can imagine though you'd get way more tired if you "stand" through the whole ride? My sit bones and everything around them were a bit tender the next day but nowhere near what I was expecting after what I've felt through the ride. I thought I wouldn't be able to sit for a week and I almost didn't feel it at all. it was just the ride itself that was unpleasant. not sure I understand why you'd sit more with low saddle though, wouldn't it be the opposite that if your saddle is too high then you don't get to stand? |
| 2014-12-11 7:11 AM in reply to: woosh |
Champion 7547 Albuquerque, New Mexico Bronze member | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Think about pedaling... You must apply force to the pedal to make it turn. The more force for the same speed, the more power you generate. When you stand up to climb a hill, you're putting most of your weight on the pedal to press down. Even when you aren't standing, you're subtly shifting weight back and forth between the left pedal and the right...that's the force you're applying to the pedal. (If you aren't using your weight to your advantage, think about how much faster you'll be if you do). How long can you stand upright? Pretty much all day long. Pedaling is the same. If you're applying force to the pedal with your knees bent, it's like doing a chair squat. If your pedaling with your knees bent and trying to apply 100# of force, it all has to come from muscles (legs, hips, torso, and arms). Your 150# weight is supported by your hands and (mostly) butt. Alternatively, you can apply 100# of weight on the pedal by shifting 2/3 of your 150# weight onto that foot while the rest goes through your hands and butt to stabilize you. A lot of people set the seat height so they can touch the ground while seated. That makes the seat too low for efficient pedaling. |
| 2014-12-11 7:31 AM in reply to: woosh |
| 261 | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Originally posted by woosh alright, so I guess my next questions would be: 1) how long would it take the body to adjust? as in how much time (or distance) should pass so that I know the only improvement can come from the new saddle? just how much does the body adjust (does it get moderately comfy or will it always be a pain in the butt)? 2) should I experiment with new saddles while my body is still adjusting or wait it out? 3) what kind of strategies exist for getting at least some direction in terms of new saddle search? obviously you cannot try them all. are there any measurements that can help or some other characteristics? Thanks! Keg, I actually was totally intimidated by IM distance and first time I swam 4k I was ready to die So I thought I'd do IM in spring/summer. Then I realized running a slow marathon is not such a big deal so it all boiled down to the bike. Riding 40 miles on its own felt easy so I figured 112 can't be all that bad. I actually registered for a half on Halloween but it got cancelled so I never got to try half distance. full distance events don't seem to be all that frequent so when I saw one coming up locally I just couldn't resist trying what's the worst thing that can happen? As they say being dead last is better than DNF which is better than did not start I was mostly concerned with just surviving the swim, but bike ended up being the toughest part. so now the goal is to bring the whole thing down to under 10 hours good luck with your training too! I had a fitting and it made a big difference, but then I didn't mark the saddle position from the fitting once I started trying new saddles. Fortunately the fitter is a member of my team and will take a look at it again for free now that I've added aero bars and a new saddle. I would try to get reasonably close to your final setup in terms of equipment before shelling out that kind of money for a fitting. I have $30-$50 pairs of shorts from Amazon, which are fine for an hour of cycling, but I've been told I will appreciate spending the extra money on a good pair of bibs... I thought $50 was a lot, apparently I'm a moron. Be patient with the saddle... I think I'm on my 6th one (Cobb JOF). Call around to local shops, many of them will have demo saddles. |
| 2014-12-11 11:32 AM in reply to: McFuzz |
| 48 Los Angeles, California | Subject: RE: bike comfort questions Originally posted by McFuzz Think about pedaling... You must apply force to the pedal to make it turn. The more force for the same speed, the more power you generate. When you stand up to climb a hill, you're putting most of your weight on the pedal to press down. Even when you aren't standing, you're subtly shifting weight back and forth between the left pedal and the right...that's the force you're applying to the pedal. (If you aren't using your weight to your advantage, think about how much faster you'll be if you do). How long can you stand upright? Pretty much all day long. Pedaling is the same. If you're applying force to the pedal with your knees bent, it's like doing a chair squat. If your pedaling with your knees bent and trying to apply 100# of force, it all has to come from muscles (legs, hips, torso, and arms). Your 150# weight is supported by your hands and (mostly) butt. Alternatively, you can apply 100# of weight on the pedal by shifting 2/3 of your 150# weight onto that foot while the rest goes through your hands and butt to stabilize you. A lot of people set the seat height so they can touch the ground while seated. That makes the seat too low for efficient pedaling. Mike, I was trying to apply similar logic but I guess my thinking was just a bit different. I do agree that even when I don't try to stand I still shift weight left and right to apply weight on the pedal but given pedals are not just going up and down it feels like you'd save more energy mostly supporting your weight by the seat and then pushing the pedals rather than making squats being bent over trying to hold yourself in balance with leg muscles. in fact at some point I've tried standing up to have no contact at all with the seat and my legs got instantly uncomfortable and tired.. maybe that's just my lack of conditioning. standing up on a bike as far as I understand would put much more stress on the quads which are much smaller and weaker muscles than hamstrings and in a sense it's "against their nature" to contract. I guess I'll just play with the idea of trying to stand more and see where it gets me. one thing I've noticed when I tried to stand up completely is that I started swaying the bike left and right in order to pedal and apply my full weight. is it normal or am I missing something in the technique here again? |
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| one of those questions I'd only ask here - saddle comfort and tmi | ||
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|  Started by SweetKViews: 2117 Posts: 21 | ||
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