Bike Fit Question

[SwissVan]

Why not sit on the roadie and measure the angle of the bend in your knee with your heel on the pedal and transfer the same bend to the MTB with your heel in the same place?

???? old tried and tested method.... then the internet arrived and made life complicated.

 

I do this when I’m riding along and suspect my seat post has slipped down as it does when your legs start taking strain ????

 

Then I discovered my right leg is 12mm shorter than my left

 

????????

[DieselnDust]

So eeeeerrrrrmmmmmm how are you okes measuring these angles exactly ??

[ChrisF]

Interesting that nobody has tried to "justify" a proper bike fit ....

 

is it just "hype" ?

 

 

 

PS - I am booked for a bike-fit on Friday ...       

[Grebel]

A few years ago I had a "proper" bike fit done on a road bike. I persevered for a few weeks of discomfort and ended up changing a whole lot of things to get comfortable on the bike. I am no racing snake so enjoying the ride was the most important part while being comfortable.

[Duane_Bosch]

Interesting that nobody has tried to "justify" a proper bike fit ....

 

is it just "hype" ?

 

 

 

PS - I am booked for a bike-fit on Friday ...       

I've had a bike fit on my roadie. And my Fiance on her roadie. I'm a big believer for that particular application but on an Trail bike not so much.

[DieselnDust]

Interesting that nobody has tried to "justify" a proper bike fit ....

 

is it just "hype" ?

 

 

 

PS - I am booked for a bike-fit on Friday ...    

 

 

I had it done once and have used the information for the past 10years and 4 bikes. The size of bikes has been from 51cm to 54cm road and small to medium mtb.

Been comfy on all

[MphatiPyga]

I’ve always gone with the heel onto the pedal with the pedal at 6 o’clock for height, totally agree on the never higher option, you should never rock when pedaling as that means you are stretching. I then take a plum line over the front of the knee whilst the pedal is at 3 o’clock to get the fore /aft position, the plum line should bisect the pedal axle. All the above should be done whilst in normal riding position, ride around a bit and then lean on a wall to get the position, helps to have a mate to do the measuring of course.

[Shebeen]

If the cranks are the same length on both bikes and the pedals are the same then center of bb to top of saddle should work. Some saddles compress more than others and not all pedals are the same thickness.

 

Having said that. MTB setup and road bike setup are a little different .

 

I had a bike fit done a couple of years back and for my inseam of 75 cm the best position for the saddle is 65 cm from the center off bb to the top of a hard saddle. Also a 5 mm nose up on the saddle gave me the most comfortable ride with a 1 cm setback.

I've copied this setup to 3 MTB and it works just fine.

 

going on assumptions here, but just check the sole thickness of your mtb vs road shoes.

I had to do this when moving from a mtb fit to roadfit as it was slightly different(might have been more for peace of mind!).

[ChrisF]

Okaaayyyyyy .....

 

I was PLEASANTLY surprized with what a proper bikefit all includes !

 

 

YES, if you know a friend of a friend that can sort of set the saddle height by checking your leg length, and a couple other measurements ,,, hey, good for you. 

 

 

 

"technically" there is not that much more to it .....

 

 

BUT, a proper session starts with a medical question session .... the answers of which may well explain existing ailments, or may have some impact on fine tweaking the settings.

 

Some rider measurements and checks ..... by now "other" things are pointed, things that are not even bike related, well I thought it did not .... Let's just say I learnt a LOT today !

 

Then a complete measurement of your bike as is ....

 

 

Get on the roller and check and discuss various aspects ..... some more rider measurements ON the bike ....

 

Now change ONE setting, for example seat height, more checks and measurements.  I thought my seat was about 10 to 15mm low ..... much more than that !! 

 

Now for the handlebars .... WOW !!!  No words can explain how much difference it makes in the feel when the bar is turned through a few degrees !!

 

 

 

 

I fully appreciate why some commented that they went for ONE bikefit, then used this on their other bikes.  But I do believe that every rider owe it to themselves to do it at least once ...

[ChrisF]

Bit more feedback ....

 

During my two hour bikefit session Irma started with a series of questions, and stretches and and ....

 

 

She then provided feedback in terms of her "findings" ......

 

 

As a casual rider I like to sit more upright than the typical racing snake ... not a right or wrong issue, but important in terms of the fine tweaking.

 

Her initial evaluation pointed out my weak core muscles .... I know of this, but never gave it a second thought in terms of cycling .....

 

 

 

Now with a more optimal bike setup (my new bike needs to go in for a proper final setup) my core muscles are coming into play !!!

 

 

 

The normal tape measure and heel on the pedal may work "most of the time" ....

 

But there is a LOT to be said for a real professional evaluation of YOU, and then a proper bike setup .... including a follow up session to tweak the setup to YOUR physical requirements.

 

 

And dare I say .... starting with a less than optimal middle aged body my setup may (will) most probably need adjustments as my body slowly gets into a better shape ... 

 

damn lighties in their prime that can get away with a "heel-on-the-pedal" setup .... 

[matthieup]

Did mine with Irma on Thursday and smashes all my PB since. Feels like I'm riding a new bike.

[ChrisF]

Had a session with Irma today to set up the Scott Spark.

 

I used the bike on Friday, Saturday and Sunday .... making various adjustments along the way, as to how I understood her, and based on my "feeling" of each ride ....

 

 

The first adjustment was due a slight "tweak" in my lower back .... Turns out SIX millimeters makes a HUGE difference !!!  Those few extra mm made me rock ever so slightly in the saddle.

 

Set the saddle back for the correct "pedal-to-knee" drop-line, and now at the correct saddle height, and it all comes together ....

 

 

Irma takes the time to drop the saddle a bit too low, then let me test the power points of my pedal action - instead of "1-o-clock" the power only kicks in at 2 or 3 .... !  Over compensate slightly and your hips start rocking and you have lower back pain .....

 

 

Suddenly I see why so many complain of issues after a bikefit .... get it wrong by the smallest of margins and things go bad quickly !!!

 

Which is exactly why Irma includes a free follow up session to check there are no issues or tweaks.  I would like to believe my setup is now 99%.  But next month I will go for the follow up, to make sure the settings are optimal.  As I am on a road to recovery I know my posture will change over time .... I may well go again in a years time ....

 

 

 

RESPECT for a lady that KNOWS her business !!

 

 

[ChrisF]

Feedback -

 

Negatives -

- the setup was for the shoes I wore on the day.  I now use different shoes, with thinner soles .... that 7mm difference caused the slightest rocking of my hips and a bit of lower back pain.  Dropped the saddle and problem solved.

- the ideal setup requires me to put a bit more weight on the handles, and not so much on my seat .... raising the seat to get the leg extention right sorted out the weight the handles bars.  But the change was just a bit much for me, or should I say too much too quickly ...  I got a riser stem, and this is now sorted.

 

 

 

 

POSITIVES -

- I climb hills better

- my average speed on level sections is a LOT higher !  To the point where for the first time ever other riders were holding me up today .. twice !

- my average speed over my typical route at Meerendal is up by 2km/h, that is after being held up by others.

- my heart rate is much more constant !  I used to burn out on the long climbs.  I now manage a faster speed up the hills without going into the red.  When I got tired at Stairway I had enough in reserve to sit up and still keep a decent pace while slowing down my heart rate - WHILE catching up to other riders.

- for the first time ever not a single rider caught up to me (okay while I was held up, another caught us)..... in fairness, though I was doing my personal best times, I KNOW that I am not "fast" .... averaging 14,1km/h going over the top, stairway and Burry, certainly aint no record breaking speed ... but hey, it is MY personal best thus far.

- being able climb, ride faster, keep a constant heart rate, set a personal best and not be dead tired at the end certainly is a good feeling !!!!!        Next goal is to keep that sort of pace while extending my distances ...

 

 

THANKS IRMA !!!!

[Ozzie NL]

Did mine with Irma on Thursday and smashes all my PB since. Feels like I'm riding a new bike.

Not the set up mate.

 

You're getting close to the magical 200 posts. That's what's giving you wings

[ChrisF]

Some more feedback -

 

The last 2 and half years have been a deliberately slow and steady recovery path.

 

That said, each time I tried to push myself it would result in some sort of pain or twitch ....

 

Since we got the bike fit SORTED, I have been pushing myself steadily ....

 

Today was my first ever ride where I jumped out the starting blocks !  Got going immediately at some 25km/h, on a MTB on jeep tracks.  Just got nicely warmed up when the slight inclines started .... I would fiddle with the gears to keep the maximum output without pushing my heart rate into the 150 range .... I averaged 148 bpm over 78 minutes.  Granted towards the end my heart rate stayed high without me being to show the average speed for it ....

 

Net result:

- NO aches

- no twitched muscles or nerves

- lower back perfectly fine

- knees seem fine ... will know tomorrow

 

 

This was my first ride where I could actually stay with other adults on the trail !!  Okay, the last few hills I ran out of steam, but I still pedalled up where others got to walking.

 

 

A proper bikefit has done a LOT for my confidence !!  And it IS showing in my riding stats !!

 

 

YES - my change comes from a very bad setup .... but having bought the bike from a professional cyclist shop I was under the mistaken impression that they had sorted the setup for me ......  Those that have semi decent setups may not see such drastic improvements, but I am convinced that each new cyclist owe it to themselves to have a PROPER bikefit done at least once !!  And the sooner the better - as a bad fitting bike may be the route cause of the aches and pains ....