The Saddle and Your Butt

Part 2

In part 1 we looked at up and down, here we will consider the effects of forwards and backwards or 'fore and aft' as is often referred to.

THE WARNING.Firstly, the information here is just that, don't go rushing out to your bike and risk injuring yourself by moving your seat post up or down or both - for the more particular of you, you will end up with a scratched seat post to upset you before you get as far as the risk of injury a maladjusted Saddle Height can bring.

The purpose of the information here is more to raise general awareness rather than be prescriptive, the advice as always is to make sure your bike fits you as best it can.

Now that is out of the way let's move on.

When you look at the connection of your saddle to the seat post there will almost certainly be a bracket that allows some form of adjustment for backwards and forwards, some specialist cycles such as the Cervelo S5 even have two separate attachments for the saddle bracket. 

Considering the additional engineering required to do this, it would be sensible to assume that there is some benefit to be gained from the saddle position.

In basic terms once you have the correct saddle height, the forwards backwards position of the saddle will help determine the riders position relative to the pedaling mechanism of the bike. Too far forward and there is a risk of injury and too far back and there is a loss of power and efficiency, not to say that this would not result in injury also.

The ideal position in road cycling, more on TT in a minute, is found with the knee roughly over the centre of the pedal spindle axle with the pedals parallel to the ground, if assuming a flat supporting surface.

This Knee over Pedal ideal has been used for decades and does have merit, however, as most methods used to measure this need to be static, the application is limited. After all do you sit still when you ride your bike and do you adopt differing positions depending on your effort level?

For this reason the Retul System used here is dynamic taking measurements with the rider working at different effort levels. In this way the fitter is able to see how the rider moves around on the bike and discuss this with them to create the most suitable fit.

With regards TT positioning, this is somewhat different. As the rider is aiming for a lower, fixed and ideally more aerodynamic position with the torso rotated forward the saddle is also moved forward to help accommodate this, with the knee often being up to 90mm further forward relative to the 'standard' road position. Again this may alter from rider to rider and also at different effort levels.

The best position for the cyclist is often a form of compromise between the bike the rider and the goals of the rider, by completing the pre-fit questionnaire the cyclist is able to provide the fitter with information to help the conversation develop during the fit.

Once the saddle position is reached the front of the bike can then be addressed, looking at stem length, handle bar height and position.

To discuss your needs contact us here or for details regarding a free fit, click here

 

Free Retul Bike Fits

With every deposit taken for either a Legend or Formigli Frame during the Olympic events we will be providing a free Retul Bike Fit. 

Have a look at the Slide Show for the frame detail

For more details or to book in 

give us a call at Fit Me Up on 01992 507901

All frames are fabricated in the factory in Italy by Craftsmen.

With frame sets starting @ £1,999 (inc. VAT) having your bespoke frame is closer than you may have thought.

An example frame we have here at Fit Me Up

Custom Build Cycles

Custom Made Frames are on their way!

More details to follow, soon, but we are going to be working with two Italian builders to construct one off frames in Carbon, Aluminium and Titanium.

More to follow at

Fit Me Up

Retul & VO2 Hertford

The Saddle and Your Butt

THE WARNING.Firstly, the information here is just that, don't go rushing out to your bike and risk injuring yourself by moving your seat post up or down or both - for the more particular of you, you will end up with a scratched seat post to upset you before you get as far as the risk of injury a maladjusted Saddle Height can bring.

The purpose of the information here is more to raise general awareness rather than be prescriptive, the advice as always is to make sure your bike fits you as best it can.

The interface which takes the majority of your contact with your beloved bike is the saddle and it just happens to make that contact with (normally) the most sensitive part of your anatomy to remain in contact with your bike...

So what choices do you have with your saddle?

• Up and Down
• Forwards and Backwards
• Nose higher or Lower (tilt)

Part 1

Up and down

This is often the most simple and therefore commonly altered part of the bike geometry, with everyone knowing an expert who has guided them in to the 'correct' height. 

With what I see in the fitting studio, bikes with saddle heights too low by far out weigh the number of bikes with saddles that are too high.

Not hugely surprising given the need to reach the pedals and the insecure sensation of sitting too high.

So why bother getting it right?

Well perhaps we could consider

• To reduce the risk of injury 
• To increase comfort
• To maximise efficiency

The height of your saddle has a large impact on the ranges of motion that the Hip, Knee and Ankle joints move through during the pedalling cycle and given that this is repeated more than once per second for the average Cyclist for hours on end it is to be expected that this is important to get right. 

Due to the anatomy of the lower limb, the knee is the joint most often presenting with pain and injury, with large muscle groups conveying their power through the patella (knee cap) and down onto the Tibial Tuberosity, combined with the common predominance of Quadricep biased cycling (another time) the knee is often put through some real stress!

What does that mean to the rider and his/her saddle

• Too Low
• the knee will be forced to move to far in front of the foot at points in the pedal rotation, leading to additional unwanted stress and risk of injury.
• the knee may be forced from a simple path of up and down to a potentially torturous motion looking like an orbiting planet as it moves through the pedal cycle including unwanted rotation and sheering stresses.

• Too High
• the rider will have to rock excessively from side to side to reach the pedals.
• the Knee may not suffer too greatly here, but the inner thigh may become sore as it is forced to rub against the side of the saddle.
• the spine has to rotate as the leg reaches to complete the bottom of each pedal cycle.
• this can indirectly lead to knee irritation via the iliotibialband becoming tight and leading to the patella shearing.(again something for another time)

So with just minimal examples of issues caused by incorrect saddle height from the plethora out there it would seem the 'Goldilocks' approach of not too high and not too low is the key...

To find out what is 'just right' for you visit our Retul Certified Fitting Studio

To add further complication (fun) to the mix, the actual saddle height will often benefit from being altered to suit the riding discipline, for example

• Mountain Bike
• Road Bike, flat riding
• Road Bike, climbing
• Time Trial Bike

The Mountain Bike, speaks for itself, as the saddle can serve to hinder some riders. The other three simple examples perhaps less so, but nonetheless there is much information available to suggest that at least some of the data is relevant.

As the rider moves forward or backward on the saddle, the relative distance to the bottom bracket alters and this leads to a difference effective saddle height, but more of this next time.

Any Questions or to discuss a fit for you visit Dean Taylor @ Fit Me Up 

or call us here in Hertford on 01992 507901