Bike Fitting services

[hot66]

Has anyone used any of the specialist bike fitting services ? I've always had knee problems, I think in the past related to cleat position. I'm trying to get my new road bike set up properly & I'm having slight knww twinges after rides .... I have to ride with quite a lot of toe out but have been wondering if I could get things more accurate with a bike fitting service.

Anyone used one of these, like the specialised system for example ?

Or is it a waste of time & better just to keep tweeking my cleats until I feel comfatable ?

[fergus]

hot66 said:

Has anyone used any of the specialist bike fitting services ? I've always had knee problems, I think in the past related to cleat position. I'm trying to get my new road bike set up properly & I'm having slight knww twinges after rides .... I have to ride with quite a lot of toe out but have been wondering if I could get things more accurate with a bike fitting service.

Anyone used one of these, like the specialised system for example ?

Or is it a waste of time & better just to keep tweeking my cleats until I feel comfatable ?

buy/read: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pruitts-Complete-Medical-G...

It has a very detailed section on bike setup and also goes through all the myriad causes and symptoms of bad setup and associated knee problems.

All the fitting services tend to use their own 'system', each of which seems slightly different. If you understand how your joints work, then there's not reason you can't do this yourself. In order of preference, I'd set:

1) seat height (just high enough so your hips don't start rocking)
2) saddle set back (make sure you're not putting too much pressure in to the front of the knee joint)
3) cleat position (may be worth ensuring you have floating cleats). Small leg length discrepancies can be helped by putting the cleats on the short leg at a different position on the shoe relative to the other leg (i've forgotten which way, fore or aft they need to go. Check out the book!)
4) stem length (lower back flexibility)

The most biomechanically sympathetic/efficient fit may not initially be that comfortable, so you may want to adjust things in small increments to get to your target setup. Be very aware of creating potential joint problems!

PS "comfortable"

Edited by fergus on Wednesday 15th July 10:40

[hot66]

Thanks for the info

on the mountian bike I've managed to get a good position & eliminated my knee pain problems, but the road bike isn't quite there yet. I'll spend a bit of time & see how I get on.

Saddle fore & aft ... from reading on the web, the boney bit at the side of my knee should be in line with the pedal axle when the cranks are horizontal ?

fergus said:

hot66 said:

com-fat-able ?

PS "comfortable"

Edited by fergus on Wednesday 15th July 10:40

freudian slip

Edited by hot66 on Wednesday 15th July 11:14

[fergus]

hot66 said:

Saddle fore & aft ... from reading on the web, the boney bit at the side of my knee should be in line with the pedal axle when the cranks are horizontal ?

This is an easy point for people to quote on the web. However due to most people's knee architecture being slightly different, this is only a rough guide. A better way to do it is to line up the femur and the knee joint itself using a device which measures knee angle, and depending upon your knees sensitivity, perhaps limit the max angle to about 25-30 degrees. Andy Pruitt's book recommends using the front of the knee cap relative to the front of the axle as a better proxy to allow a slight safety margin.

Also, to give you knees an easier time, make sure you spin a high cadence for a good few minutes when starting your ride and don't get out of the saddle for at least 5 mins to give the knees a chance to warm up. Consider wearing 3/4 shorts, which keep the knees warm. Don't push a gear where you're spinning <90 rpm. Also, tip your hips forwards which which help engage your glute medius and glute max, rather than relying solely on your thighs, which can lead to tight illio tibial band (ITB) syndrome, which can put on the medial side of the knee joint.

PS Com'fat'able - like your style!

[hot66]

not too complicated then

I've ordered the book you recommend so I'll see if I can make any sense of it

[captain jack]

www.bikedynamics.co.uk - based in Leamington Spa - highly recommended!