Bike Fit

You must make your bike fit your body, rather than trying to make your body fit your bike. I know this sounds so obvious that it probably shouldnt even need to be mentioned. However, it seems that too often some cyclists and coaches seem to intentionally alter their position or bike set-up into some preconceived idea of a perfect position without considering the fact that perhaps their body is not suited to that theoretical ideal position, there are many formulas out there, and these should be used as a starting point rather than an absolute. The formulas are very general; they do not take in the consideration athletes: 1. Flexibility, mobility and alignment

2. Strength 3. Experience 4. Health Finding your most comfortable and powerful position must take continued practical and refinement and evaluation, rather than static positioning that relies on some broad mathematical formulas (what works in lab doesnt mean it will work on the race course). The example of an athletes data in the wind tunnel would have taken nearly 3 minutes off his 40k time but it lacked real world application. Craig stated that the athlete would have simply fall over on the roadas his handling was severely compromised. Its ok to start with a formula taken from a manual along with some measurements of your own body for your initial set-up. Dont be afraid to make additional changes as time goes on, as athletes throughout the season increase flexibility and increase their skill development. There are five basic components to consider: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Frame size Saddle height Saddle fore/aft adjustment and tilt Cleat adjustment Handle bar & Aerobar adjustment FRAME SIZE Choosing a frame has become increasingly complicated over the years, there is one thing which hasnt changed, and that is that there is an optimum alignment of the important triangle

contact points on the bike - the 1) saddle, 2) handlebars, and 3) pedal/crank arm assembly, for every rider. Regardless of the type of bike and its design, you need to discover your optimal and preferred position that will allow you to produce the: 1. Maximum amount of power

2. Maintaining aerodynamics 3. Maintaining comfort, 4. and avoiding injury. The Lemond Method: Many retailers and manufacturers rely on a method popularized by the great American Tour De France champion Greg Lemond in his book Greg Lemonds Complete Book of Cycling. This is what he recommends: In plain feet and wearing cycling shorts, stand with your back against a wall. Have your feet about six inches apart. Put a carpenters square between your legs so that one side is flush against the wall. The other side should project in front of you from between your legs. Pull up on the carpenters square (or any other device that you can use that will be level with the floor) until you feel pressure against your crotch equal to what a saddle produces when you are pedaling. Have a helper measure from the top of the horizontal edge of the carpenters square to the floor. Record this crotch to floor distance precisely in centimeters. Take your measurement and multiply it by 0.65. For example, my measurements from crotch to floor is 93 cm, then 93 X 0.65 = cm. This means I should ride a frame that measures 59-62 cm from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the top tube, measured along the seat tube. Note: The most important thing to remember is that if the top tube length is correct, you can usually adjust the seat height and saddle fore/aft position to obtain a good fit; especially, in the age of compact frames and odd sizing geometry. SADDLE HEIGHT Once the correct size frame is chosen, saddle height is likely the first and most important adjustment you can make to insure proper fit. A saddle set too high or too low can cause pain and lead to injuries of the knee, and will compromise power production and reduce efficiency and comfort. Also, remember that saddle position will effect all other aspects of fit, so if you adjust your saddle height and/or position, you will likely have to adjust other aspects of fit also. Always make adjustments in very small increments over a period of time. Author Edmund Burke, in his book High Tech Cycling, advocates no more than a adjustment at any one time over a number of riding sessions (pg.82).

As a starting point for determining seat height, Lemonds book also has a measurement to determine a starting point for seat height adjustment. Here it is: Seat height (cm) = inseam (cm) x .883 Use this formula to set your initial seat height and then allow me to suggest a simple and practical way to refine this adjustment. SADDLE FORE/AFT POSITION Saddle setback is a very important measurement, in my opinion is just as important as saddle height. Contrary to popular belief, this adjustment is based upon the length of your femur rather than the relative seat tube angle. Traditional thinking says that the saddle fore/aft position should be set such that your knees center of rotation is directly over the pedal axle (the ball of your foot) of the forward crankarm when it is in a horizontal position. This position (known as the neutral position) is a good starting point because it helps to ensure that your hips are neither too far forward or rearward of the bottom bracket, and it positions your knee so that it is in the best position to produce power at an optimal point in the crank rotation. The best way to determine saddle fore/aft position is to use again use a stationary bicycle trainer and a plumb line (a straight edge such as a yardstick can also be used). A plumb line can be made using a piece of string 3-4 ft. long with a heavy nut tied to one end. Again as with saddle height, it really helps to have a friend to help with this measurement. First, make sure the bike is level to the floor when it is set in the trainer. Pedal easily for a few minutes until you are warmed up and satisfied that you have found your comfortable and normal position on the saddle. When you are ready, stop pedaling when the crank-arms are horizontal (i.e. parallel to the floor, or 3 and 9 oclock). Position your right foot forward, and be sure not to raise or lower your heel when in this horizontal position. Have your friend double check to be sure that when you stop, you crank-arms are perfectly horizontal. Your helper should then drop the plumb line from the front of your right kneecap. [3] Generally speaking, if you are on a traditional road bike set up, the plumb line should hit the end of the crank arm. If you are on a triathlon specific bike, the plumb line should touch or be slightly ahead (1-2 cm.) of the front of your shoe, i.e. farther ahead of the bottom bracket. Depending on your position, loosen the bolts beneath the saddle and adjust as necessary. Be patient and persistent because this is an important measurement!

To reiterate a point I made earlier, regardless of what position your idol or training partner may use on their bike, it is the length of your FEMUR that should be the principal factor in determining your saddle fore/aft position. In other words, if you have a relatively LONG femur in relation to the rest of your body, you will be more comfortable sitting farther back in a more slack position. However, if your femur is short relative to your body, i.e. perhaps you have a long torso and short legs/femur, then you will need to sit further forward as compared to someone else that may have a longer femur. SADDLE TILT Generally speaking, your saddle should be positioned level with the ground. It shouldnt be angled up or down. Downward sloping saddles put too much weight on the front of your bike and your hands in particular, and upward sloping saddles put too much pressure on the crotch/soft tissue area, leading to potential issues with saddle sores and blood vessel and nerve compression, which in turn can lead to numbness. The one possible exception to this rule is that sometimes on a time trial or triathlon specific bike, a very slight downward tilt to the saddle is appropriate and can increase comfort by reducing pressure on the soft tissue of the perineum. Be sure not to over do it however. If your tilt is too extreme, you will be constantly sliding down the saddle and creating more problems, such as crotch irritation and chafing. A key point regarding saddle tilt: if you feel that you need to significantly adjust your saddle tilt up or down from neutral, then more than likely your fit is off in another area, such as frame size, stem length, or saddle height. If you are set up properly on your bike, you should be comfortable with a level saddle, and you shouldnt feel the need or desire to be constantly moving around on the saddle while riding. CLEAT ADJUSTMENT The first consideration regarding cleat adjustment is that for most riders, the cleat should be positioned such that the largest part of your foot is directly over the pedal axle. If you feel along the ball of your foot, you can identify a structure called the first metatarsal phalange joint, which is directly behind the big toe. Once you get it, mark the corresponding location on your shoe and align the mark with the center of the pedal axle. Slide the cleats up or back until they are in the right spot. Once you have achieved this neutral position, you may find, depending on your shoe size and other fit issues, that you prefer a position either forward or backward of neutral. According to author Edmund Burke in his book High Tech Cycling, shoe size may be a factor as well. Riders with longer feet may be better off moving the cleats rearward on the shoe to put

more of the foot in front of the pedal axle. Conversely, he also feels that riders with shorter feet may move their cleats toward the front of the shoe so they are pedaling more on their toes. Burke says when the ball of the foot is ahead of the axle, the effective lever arm from the ankle to the pedal axle is shortened. This requires less force to stabilize the foot on the pedal and puts less strain on the Achilles tendon and calf muscles. Obviously, putting the ball of the foot behind the pedal axle lengthens the lever arm and makes it harder to keep the foot rigid during pedaling. Creating a longer lever can help the cyclist produce more torque, but will also make high cadence pedaling more difficult. There is an instrument called a Rotational Adjustment Device (RAD) that many good shops have, and using it will help in setting up your cleat position. Dont forget that any cleat adjustment needs to reflect your own individual biomechanical issues. Pronation, forefoot varus or valgus, and other alignment issues such as a leg length discrepancy all should be considered as you dial in your cleat position. Once comfort is achieved, adjustment can then be refined so that you are set up perfectly to reflect the kind of riding you will be doing. Dont give up, achieving the perfect cleat position can be challenging! A personal note: I use and prefer Speedplay pedals and I feel that they are especially useful if you are a triathlete or duathlete. They have maximum float (the ability to let the foot rotate a few degrees outward or inward as you pedal), they are easy to get in and out of quickly as you can click in on either side, and theyre lightweight. Give them a try if you havent already. As an aside, most other current styles of clipless pedals also permit float. One other note, generally speaking the less float you have in your pedals, the more power you can produce. The key is to find the right balance between float (comfort) and power production. Your cleat position is totally unique to you and its important to get it right! As before, if you are having problems with cleat position, see an expert who can guide you in getting this adjusted properly. HANDLE BAR & AERO BAR POSITION If you are a multisport athlete, you likely have your bike set up with aero bars. Thats great because aero bars are key to achieving a fast, comfortable, and aerodynamic position on the bike. Whether or not you are a time-trialist, your effective reach to the handlebars (that is, the measurement that reflects both the top tube length of the bike and the stem length) is an extremely important adjustment to get right, and it is highly individual. How far your handlebars are from you reflects your individual level of flexibility and your riding style. For instance, a recreational cyclist would sit relatively upright compared to a professional riding in the Tour, and

a triathlete riding on aero-bars would want their backs almost parallel to the ground for optimum aerodynamics. For traditional drop bars on a road bike (the type that are downturned at the ends), there is a simple way to determine a starting point for your reach set up. This was actually relayed to me by an old wrench who worked for years setting up bikes at a local shop. It is only a basic guideline and it assumes that your body is somewhat proportional, so it may or may not work for you, but it is a start! Put your elbow against the tip of the saddle and extend your open hand toward the handlebar. The end of your middle finger should come within an inch of so of the bar. Similarly, to get an idea of how high your handlebar should be in relationship to your saddle height, measure your fist across the knuckles from little finger to index finger. Use a stem height that makes the difference between the bar top and saddle top equal to your fist measurement. Remember two important things as you work with these generalized formulas: 1) these are only basic guidelines that are given only to help give you a starting point. You will definitely need to refine your set up and make adjustments based on feedback from your body. 2) Flexibility matters! If you are inflexible and have a hard time bending over to touch your toes, then getting a proper fit using these formulas will be nearly impossible. Proper aerobar set up involves many different variables and is also highly individual. There are a couple of key benchmarks that can help you get started on getting this adjustment right. First, your upper arm while down on the bars should be fairly vertical, with your elbow slightly in front of your shoulder (looking from the side, imagine a vertical line where your shoulder and elbow nearly fall in line with each other). This creates what is essentially a 90-degree angle at your elbow, and there should be roughly a 90-degree angle between your upper arm and torso as well. Also, there should be a slight upward tilt from your elbow to the ends of your hands. Adjust the length of the aero-bar so that you can easily reach the shifters (assuming that you are using bar end shifters) without having to move your arms forward. With each of these adjustments, your goal is to put your entire body in as relaxed and neutral position as possible. For example, during all riding your wrist should be in a neutral, handshake position as much as is possible. If your wrist is angling up or down significantly at the end of the aerobar, you will increase pressure on the nerves and wont be relaxed. Our primarily communication to athletes is strictly limited to over the phone and internet communication; therefore compromising the ability to properly perform a bike fit. Here are several resources that I have found that may help you guide your athletes in the right direction:

www.wrenchscience.com. Here youll find a online computer sizing system that allows you to plug in some measurements and get information on frame size, stem length, and other important dimensions. http://www.cyclemetrics.com. Here youll find information about the FitStik, a neat tool that will help you in setting up your bike, as well as help transfer your set up from one bike to another. http://www.bicyclesports.com/technical/index.html. Never one to be outdone when it comes to opinions on fit, cycling Guru John Cobb has an excellent site with a ton of information regarding fit and bike set up. http://www.slowtwitch.com/mainheadings/techctr/bikefit.html. This site, owned by Quintana Roo creator Dan Empfield, has some excellent information about triathlon specific bike fit. I think its worthwhile reading for the time-trialist and triathlete.