Beginner help and advice please , saddle hurts

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lee a

New Member
Hi there , am new to cycling, well have not cycled for over twenty years . I Decide to get into cycling again, to help improve my health and aid weight loss, . I picked up my bike yesterday, It is a trek fx3 disc . When i was in shop they sat me on bile and said height was ok . I tried my first ride , just for around 15 minutes to learn gears and all that. but after just 15 min it feels like parts of the saddle are digging in me and it gets quiet painful .

Now my question is . Can this be quiet normal for new to cycling and a new seat , and just have to get through the pain barrier till seat gives a little and my backside fits to the seat better or any other things i should look at. Thank you for your time
Regards
Lee
 

AndyRM

XOXO
Location
North Shields
It can be normal, particularly if the shop have said your height/position is OK.

The saddle will be tough as it's new, and your backside will need to get used to that.

Saddles are all different shapes though, and it may be that you need a different one, but best to make sure with the one you've got before buying another.

Are you wearing padded shorts?
 

Chris S

Legendary Member
Location
Birmingham
but after just 15 min it feels like parts of the saddle are digging in me and it gets quiet painful .
The same happened to me. I started off sitting upright but after a while I slid back on the saddle. Make sure you are actually sitting on the soft bit and not the hard edge.
 
Start with 10 mins riding every day and increase gradually. Your butt will get used to being on the bike.
Make sure the bike fits and is adjusted correctly for you. You may need to adjust saddle height and fore-aft position.
Some saddles just don't work with some people. Ideally you want the saddle to support you firmly at your sit bones and not press on the soft tissue inbetween.
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
It's perfectly normal. When you restart, you'll cycle for about fifteen / thirty minutes max, and the next day your sit bones will feel like a steel toe cap equipped Mike Tyson kicked you up the 'arris until he got tired of kicking.

Do it just a couple more times and that goes away really rapidly. Remember that the sit bones are just a bit of your body that hasn't borne any weight in a long time. It would be the same if you never walked for years, your feet would hurt the first couple of times you used them. Your sit bones get used to it quickly so don't worry.

Forget about saddles for now. The one you have is perfectly good for what you're doing.
 

vickster

Legendary Member
Get some padded shorts
I personably find even a mile without uncomfortable and I’ve done 2.5k Miles this year!
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
You don't need padded shorts for a 15 minute ride. I'm a shorts user of course, but not on a family / leisure / pub ride of less than an hour. The OP just needs to get used to being on a bike saddle, let's not over complicate it with extra kit that he doesn't need yet.
 

DRM

Guru
Location
West Yorks
You may have to fine tune the saddle a bit, either backwards/forwards or nose up/down see if it improves things, make measurements before you start & during so at least you can put it back to where it was when you started, if that was the best position after all. perhaps the
saddle is unsuited to you, stock ones generally aren't a good fit.
 

Darkelf720

Member
Hiya, very new to cycling myself and nearly ruptured my perineum when I started a week ago. I got a pair of gel undershorts (Bayleaf on Amazon) and a Gel Seat for that extra comfort. Now I weigh 19 1/2 St and they suppress most of the chaff and rubbing and the aching. I do, because I am so new and nearly 50 years old, only ride for about 30 minutes at the moment with plenty of stops. The above should help, I feel your pain :smile:
 

froze

Über Member
Where is the saddle digging into you at? Is it along your inner thighs? if so, the seat may be too wide. Is it digging down the center of your arse? if so, like others have said padded shorts are a good thing to have but get a really nice pair; you can go cheap on your jerseys and socks but don't go cheap on your shorts. Is it your sit bones that hurt? If so that will take time, shorts will help to a small degree but your butt needs time to adjust, and it could take a long time but as that time goes by you will slowly ride further and further before pain begins. It's also best that you stop riding when that pain begins or you that pain will take a long time to heal.

You say you were fitted, but how? was it just a quick visual thing? if so, you may need a better fit done if your pain doesn't get better.
 

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
No, don’t like the aesthetic of Brooks 👍

You can't see it when you're sitting on it, and they don't all come in black either. Other colours are available.

Saddles have to be given a chance to break your backside in. Most are uncomfortable to some extent to begin with if you have not ridden regularly for a long time. If, after persevering with a saddle for two or three weeks of several rides a week, it is still uncomfortable, then you can say with a good degree of certainty that it is just the wrong shape for you. That's the time to try a different one, not after only a few short rides. I consider padded shorts to be superfluous if the saddle fits and is adjusted correctly. I have never worn them up until now, and have no intention of wearing them in future.
 
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