biggs682
Touch it up and ride it
- Location
- Northamptonshire
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Shearwater Missile
Veteran
I will certainly second the not wearing undies advice. I used to have problems with soreness in the nether regions, not the same symptoms about sliding forward though. I blamed the saddle and tried different ones to no avail. I then tried not wearing undies and that did the trick. I think the weight of the body, although it should be evened out between bottom, feet and hands, the seams of underpants are a hard commodity despite the padded shorts or saddle. I think it has to be worth a try, it may feel odd at first but you will get used to it. Hoping that and sorting the bar / saddle potential problem out will bring you cycling dividends !
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
I'd qualify that. Seam styles and placements are important - you don't want them under your sit bones - but I've seen padded shorts from reputable brands that have bulky seams in bad places, so wearing padded shorts alone doesn't necessarily mean success. I also know some people who wear things under their padding without trouble.
But I really think the OP is having trouble with positioning not clothing.
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
DCBassman
Guru
- Location
- The lumpy far South West
Aha, a solution! See, on this forum, there's an answer for everything!Seamless running undies are your friend here.
PaulSB
Legendary Member
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
As many have said, could be lots of reasons and solutions, so here is another thought.
How do you actually sit on the saddle when riding? Is all your weight taken up on the saddle, or do you use your legs to support you as well? This is more relevant when hitting bumps and poor road surfaces. Use your legs to take more of the weight and lift your body off the saddle. Just a mm or two will ease the impact to the bum. Your legs are your shock absorbers.
You may not be on clipless pedals yet or toe clips and straps, but these make your footings more secure and safer for transferring more of your weight from the pedals to the feet/legs.
Time is a good solution to this sort of problem.
How do you actually sit on the saddle when riding? Is all your weight taken up on the saddle, or do you use your legs to support you as well? This is more relevant when hitting bumps and poor road surfaces. Use your legs to take more of the weight and lift your body off the saddle. Just a mm or two will ease the impact to the bum. Your legs are your shock absorbers.
You may not be on clipless pedals yet or toe clips and straps, but these make your footings more secure and safer for transferring more of your weight from the pedals to the feet/legs.
Time is a good solution to this sort of problem.
Thank you all - I'm most grateful for all the advice.
I would say that most of my weight is on the bars and saddle - probably a bit more on the saddle, because I used to get numb hands, but I don't suffer from that now, particularly since I added some bar ends so I can move my hands about a bit. I don't feel like I take any weight through my feet, other than when I stand up to go over a rough patch (so my knees are cushioning things). I am, as someone suggested, just riding in trainers with 'regular' pedals.
I'll do a bit of fiddling about and see what I can come up with. Quite frankly, the best thing I can do is shift about 4 stone, but that'll take some time...
Cheers!
I would say that most of my weight is on the bars and saddle - probably a bit more on the saddle, because I used to get numb hands, but I don't suffer from that now, particularly since I added some bar ends so I can move my hands about a bit. I don't feel like I take any weight through my feet, other than when I stand up to go over a rough patch (so my knees are cushioning things). I am, as someone suggested, just riding in trainers with 'regular' pedals.
I'll do a bit of fiddling about and see what I can come up with. Quite frankly, the best thing I can do is shift about 4 stone, but that'll take some time...
Cheers!
You need to assess your whole riding position.
Set your points of contact in the order:
Pedals->saddle->bars
Pedal position is set by the length of the cranks.
Saddle position can be adjusted with a different post. I prefer to use inline post, other riders use more layback. This depends on the proportion of your legs and how upright or aero you like to ride.
Finally bar reach is set by the stem length and rise. Adjustable stems are useful.
Once you have POC adjusted you can fine tune the saddle angle, bar shape and angle.
Most fit advice is for racers but this is for any rider:
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.php
Set your points of contact in the order:
Pedals->saddle->bars
Pedal position is set by the length of the cranks.
Saddle position can be adjusted with a different post. I prefer to use inline post, other riders use more layback. This depends on the proportion of your legs and how upright or aero you like to ride.
Finally bar reach is set by the stem length and rise. Adjustable stems are useful.
Once you have POC adjusted you can fine tune the saddle angle, bar shape and angle.
Most fit advice is for racers but this is for any rider:
https://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.php
DCBassman
Guru
- Location
- The lumpy far South West
mjr
Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
- Location
- mostly Norfolk, sometimes Somerset
My opinion is that there should not be more weight on the bars than the minimal bit needed to steer. If you're pushing on the bars, you're probably counter-balancing by pushing back on the saddle and as you tire, you'll slide forwards into the gap between bars and saddle that you're braced above. I think, ideally, you should have saddle positioned relative to the pedals so you can swing your arms back to your sides without toppling forwards off the saddle, although that does need a little core strength too.
roubaixtuesday
self serving virtue signaller
As others have said, it sounds more like a position thing than saddle design, and ten miles is no distance.
A few suggestions:
- set the saddle horizontal with a spirit level
- try it with the saddle all the way back, and all the way forward on the rails
- Stems are angled. Whichever way yours is (it's probably up) try flipping it, and see if things get worse or better. If worse, try a more steeply angled and/or shorter stem (stems are cheap).
These may not solve your problem, but may help identify how to solve it.
A few suggestions:
- set the saddle horizontal with a spirit level
- try it with the saddle all the way back, and all the way forward on the rails
- Stems are angled. Whichever way yours is (it's probably up) try flipping it, and see if things get worse or better. If worse, try a more steeply angled and/or shorter stem (stems are cheap).
These may not solve your problem, but may help identify how to solve it.
Andy in Germany
Guru
- Location
- Freiburg im Breisgau
Saddles are a very personal issue. I've never used cycling clothes, having found that normal work clothes work fine, but I did have a similar problem of sliding forwards on the saddle when using my clunker commuter bike. I solved it by using an adjustable handlebar stem; I think the reach was a bit too long and the bars were a bit too low, which is a common problem for me on normal sized bikes.
RegG
Über Member
- Location
- Nottingham
Agreed! £250 is a lot of money, especially when taking in an existing bike which could easily be deemed to be the "wrong size". I wanted to get a bike fit on my Giant Defy as I was experiencing discomfort in the shoulders and neck, but not on my Bianchi (for which the LBS gave me a full, complementary bike fit when I bought it). My LBS here in Nottingham wanted £250 when I enquired about getting a fit for the Giant...... I declined, and went to my daughters LBS in North Yorks where they charged just £75 for a very comprehensive fit taking a couple of hours. Shop around to find a better deal if possible.
