Our Tour de France Grand Départ tech gallery revealed more spacers, shorter cranks and more forward saddles than ever before in the pro peloton. These are things bike fitters have been advocating for years, but professional cycling can be resistant to change, particularly with regards to bike set-up.

Tradition and aesthetics long dictated that slammed stems were faster and de rigueur. As our tech editor predicted before the race, Tour de France cyclists have raised their stems for better comfort and potentially aerodynamics. Following the lead of Tadej Pogačar, sub-170mm cranks are more widespread while the relaxation of the UCI's saddle setback rule has brought seats over the bottom bracket.

To explain why more professional cyclists have seen the light, we've spoken to professional bike fitters Bianca Broadbent and Dan Smith, and Sven Reutter, Canyon's road product manager.

You can lead a horse to water

"The biggest trend for me is that a lot of ideas that were once considered unconventional have now become completely normal and acceptable," says Smith, of UK Bike Fit, who has also worked with WorldTour cyclists such as Ben Swift.

"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink," says Broadbent from Fit Your Bike, who has fitted numerous international and professional cyclists. "There's an emotional side and the scientific side to bike fit. A lot of the time with professional cyclists, emotion will rule.

"How do you feel on the bike? I feel that when my stem is slammed, I feel that my bike is faster, therefore I will be faster.'

"If their emotional state changes, they're more likely to want to change their fit."

"In the pro ranks, generally speaking, riders have changed their position in the last couple of years," says Reutter. "Saddles have moved forwards, cranks have shortened, and cockpit heights have got both higher, and widths are narrower."

While the Canyon product manager is right to say handlebar width has decreased, the UCI, cycling's governing body, has halted ever-narrowing shifter hood positions. In addition to a minimum width of 400mm across the handlebars, there must be 280mm between the inside of the shifters. This ruling is arguably more unfair to women than men, since women typically have narrower shoulders, but Broadbent says the majority of male WorldTour riders she fits are on the limit.

"There are a lot of guys who want their shifters closer together but unfortunately can't," she adds. "It's a case of nothing can be done."

There are, of course, exceptions, says Reutter, adding: "There are different preferences for every rider, with some more on the traditional side of things, some more open to change and more progressive setups."

The rise of stem spacers

"I’ve noticed the return of spacers," says Smith. "For years there was almost a stigma attached to running spacers under the stem because slammed equalled fast. Now we're seeing riders and teams becoming much more accepting that a slightly higher front end can actually produce a faster rider over the duration of a race.

"It's been clear for a while that the fastest position for a lot of riders isn't necessarily the lowest position. If increasing stack height allows the rider to relax their shoulders, maintain a better head position and sustain their aerodynamic posture for five hours instead of twenty minutes, that's a win."

Reutter also teams are less focused on the smallest possible frontal area and pay more attention to "sustainable aerodynamics".

"A higher cockpit position might be slightly less aerodynamic, but when you add in the rider and how long they can hold this position, the net result can help the rider in total drag resistance," he says.

Fatigue management has also influenced cockpit height, according to Broadbent.

"The lower the cockpit, the more pressure on the saddle. So that's the longevity issue, in terms of sustainability," she says. "If you're racing long-distance stuff like stage races, the Tour de France, after a few days in the saddle you're going to feel knackered."

Nonetheless, we still see riders in aggressive aero positions, such as Baptiste Veistroffer, potentially because they've calculated it's worth adopting.

"It depends on what you've measured in the wind tunnel," she adds. "If you can see like a delta of 10 watts with a higher and a lower cockpit, you're going to go with whatever's fastest, even for short durations, because you might accelerate away, get in a breakaway and work in a group where you don't need to hold that aggressive position all the time."

The fact that wind tunnel testing won't necessarily reveal lower is faster is another reason cockpits have come up.

"We've had athletes in wind tunnels who have had a really unsustainable position and a very low cockpit," says Broadbent. "We brought them up, raised the torso angle and thought: 'Crap, this is going to be slow'. And it's actually faster.

"Conventionally, what happens is if the cockpit's too low, people push themselves out of position."

Forwards saddles and shorter cranks

Moving saddles further forward and shortening cranks are trends that have caught on simultaneously because they have similar objectives.

"Both open up the hip angle for better blood flow and enable a more aerodynamic position," says Reutter. "Additionally these adjustments reduce stress points and knee compensation movement."

"We're also continuing to see riders moving further over the bottom bracket, particularly as shorter cranks allow greater pelvic rotation without excessive hip closure," says Smith. "This allows riders to produce power from a more stable pelvic position whilst also supporting those higher, longer front ends. Again, it's part of the same overall philosophy rather than an isolated change."

Tadej Pogačar is one of the most famous exponents of shorter cranks, and while some cycling fans are sceptical of the benefit it has brought him, and others, bike fitters like Smith can see the positive effect of finding the optimal crank length for a particular rider.

"Watching Pogačar's stage win on 14 July, what really stood out to me was just how open his hip angle remained at the top of the pedal stroke when climbing the last rise to the line," adds Smith. "Historically, if a rider had been producing that much power in such an aggressive position, you'd expect to see the hip much more compressed. Instead, it looked incredibly open and unrestricted."

Broadbent also says the 'Pogačar effect' has convinced more pros to go shorter than the traditional 175mm and 172.5mm cranks.

"We've been trying to get people on shorter cranks for years, but the main problem was belief," she says. "So when Tadej put shorter cranks on, people said to me: 'I really want to do this', although they said no when we discussed it the year before."

However, short cranks haven't been adopted across the board because they won't necessarily work for taller riders, as Wout van Aert's experimentation suggested, and have knock-on effects.

"There is a risk involved because you can't put on different cranks without the data to back it up," says Broadbent. "Although you can compensate for shorter crank length to a degree, it will have an impact on certain scenarios where you do need leverage."

Is the answer progressive geometry?

So-called 'progressive geometry' is becoming a bike-fit buzz word. This geometry, famous in mountain biking and seen on the likes of Factor's One, lengthens the reach and pushes the rider over the bottom bracket, eliminating the need for long stems of the past. Its proponents argue it can rectify the compromised handling caused by more forward positions.

"If 'progressive geometry' means steeper seat tube angles, taller stacks and longer reaches that naturally position riders further over the bottom bracket, then I wouldn't be surprised to see manufacturers head further in that direction for race bikes," says Smith.

"Historically we've seen many pro riders using 130-160mm stems, sometimes even having custom stems made to achieve the position they wanted. If the frame itself provides more reach and a steeper seat angle, those extreme stem lengths become less necessary. For professional riders, progressive geometry makes a lot of sense."

But he is more concerned about how consumers will deal with such geometry.

"Professional riders are an incredibly specific population. They're exceptionally flexible, produce huge amounts of power and spend enormous amounts of time adapting to aggressive positions. Recreational riders generally don't," he adds.

"If everyday riders are placed significantly further over the bottom bracket simply because that's how the bike is designed, we could start to see more issues relating to weight distribution, upper-body loading and overall comfort. A position that's ideal for Tadej Pogačar isn't automatically ideal for someone riding three hours at the weekend to the cafe and back.

"I suspect manufacturers will continue building bikes around the demands of the WorldTour because that's what sells bikes, but I think fitters may end up having to work even harder to adapt those bikes to normal riders."

Broadbent is more skeptical that pros need progressive geometry, such as longer frame reach, to get their fit.

"When manufacturers provide stems up to 140mm in length, that is probably okay, as long as the frame geometry is reasonably long," she says. "It's not like on the track where stems sometimes need to be 180mm."

She also believes it would be rash for bike designers to make taller head tubes.

"I think that might be what you want aesthetically and aerodynamically, but you also need adjustability. And if you start coming up too much, then you lose the ability to reverse adjust that.

"I think you want consistent data to see what that's like over the course of multiple seasons before you start making that permanent change. After that, if you want to get lower you have to size down the frame and then you have the issue with the length. For example, not everyone sticks to shorter cranks; some people change back to longer ones."

Customised touchpoints

There seems to be more attention on personalising bike fits, whether that's through overall measurements or components.

"There might be more scope to go down the custom saddles route," says Broadbent. "Your limitations mainly are manufacturers and their ability to lend resources to it while making a cost-effective product. But the advent of more mass-scale 3D-printing makes it easier to offer personalised solutions, so long as that 3D infrastructure is appropriate for that person."

"In general it's important to understand that a good bike fit is pretty specific for every rider," says Reutter.

"At Canyon we try to create a bike where every rider can achieve their personal best position, this is the reason why we offer different setbacks for our seatposts, lengths from 70mm to 140mm in the cockpit and a whole range of dropbar options, customisable drops, plus a one-piece cockpit. We are increasingly supporting these options with drag testing on the track and in the wind tunnel to find the most efficient position."

The universal pro bike fit is on the way out, according to Smith.

"I've noticed that the positions across the peloton are becoming less extreme and more individual," he says. "Ten years ago there was almost an expectation that every GC rider should be as low and stretched as possible. Now there seems to be greater acceptance that riders can arrive at different solutions based on their morphology, physiology and riding style."

He has also seen bike fits become more rounded, considering aerodynamics, biomechanics and performance all together.

"WorldTour bike fit is not just about comfort or injury prevention or CdA," he adds. "It's becoming an all-round position where the goal is to find the fastest position a rider can actually sustain over the duration of a three-week race."

Variable bike fits

Reutter says certain riders on Canyon-sponsored teams (Alpecin-Premier Tech and Movistar in the men's peloton; Movistar, Fenix-Premier Tech, Canyon-SRAM in the women's peloton) slightly change their position during a stage race.

"Especially at Grand Tours, some riders have kind of off days," he says. "The goal is purely to recover as much as possible. Some riders prefer a more relaxed position on such days and go, for example, for our Compact Drops [which have a shorter drop and reach].

"This approach is rather new to the pro scene and we’re constantly exploring possibilities in this direction."

Notwithstanding the potential benefits, professional cyclists probably won't be able to significantly change their position.

"I think in an ideal world you would potentially have a slightly different position for one-day races and Grand Tours," says Broadbent.

"Having said that, these guys are very well trained. They're exceptional athletes and it depends a little bit who they are.

"If you're a sprinter, it might be more crucial to think about having a more relaxed position on non-sprint days. But the reality is, from a logistical point of view, it's just very, very difficult for teams to do that."

Spacers can't easily be added and removed from integrated cockpits once the steerer has been cut, and it would place high demands on mechanics to swap steerer lengths. But given how much pro bike fits have changed lately and how much teams' budgets have grown, maybe stage-specific bike fits will become the next frontier.

The new Factor ONE has a striking aero design but comes with some pretty unconventional geometry, including a longer wheelbase and forward mounting position for the handlebars, ahead of the steering axis.

At the launch, Factor's Director of Engineering, Graham Strive, spoke of "changing rider demands". Factor's approach to the geometry on the new bike, which offers a seat angle of some 76 degrees, and a further forward steering position, is a direct result of the WorldTour peloton requesting longer stems.

Factor says the issue with the "race to the front", is that as stem lengths increase a rider’s weight is pushed further over the front wheel. According to the brand, this has resulted in more crashes. To counteract this, the Factor ONE uses a longer wheelbase to put the front wheel further in front, a longer top tube (around 2cm) and a lower bottom bracket.

Riders are able to fundamentally change a bike's stability with things like longer stems, but with such a gulf between levels of bike handling skills from the front to the back of the peloton, should they be allowed to adjust as they see fit?

I've thought for years that the average cyclist, indeed, many people in the industry, still doesn't really understand front-end stability. And now we’ve heard this theory from a big brand too.

Tony Foale, a brilliant motorcycling engineer, has principles which explain or rebut almost every questionable trend we currently see in pro bike fit. I think long stems and slammed-forward saddles are far more likely to be causing the kind of pile ups we see in the pro peloton, than the overly narrow bars, or deeper section wheel rims, which have been the target of recent UCI regulations.

The forgotten fundamentals of handling

Two-wheeled vehicles – whether a motorcycle or bicycle – obey the same principles. Just because my trusty Honda Fireblade has 130bhp on tap and the other bike, my road bike, has my somewhat sub-prime legs to do the drive, does not mean the physics get up and leave the room.

Foale’s work is useful here, as it tells us that stability is governed by:

- The position of the combined rider-bike centre of mass (CoM)

- Steering geometry (trail, rake, wheelbase, etc)

- The mass distribution over each wheel

- The inertias of the steering assembly

Notice what’s not in that list: stiffness, weight or aerodynamics, although good steering does rely on a measure of stiffness. Despite this, bicycle fitting in pro cycling for the past few years has shown a sort of collective disregard for these basics.

Instead, they’ve been traded off for other desirable characteristics such as aero, or a sense of ‘feeling forward’, often leaving it to the individual rider to specify a stem they think feels about right. Or they might use a slammed-forward saddle which reaches halfway along the top tube.

Riders have always downsized frames, that’s not troubling. That’s been one way riders have increased the stiffness of a frame, or achieved a lower position, and it isn’t in and of itself problematic. In doing so, to make more room ‘in the bike’, stem length has crept up. Racier stems and positions therefore, tend to be associated with going longer.

But the place we’ve arrived at is stretching from sensible to comical. Combined with forward saddle positions, which ignore set-back, a whole generation of pro bikes now litter the paddocks with set ups that are theoretically fast, but handle worse.

You can't feel that in a wind tunnel. It’s instead, less measurable, and only felt in your wrists when descending at 90kph. While it might not be on graphs, it is seen in crashes and the techniques of some on descents.

The role of saddle set-back in weight distribution

What’s the problem? In bike design terms, pretty much everything starts at the bottom bracket. Set-back, stack and reach, front centre, rear centre, handlebar X and Y, are all measured from here. The position of the saddle relative to it is critical, that's the saddle set-back. I think it could be one of the most misunderstood measures in frame design and fit.

Foale teaches us that a rider’s mass relative to the contact patches of the tyres determines the stability envelope. Move the mass backward and the front wheel becomes lighter, move it forward and you sharpen the steering. Overdo this, and you sharpen it too much. This balancing act, to simplify matters somewhat, starts with saddle set-back and stem length.

A forward saddle and long stem can make your bike handling harder, or at least require that you’re very much better at using the machine.

If you looked at WorldTour bikes today, you’ll notice a large number of riders in an extreme, forward position. Increasingly, riders have taken to sliding the saddle all the way forward on its rails, on a zero or even positive set-back post. When paired up with much narrower bars, and a long, slammed stem, the rider's mass is in many cases is then precariously far forward, giving rise to significant instability in the steering.

It's not just fashion that's driving it. There’s a few perceived benefits too. A forward position opens up the hip angle, allowing more power generation. It also helps aero efficiency, getting the rider forward, and lower in the bike, and suits pro cycling’s obsession to “slam it, send it, suffer”, perhaps.

When you shift all the weight in the system forward, you load up your hands, and by shifting the system weight forward and on to the bars, you overload the fork and front wheel, and you reduce the margin for error, or correction, when cornering.

Practically, the bike can feel like it’s on a knife edge and for riders that expect a little focus in the handling of their race bike, or don't know any better, this can feel fast. But it can also be catastrophically unforgiving.

Some pros are athletes rather than bike handlers, and don’t have the same innate skill that others do. To keep them upright when riding under pressure or in close quarters, they need a comparatively more stable set up.

The trouble is, a glance around the paddock shows that often, they're the ones riding on the least stable set ups.

Slamming a stem is a pretty popular move. But, moving the bars out more on a longer stem, further ahead of the steering axis, moves more of the rider’s upper body weight (and CoM) further ahead of the headset.

This increases steering sensitivity. And introduces what Foale refers to as “parasitic input” - which basically means, the involuntary movements your torso, shoulders and arms make, can and do inadvertently become steering inputs. This gives rise to twitchy handling. It makes the bike feel nervous, because your mind and body is unable to filter out the unwanted motion.

Shift your weight further forward again, with a forward saddle position, and it gets even worse. You’re basically now trying to type on a keyboard whilst doing a handstand. You’ve made an otherwise relatively simple operation, very much harder.

Downhill performance isn't just a head game

Descending with confidence is rarely psychological alone. It’s biomechanical. Neurophysiological. Above all, mechanical. For better descenders, their CoM is so well positioned, and repositioned so dynamically, they can probably drift round bends if they want to.

Imagine a rider battling constant micro-instability in their front end because the fit loads the bars too heavily. Each corner then becomes a small act of faith. Eventually, that’s going to knock your confidence, and eventually it will crack. Imagine that happening in a bunch, or off the side of a mountain at 90kmph.

In cycling, we often blame the rider. They just need to worry less, or go faster. And that’s patently ridiculous. At the same time, the quest for aero at all costs, is leading to some very whack set ups, that Factor now publicly acknowledges is putting riders at higher risk of crashing.

We have to take this issue more seriously and at least perform some common sense checks. The riding experience is just much less forgiving than it was 10 or 15 years ago. And crashes reflect that.

What can be done to fix it?

Better fit, or tighter controls could help. The other aspect we could look into is the reframing of what it means to be confident on a bike.

As a bike journalist, you’d hope I can sense when a bicycle is looking after me, but a bike’s ability to hold a line effortlessly is often about fit or set-up. The way you feel you can adjust mid corner without upsetting traction, keeping the rear wheel in touch, or sense the way a front tyre feels loaded but not overwhelmed. This can all be down to set up, and can all give rise to confidence, for any rider.

And confidence isn’t just about bravery. It’s not even really about talent. It’s about stability. Stability can be designed in, or I think that’s what Tony Foale would say at least.

Aerodynamics in cycling is a tricky business. On the surface, it seems simple: smaller, smoother, strategically shaped objects move through the air more efficiently. But beyond those broad strokes, the science gets deeply complex.

Until recently, meaningful aerodynamic assessments required wind tunnels and/or sophisticated on-bike instruments, both of which are costly and time-consuming. AiRO, a Salt Lake City–based technology firm, aims to change that with an AI-powered aerodynamic analysis app that lets bike fitters optimise any rider’s position using just a few measurements, a stationary trainer, and a few photos.

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) programs have long supported wind tunnel and track testing at the WorldTour and Olympic level, but they rely on detailed 3D scans and long processing times to build digital avatars.

AiRO replaces those scans with AI-driven photo analysis, cutting turnaround to minutes. Most importantly, it makes quantitative aerodynamic testing available to a much broader audience.

To understand how it works, I met the team behind AiRO and went through the fitting process myself. Here’s what I learned and how many watts I was able to save.

AiRO background: Specialized and speed skating

AiRO is the brainchild of Ingmar Jungnickel, an award-winning aerodynamicist with a long history in cycling aerodynamics. His expertise was honed during his years at Specialized, where he served as one of the company’s lead aerodynamicists.

“I had the keys to the wind tunnel and Specialized really encouraged open exploration as well,” Jungnickel, a self-described aero-nerd, said. “I did that quite a lot in the first couple of years. I would stay late after work with a bunch of the other aero friends.

“We'd order pizza and we just test ourselves for another four, five hours. At the other tunnels, where you pay per hour, you just don't try crazy things. You're like, ‘This test is going to cost us $600, do I really want to test this?’”

Specialized, during their “Aero is Everything” era, was all for this unstructured wind-tunnel tinkering. In fact, it all played a part in the innovation around vaunted tech like the Specialized Shiv, Venge and various iterations of the Tarmac. Functionally, this also enabled Jungnickel to complete the full bell curve of aerodynamic understanding.

“First, you get into this phase where you realise how your aero is structured. So the simple models. Then you realised those models don't really work – everybody is different. Then, when you test even more, at some point, you start seeing more of the correlations, but it takes a lot of testing to get to that point.”

After his nearly nine years with Specialized, Jungnickel went on to speedskating in support of the US national speedskating team. And this is where AiRo was born. His AiRO app was first developed for use by the U.S. Speed Skating team in preparation for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. His results with the speed skating team were so good that he was able to spin off that app to a public technology, bringing AI aero modelling to the public.

But rather than focusing on speedskating, Jungnickel returned to his roots, developing an app for high-end bike fitters and performance coaches, including WorldTour clients, to model and test rider positions for aerodynamic optimisation.

“We chose to work with high-end bike fitters only because you can try whatever you want in the app,” he said. “You can bend the digital twin into any position. And we want you to have the best position, not just the lowest drag position."

Even though a professional bike fit can seem expensive, it’s a mere fraction of the cost of aerodynamic wind tunnel testing. To bring a bike fit expert to a wind tunnel and run two hours of testing typically costs $2,000-$2,500. While the wind tunnel can test equipment that AiRO can’t, AiRO can account for testing everything else—including helmets—for a fee well under $500 in a similar session.

What’s more, all those non-equipment-related factors AiRO tests for account for roughly 60-75% of the total aero equation.

“If you run the dollar spent per improvement, we're seeing 20 to 30 watt average improvements from aero testing, and that is for a few hundred dollars," said Jungnickel.

"Wind tunnel testing is still a great return on investment with a $2,000 session, which is actually money well spent. But now we can offer a similar service for $200.”

A focus on body position, not equipment

I received my AiRO bike fit at a co-working space in Tempe, Arizona. Jungnickel flew in to meet with Brian Stover, an independent aerodynamic expert and bike fitter with over a decade of experience. Stover is one of the first fitters to have access to the AiRO technology. I was one of their guinea pigs.

“First, we will look at reach and stack,” Stover explained as I started pedalling on a trainer. “How you're holding your head, how you're riding the bike, do you tend to have your elbows out, or do you tend to ride with them in? Do you tend to have your hands this way to bring your elbows in? How are your shoulders looking? Are you rounded? Are you like squeezing your shoulders up? Are you relaxed?

“That's where you need to start to build out the rest of the fine-tuning.”

Stover says the AiRO app has made his aero-specific fits a lot more effective for one key reason: it offers a massive head start to the complicated process of personal aero optimisation.

“This is a way to pre-screen some of those basic tests that you might do to narrow down the options in the wind tunnel, because if you're charging people $12-15 a minute, you don't want to get in there and test everything under the sun. You need to have a pretty definitive list of what you want to test and how you want to test it.

“Using this app is a way to reduce some of those variables beforehand, so maybe you're limited to three or four positional changes that you already know have a higher probability of working.”

To achieve all this, it starts with a photo to get a parametric human model. That, along with a few body measurements such as weight and height, is entered into the app. Then, it's a short wait to get the “virtual twin,” which is the basis for the rest of the modelling to come.

As we mentioned earlier in the article, there are other CFD models that WorldTour teams and Olympic programs use; they just require full 3D body scans and extensive manual corrections to be effective. The picture-based AI software allows AiRO to use 4,000 different adjustment points to get a precise representation of the rider’s body contours and produce more robust data with much less manual input.

After that, it's up to the rider to show their baseline position on the bike, take photos from the side and from the front, and recreate that with the digital twin in the app. That position is the first simulation that runs on the most powerful supercomputer AiRO can rent. 15 minutes later, the simulation is done, and the adjustments can begin.

“That is where the app begins to do its work and the magic starts happening,” Jungnickel said when the time came to start playing around with models and simulations. “We can do iterations purely on the digital twin, and that takes 30 seconds for each variation to build, and it takes seven minutes to run.”

The AiRO testing and fitting

At this point, all the setup was wrapped up, and it was Stover’s time to shine.

Unfortunately, my personal road bike, a Haro Rivette, has an integrated cockpit, so the changes we could make were always going to be limited. Most of the changes would come from the seat and from the few spacers we had to work with at the front end of the bike.

“First of all, you're looking to optimise aerodynamics by reducing drag, right?” Stover said when getting me started. “So if I can shave 10-12 watts of drag off without causing you any decrease in power, then suddenly you're now roughly 1 second per kilometre faster and nothing else has changed.

“Then, I put you into a position where you're comfortable, aero, and you can still put out the power, so we reduce drag and we can increase power a little bit, and/or increase comfort. Then you can put out five watts more, but you also reduce drag by 10 watts, so you’re gaining from both ends.”

Generally, I am not picky when it comes to bike fits; it is a by-product of hopping on different setups for work and constantly switching between road, gravel and mountain bikes. I thought my position was fairly neutral. My stem isn’t slammed, but it only ever has 1 or 2 5mm spacers underneath, and I typically hover around 120mm stem length.

What was immediately apparent was that this wasn’t the right setup to optimise around aerodynamics. And finally, there was concrete data to back it up.

What really underscored the fault of this approach was positioning my digital twin in a position that was equivalent to riding in the drops. Ideally, this position would have a lower CDA (the aerodynamic term for the drag of an object) than the standard baseline position of riding in the hoods. In reality, it was worse.

Ideally, at this point in the fit, he would have swapped stems, and we’d be off. But with a one-piece integrated cockpit that wasn’t an option, it was noted for a future change. There were still things we could do to find aero gains within the constraints of the bike’s position. And that was where I found the AiRO app to be the most impactful.

Finding dozens of watts of aero gains

Using the virtual twin as my guide, we began tinkering with different elements of my body position within the set constraints of the front of the bike. Using Stover and Jungnickel’s insight as a guide, we looked at my forearm bend, head position, and how my shoulders contoured as the main points of change. We then took these changes from my virtual twin to my position on the trainer, using it as a guide for me to try different things and report back what seemed beneficial.

Throughout this process, I pushed my saddle forward and tilted the nose down, giving me greater ability to pivot my hips and adjust my hands and shoulders. That, in turn, let me move my forearms down to a parallel position with the ground, and really drop my head between my shoulders. Matching the virtual twin to that position then gave us the data we were really hoping for: when the going gets really important, just how many watts can I save at race pace?

After running the full simulation, these were the main conclusions the AiRO app was able to establish:

“Starting from his baseline position of 0.271 m², we systematically tested five configurations, keeping bike coordinates constant while making meaningful body position changes,” read my final fit analysis that was sent to me after the test.

The results were striking: while adding a helmet marginally increased drag to 0.273 m² (costing 1 watt), lowering hand position proved significantly worse at 0.277 m² (costing 5 watts).

"The lower hands position was particularly instructive: despite seeming aerodynamic, it exposed more arm surface area, and since the arms account for roughly 25% of total drag, this single change significantly compromised overall efficiency.

Then came the breakthrough positions: the aero tuck dropped CdA to 0.237 m², saving 28 watts at 40 km/h, while the lower head position achieved 0.228 m²—a remarkable 15.8% reduction from baseline.

“At 40 km/h over a 40km time trial, the lower head position saves 173 seconds (nearly 3 minutes) and 37 watts compared to baseline, or close to 6 minutes over an Ironman bike leg.”

Now, that optimal position is not a position I can hold for a long time. Twenty minutes, max. Yet, that’s not the goal. Since this isn’t for time trials, it is more important to have an A and B position, one more aggressive, one more relaxing, to give me the best mix of sustainable power and overall aerodynamics. All of this is easy to test and reinforce with the system. There are also elements, like dropping my head, that I can do at any point to stack seconds gained across a race day.

For me, a huge takeaway beyond those positional insights was what it meant for future purchasing decisions. A 130-140mm stem is certainly on the short-term list, but it could be more than that. My next bike will likely be a 58cm frame and not a 56cm frame. Or, counterintuitively, I might need to find the right all-road bike rather than an aero bike to get into the aero-optimised position. Soon, I will also be able to model different helmets in the app, without even trying them on, to make sure I am getting the right one for my body without having to buy multiples and then test them later.

“You can become much more aggressive with your position, and you can trade a little bit of comfort for some power or some drag reductions,” Stover said, “but you can't do that with an Iron Man or gravel. So you really have to think about this as reducing drag, but also increasing comfort at the same time, and increasing power.”

Overall, my bike fit fell short of its full potential, partly from my bike’s limitations and partly due to my inability to hold that optimised position for long periods of time. The fit was also conducted on a road bike rather than on a time trial, which is where I spend most of my solo riding time and where fit data tends to be more impactful. In retrospect, bringing my gravel bike in might have been more effective. However, with bike handling more important off-road, I am more hesitant to completely optimize around aerodynamics on gravel.

Still, many of the insights can be transferred, especially in key moments when I am road racing and I do hit the front. It is all concrete to me in a way it has never been before.

You can read my full AiRO report here!

There are several pre-ride checks that, as cyclists, we all do almost instinctively. Give tyres a little squeeze, grab both brakes, check the headset, and, assuming all is well, head off. But one of the tiniest screws, if left unchecked, could spell a very nasty end to your ride.

And don't I know it.

As a family of bike riders across three disciplines, combined with my job as a bike tester, we have more bikes than pedals. We're constantly swapping them between cross bikes, mountain bikes, and our ragged collection of road bikes.

One day, in a rush to leave, I grabbed some spare pedals and attached them to my mountain bike.

It turned out that the last user of the pedals had been my 11-year-old daughter, practicing her cyclocross dismounts.

Unfortunately, I realised too late that the pedal binder spring tension was significantly looser than I had anticipated. As I took off from what seemed a harmless jump, I found myself footloose and ending up rolling around in, thankfully, a patch of bracken.

Luckily, with just my pride hurt, I dusted myself off and realised how much worse it could have been without the soft landing to save me. I hadn't even noticed that the pedal tension was that loose when I clipped in.

Later, discussing this with cycling buddies, it turns out I'm not the only one guilty of neglecting to double-check this tiny screw on every ride. While most cyclists aren't quite as fluid with their pedal swaps as perhaps my family is, many of my riding friends couldn't recall when they last checked their pedal settings or, in some cases, had ever done so.

Sheepishly, I turned to the experts, and, equally relieved but concerned, it transpired that my friends and I were far from being the only ones to fail this pre-flight check.

According to Richard Salisbury, a qualified Sports Rehabilitation Specialist and Professional Bike Fitter at Pedal Precision, this issue arises at almost every bike fit.

"It's expectations that get us into trouble," confirms Salisbury. "Whether the pedal binder spring tension is too tight or too loose, if the pedal doesn't do what our minds and bodies expect, that's when we can suffer either a small tumble or a big fall," explaining that our bodies are primed to do what we expect our pedals to do. When they don't, we become unbalanced.

"It can be a psychological barrier to people new to riding" Salisbury tells me, explaining how it's common for people to invest in a pedal and shoe setup, but don't know how best to adjust the little grub screw on the spring tension, " they end up being so scared, people try to overcome the fear of being clipped by loosening them too much.

"There's a point of no return, specifically in Shimano pedals, where the binder spring tension becomes so loose that it doesn't release the cleat," warns Salisbury. He also mentions that this, along with the misconception that riders new to clipless pedals should start with an extensive range of pedal float, are precisely the two ingredients that can lead to injuries, whether from knee problems or falls.

Charlotte Tysler, Digital Marketing and Communications Manager, Look Pedals, agrees on the importance of considering float and tension together to "achieve the right balance between comfort, safety, and performance."

So, how much tension should your pedals have?

Tysler again, "The preset tension [at Look] depends purely on the model. Entry-level models are set with a lighter release tension (around 6 or 8) this makes them more accessible to beginner riders" she says, adding that high-end models come with a higher preset (up to 16), which Look believe are better suited to experienced cyclists seeking a firmer and more secure connection.

Understandable for the manufacturer, but this preset tension could be far from ideal for the rider.

Salisbury explains that even rider size can impact pedal tension: "A smaller rider will get away with a looser spring tension compared to a bigger rider who will push big watts from the start."

Surprisingly he also adds that "The size of your feet play a role in how easy you find it to clip in or out of your pedals," explaining that a larger foot equals a longer lever, which creates a greater distance from the pivot point and therefore amplifies the effort needed, making it easier to overcome a tighter bind with less physical effort".

But where is best to start?

"I usually start with the tension on the middle setting on all pedals, then just adjust on feel to what I prefer," says Ex-professional cyclist, Nikki Brammeier, adding that it's essential to do this on every pair as "Not all pedals are the same, even the same brand and model can feel drastically different"!

As someone who has raced at the World Championship level across four different disciplines (cyclocross, road, mountain bike, and track) and now runs Mudiiita coaching for new and experienced riders, Brammeier knows a thing or two about pedal tension and getting it right.

"I like there to be a definitive amount of pressure before the cleat unclips," she says, adding that "Obviously, doing standing starts or sprints, there's a high chance of torsion through the pedals, so there needs to be a decent amount of resistance.

"With something like cyclocross, you'll be clipping in and out often, so you need them loose enough to do that, but tight enough so you feel confident off the line or in those big power bursts that come with accelerating out of corners. Crits are a bit the same. It really is down to personal preference".

And then there's mobility to factor in

"A rider's mobility will impact how much tension you'll want," says Salisbury. "We all revisit saddle choice, bike position, and even float, but that little grub screw is rarely moved from when we first started riding."

Salisbury explains that tightening or loosening the spring tension screw should be a semi-regular maintenance task, as our cleats wear out or our mobility changes. "Almost everyone who comes in for a bike fit has only adjusted it once, and that was when they first got their pedals.

"Many riders have been using the same pedals for decades, it's something we often overlook and assume will always be on the correct setting.

I reflect on my own riding experience, and while I've adjusted my overall position due to an ongoing back issue and even transitioned to less stiff shoes, as comfort now outweighs performance, I've never adjusted my grub screw to take into account my mobility (or lack thereof).

For women, menstrual cycles, the perimenopausal period, and menopause fluctuate and decline estrogen levels, meaning mobility will be changing constantly. It's wild when I think about how I failed to make any pedal spring tension adjustments when the hormone, relaxin, was pumping around me when I was pregnant. Looking back, I'm surprised I didn't dislocate an ankle or hip.

As one of only three points of contact with my bike, I feel seriously guilty about the lack of attention I've given it.

It's a topic it sits far higher on Brammier's priority list, adding that as well as paying attention to pedal spring tension, "it's also really important to replace your cleats more often than you think." she says, telling me that it's something she always tells riders she works with, adding that it " makes a big difference to the function of the pedals.

"Often we wait until we pull our feet out before we get new cleats, but really we should be checking and replacing them on a regular basis."

I consider myself well and truly educated on that little grub screw. I can't promise to check for cleat wear before all rides, but I'll be paying way more attention to tension depending on whose bike they were last on, where I am on my cycle, and whether or not I'm planning to leave the ground.

This article has been freshly updated as part of our 'New to Riding' week, running from March 10 to March 17, with a special focus on tips, tricks and inspiration for new riders.

It’s likely you’ll need to make a few adjustments on a new bike so that it fits you well. Being one of three contact points, the height of your handlebars can make a big difference to comfort, how the bike feels to ride and, consequently, how confident you are. You can have a professional bike fit or you can make some adjustments yourself with a DIY bike fit.

As a beginner cyclist, you’re likely to feel that a higher, more upright position is more comfortable — because it generally is! But if you want a racier, more aerodynamic position then you should lower your bars.

The good news is that changing handlebar height is a simple job, so if something doesn’t feel quite right, make small adjustments up or down to work out what's best for you. Bike geometry also plays a big part; if you're riding a more aggressive road bike model, you may not need to lower your bars at all, or may need to raise them, whereas if you have an endurance road bike it will have a taller head tube and a more upright position to start with.

Read our step-by-step guide and watch our video to become an expert at adjusting your handlebar height.

How to set your handlebar height in five easy steps

Setting your handlebar height correctly is often overlooked but is an important step in creating your perfect ride, whether you're hunting aerodynamic gains or want more comfort.

Before making a start, you should account for things like your bike's geometry: a bike with a short head tube will naturally place the handlebars in a lower position, and vice versa. So just because you had all the spacers removed on one bike, it doesn't mean the same applies to another.

Signs your handlebars are too low include numb hands and soreness in the lower back. If you're making adjustments as a result of discomfort, the amount of pain you're suffering from should also be understood. If you're suffering a little soreness from a curved back this article should help you, but if you're in pure agony when riding we suggest seeing a professional bike fitter.

Step one - Have an idea of what you want

Getting that perfect fit can be determined by a few different things. Firstly, what do you want to get out of your riding? Are you a long distance rider who values comfort or a racer who wants to shave seconds off your personal best?

Generally, if you're after comfort, you'll want a slightly higher position, if it's aerodynamics and speed, you'll want to be lower. But bear in mind if you go too low for your level of core strength and flexibility, you'll throw off your balance, producing less power and thus going slower.

Step two - Measure your comfort zone

If you're looking for a more comfortable position for those longer rides you may entertain the idea of a more upright position, so higher handlebars would be a good solution. Alternatively if you're racing, you'll want to drop the handlebar height to a point where you're low enough but not in discomfort. A good way of doing this would be to get a bike fit where they can measure your body to the outcome you want.

Unless you're very serious about getting that perfect height, bike fits can be a bit expensive so don't worry. A simple case of listening to your body when running a few different heights will give you a good indication as to what is a good height for you.

Step three - Loosen your stem cap and screws

Now that you know what height you want it's simply a case of rearranging your existing set up. First you'll want to unscrew your stem cap bolt, usually a 4mm or 5mm hex bolt that's situated in the centre of your stem cap. You'll need a multitool or Allen key for this. Once this is removed you can undo the bolts securing your stem to the steerer. They're usually 4mm hex bolts, but you'll sometimes find other sizes or Torx bolts.

Step four - Remove your stem and adjust any spacers accordingly

Now that your stem is loosened, you can lower it or make it higher using your spacers. If you want a more aero position you may find yourself removing all the spacers and placing them on top of your stem giving you a lower position. The opposite will be true if you want a more upright posture, seeing more spacers being placed under the stem to give it a higher position.

You need to replace all your spacers back in the stack for the steerer to be safe. If you're confident in your new position you can get the head tube cut down for a neater look, but it's a one-way street — there's no going back once it's done. You should get this done by a bike shop who will have the right tools to make a parallel cut and will know how much to cut the steerer down.

Step five - Re-tighten the stem cap and screws

Now that you've adjusted your set-up to your needs, you can go ahead and tighten everything back up and be on your way. When doing this, make sure your handlebars align in a straight position so as not to affect your steering.

A final point to note is that when tightening screws, it's best practice to use a torque wrench to get the correct tension, preventing overtightening and failure. When doing so, be sure to tighten each screw to the same torque, giving an even fitting across all your screws. Your stem will usually have a maximum torque figure stamped on it. It's normally quite light, often 5Nm.

For the most part this should help alleviate any past problems but if you find that you are still suffering we recommend a visit to your local bike fitter who will be able to go into more depth with analysis of your riding position.

Handlebar height, handling and fashion

More than simply choosing between different functions — comfort and handling/aerodynamics — handlebar height has long been discussed in terms of fashion.

Although fewer cyclists have the ‘long and low’ attitude these days, you’ll find some do still like to slam their stem — moving all the spacers from below the handlebars to above them, to get as low as possible. It may be the best choice for some riders, particularly racers, but it’s definitely not right for everyone and there are lots of cyclists out there that still do it purely because it looks fast, with little regard for how they will feel after three hours in the saddle.

As a beginner cyclist, you may be of any age; you may be looking to commute or looking for a new way to stay active in your retirement. Being comfortable when you start cycling means you’re more likely to keep it going, and not give up because you’ve got discomfort in your wrists or neck, for example.

Lower handlebars are, in general, more aerodynamic and look and feel ‘racier’ (and it’s what you’ll see on most professional road cyclists’ bikes), and the lower centre of gravity that a lower front end creates does improve handling and traction. However, take this too far and it can have an inverse effect, as well as potentially make you very uncomfortable.

The reality though is that many cyclists don’t have the flexibility nor the core strength to maintain a slammed or even relatively low position, one in which there’s a big drop between the saddle and bars.

Having higher handlebars will give you a more upright position on the bike and, although handling is generally slightly better with lower bars, the upright position is more natural for the new cyclist so should give you more confidence.

Either way, you want to be comfortable in all hand positions: lever hoods, bar drops and bar tops; there’s no point in lowering your handlebars to find you can't reach the gears and brakes, or lose all confidence on a steep descent. We recommend making small adjustments at a time to discover the best position.

Handlebar height FAQs

There seems to be a move towards 'unisex' within the bike industry, with fewer ‘female-specific’ options compared to a few years ago. Does this open up more choice for women because the range of available products becomes wider, or is it just an opportunity for brands to reduce the number of units they otherwise would have to produce? Or is it because ‘female-specific’ in cycling is just not required?

There is no doubt that women and men are anatomically and physiologically different. Women, on average, are shorter and smaller. They are also lighter, with less mean muscle mass. They have narrower shoulders and wider pelvises and hips, a lower waist-to-hip ratio, and breasts.

The aforementioned wider pelvis led to the creation of the female-specific chamois, which has now been in existence for many years. It remains perhaps the most obvious example of the genuine need, at times, of the industry to create products solely designed for women. Indeed, women's cycling clothing lines remain a staple of the industry, although there have been recent attempts to produce unisex jerseys, most notably from the Italian brand Santini.

Whilst there have been several studies that state that women have relatively longer legs and shorter torsos compared to men, as a physiotherapist and bike fitter, I have not found this to be the case from statistics collected in the clinic I work in. I have seen a general trend for women to be more flexible than men, which is also supported by research studies. However, there is a high degree of overlap between typically male or female traits.

Therefore, I have always been of the opinion that ‘women-specific’ is a marketing myth when it comes to bikes and components; the rider should always be assessed as an individual and fit accordingly, rather than based on their gender.

In terms of bike geometry, ‘women-specific’ has typically meant a shorter reach and higher stack, which puts it at the endurance end of the continuum rather than race, the argument being that women have longer legs and a shorter torso. Perhaps it could also be conforming to the stereotype that women are less likely to adopt an aggressive position than men. This shape of bike may suit some women, but in my experience, it suits just as many men, especially those who are inflexible or have poor posture on the bike.

So, if women don’t need a bike or components that are ‘women-specific’, does the average woman have different needs compared to the average man?

With women being shorter in stature, they will generally need a smaller-sized bike, especially those at the shorter end of the bell curve. Some bike manufacturers just don’t make bikes that are small enough for a large proportion of women. There are also challenges in bike design for those who are quite short in stature (under around 160cm).

They may need narrower handlebars and shorter cranks. Again, the small end of the bell curve may struggle to access appropriately sized components and have more difficulty with availability due to the smaller numbers of these sizes being produced.

Statistically, most women have wider sit bones than most men, by nature of being designed for childbirth, so they are more likely to need a wider saddle. Saddles are becoming increasingly unisex, and whilst some brands still label their saddles as male or female, it is becoming less common. Saddle suitability and comfort is incredibly individual, with factors such as your pelvis width, riding style, and soft tissue anatomy all influencing personal preference. I have seen a number of men comfortable on a 'womens' saddle.

If a ‘women-specific’ bike is already fitted with narrower handlebars and a wider saddle (compared to the corresponding size in a ‘men’s’ bike), this can be useful and cost-effective, as it may lessen the need to change them.

As mentioned, clothing on the other hand, is a different matter. Women have quite a different body shape to men, and you will find that the majority of brands offer separate men’s and women’s ranges, as well as some unisex items (gloves, arm warmers, socks etc).

I spoke to Nicole Stanners, creator of Muze, a cycle clothing brand intending to “make cycling more inclusive, comfortable and exciting for all women at all levels – starting with our clothes”. She consulted an anthropometric expert to study a large group of women of different shapes and sizes before designing her clothing.

“The differences make it important to have specific clothing for such a technical sport as cycling with hundreds and thousands of body movements in a ride to ensure comfort and performance”, Stanners states. “If you try and fit women into men’s clothes then they will generally be too tight in the hips and thighs and too large in the upper body”.

“In relation to chamois, women have a wider pelvis and a greater pubic arch angle than men, therefore most of the pressure points in women occur within the pubic area. A women-specific chamois is designed to prevent excessive pressure over this area, especially when the weight over the saddle shifts forward. Also, differences in external genitalia need to be considered, to protect them from irritating chafing.”

So, even though ‘female-specific’ choices may not necessarily be needed in all areas of the cycling industry, there may be a place for it. It can make women feel included and catered for in a male-dominated domain. Women may also want to support companies that produce women’s products, especially if they are also owned or operated by women.

However, with women making up a much smaller slice of the market, investing in ‘female-specific’ products can carry commercial or financial risk. Participation numbers seem to show that of all cyclists, around 25-35% are female.

Perhaps Trek has summed it up accurately in a statement on their website: “A women’s bike is any bike that a woman rides”. Amen to that.

Your cleats represent one of just three contact points between you and your bike (your saddle and handlebars are the other two). And arguably, it is this contact point that is most important, as it’s through the pedals that power is transferred from your legs to the forward motion of your bike.

A set of the best clipless pedals will set you up for miles of comfortable and efficient cycling. Although many riders know how to cycle with ‘clipless’ pedals, not all of them affix their cleats to their shoes with a particular thought process. This isn’t ideal, as inappropriately placed cleats can not only cause discomfort and a reduced power output, but they can also increase the likelihood of suffering from a common cycling injury.

In cycling, the function of the foot is to provide a stable platform through which power from the lower limb and larger muscles above (glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps) can be transferred. A sub-optimally placed cleat can wreak havoc on this chain.

The best cycling shoes have a stiff carbon sole for efficient power transfer so, by taking the time to understand how to optimally place your cleats, you’ll be taking better advantage of the shoes you’ve invested in. 

There are three aspects of cleat positioning:

• Fore/aft
• Medial/lateral position or stance width
• Rotation and cleat float

Although the information below refers to 3-bolt road cleats, the same principles can be applied to 2-bolt cleat systems, found on gravel bike shoes.

All you need to know about cleat positioning for cycling

How to set the fore/aft cleat position for cycling

Fore and aft refers to the forward and rearward position of the cleat on the foot. It is generally thought that the cleat should be positioned so that the centre of the pedal axis will be in line with the ball of the foot, or the metatarsal heads.

So how do we find the optimal fore/aft cleat position for cycling? 

1. Mark the 1st metatarsal head and 5th metatarsal head (the bump on the inside and outside of the foot) on the side of the shoe
2. Draw a line across the sole of the shoe between these two marks
3. Place the centre of the cleat on this line - cleats will usually have small marks on the side to indicate the centre of the cleat

Just using the 1st metatarsal (big toe) as an indicator of the ball of the foot will result in a cleat position in front of the metatarsal heads, as they run diagonally towards the 5th metatarsal.

I'm physiotherapist and bike fitter, and my tendency is to fit a more rearward position than this, often as rear as the holes drilled on the sole of the shoe will allow. Placing the cleat slightly behind the ball of the foot often decreases compression of nerves and blood vessels under the metatarsal heads, minimising the chances of foot and toe numbness. Anecdotally, many clients report this feels more powerful and stable, although research suggests there is no increase in power output with a more rearward cleat position for cycling.

Placing the cleats further back will also decrease recruitment of the calf muscles (Milour et al 2019) by reducing leverage from the ankle pivot point. The calf muscles are largely made up of fast twitch fibers, which are not ideal for stability. Moving the cleats rearward reduces their work, which is beneficial for endurance riding.

Cleat fore/aft to some extent will be determined by the type of riding the cyclist does and what they prioritise. A forward cleat position means a greater ability to change speed rapidly and accelerate (although not affecting outright top speed) - making this change could be useful for improving your sprinting, as well as crit racing and track event performance. However, this is at the expense of foot stability, the further forward the cleat is positioned towards the toes, the harder the calf muscles have to work to control and stabilise the foot owing to the lengthening lever arm.

I have encountered some riders who have set their cleats forward to avoid toe overlap. Toe overlap usually only becomes an issue when track standing or riding tight corners at low speed (such as bike paths) and is relatively normal, especially for smaller bikes with shorter wheelbases.

And finally, changing the fore/aft position of your cleat may require small changes in your saddle height and fore/aft position.

How to set lateral cleat position for cycling

This refers to the side to side position of the cleat on the shoe, by which we can manipulate Q Factor and stance width. Ideally in cycling, we want the hip, knee and foot to operate in a straight line.

Both road and MTB cleats will have some side to side adjustment, between 4-6mm. Cleats placed towards the inside of the shoe will widen your stance width. Whilst there are numerous other ways to widen your stance width, the only way to narrow your stance width is via the cleats - moving them to the outside of the shoe.

Our stance is self-selected, influenced by posture, habit, anatomical and physical characteristics such as pelvis width, lower limb alignment or hip stiffness.

To determine whether changes will need to be made, observation of your pedalling on the bike is essential. Knees kicking out during the pedal stroke can indicate a stance width that is too narrow, knees dropping in can mean the stance width is too wide.

Cleat float and rotation position for cycling

Cleat float refers to the amount of inward and outward rotation available when clipped into the pedals. Having available float in your cleat will allow you to move the foot in or out to a more natural position during the pedal stroke, allowing the knee to track in its natural plane of movement.

You never want to be at the end of your float range, as this will transmit torsional forces further up the chain. If the foot feels unstable on the pedal, the issue is not usually having too much rotation in the cleat, but rather whatever is causing the leg to operate in poor alignment. Locking the foot into position with minimal float cleats can cause pain and injury to various structures, especially the knee.

It is better to have more float and not use it, than have less float and need more. If you don’t need the float in your cleats, you often won’t notice it.

So how do I set the rotation position of my cleats? We can assess the “natural” rotation of our lower leg and feet when sitting or standing, but I find they often do not match up to what your feet do when pedalling.

I start with centre (neutral) rotation and adjust from there. Whilst pedalling, if you are pushing against the float of the cleat at any point in the pedal stroke, the cleat should be adjusted to allow more heel in or heel out movement (or the cleat changed to one with more float). Note that if more heel in rotation is needed, the cleat may also need to be moved more laterally to avoid contact with the crank.

Float is set in the cleat, not the pedal tension which is how easy it is to clip in and out of your pedals. Most brands of 3-bolt road cleats work on a self-centering mechanism and are colour coded as follows:

Speedplay cleats - found on Wahoo’s Speedplay Zero pedals and the dual-sided power meter Wahoo Powrlink Zero pedals - are the exception, allowing 0 to 15 deg of free float rotational movement. This float can be dialled in to allow different and varied amounts of heel in and heel out movement, rather than placing the cleat in a rotated position.

FAQ about cleat position for cycling

Setting the correct saddle height on your bike is essential for comfort, efficiency, performance and to avoid injury, which will ultimately allow you to ride longer and push harder.

Not only is it important to choose a bike saddle that's right for you (the best bike saddle varies from rider to rider as we're all built a little differently), finding the optimum saddle height is the foundation of setting up your bike, whether that's with a bike fitter or as part of a DIY bike fit at home.

The saddle height measurement is the distance from the pedal surface to the top of the saddle with the crank arm down and in line with the seat tube. It may also be measured from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the saddle, which does not take into account crank length.

How to set your own bike saddle height

There are a number of basic methods and calculations that can be used as a starting point to set saddle height. Most are based on a relationship between saddle height and lower limb length (inseam), or a reference range for knee joint flexion.

However, none of these methods take into account individual characteristics such as flexibility, pedalling style or limb proportions. Formulas are based on averages and mathematics, so it’s worth being aware that they may not give an accurate result for a lot of people.

Heel (or Heel-toe) method

This method requires no equipment and can be used as a quick and easy way to set saddle height. In fact I have suggested to clients to use this method on some occasions where an approximation is sufficient, such as if using an exercise bike at a gym or as a starting point if they have little cycling history.

With the crank in line with the seat post, the cyclist sits on the saddle and puts their heel on the pedal with the knee fully straight (locked out). They should be able to pedal backwards without losing contact of their heel on the pedal at the bottom of the pedal stroke, or tilting their pelvis down to reach the bottom of the pedal stroke. The foot is then placed on the pedal with the ball of the foot over the pedal axis.

LeMond method

This method calculates saddle height by multiplying inseam by 0.883, the measurement being from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the saddle. It does not take into account crank length.

The easiest way to measure inseam is to stand against a wall, without shoes, with your feet

shoulder width apart, then place a book (or similar) firmly up between your legs. Mark the point on the wall at the top of the book and measure this distance to the floor. This is your inseam measurement.

Hamley method

This method also uses inseam to calculate saddle height, but the resulting measurement is from the surface of the pedal to the top of the saddle, and hence includes crank length. Multiply your inseam by 1.09 to get this measurement.

Holmes method

According to the Holmes method, the ideal static knee angle at the bottom of the pedal stroke is at 25 to 35 degrees. On a turbo trainer, pedal until you feel comfortable on the saddle, then stop pedalling at the bottom of the pedal stroke. Have an assistant use a goniometer to measure knee angle in this position, using the lateral femoral condyle at the knee, lateral malleolus at the ankle, and greater trochanter at the hip as landmarks.

Research has suggested that the Holmes method can prevent common cycling overuse injuries and enhance performance, with increased anaerobic power at a 25 degree knee angle, and increased aerobic efficiency at a 25 degree knee angle compared to at 35 degrees.

How accurate are these bike saddle height setting methods?

There have been a number of studies that indicates static methods based on anthropometric measurements (88.3% or 109% of inseam) does not ensure an optimal knee angle during pedalling. A study by Peverler et al (2007) has shown that using 109% of inseam is unreliable and falls outside the recommended 25 to 35 degree knee angle greater than half the time.

I carried out my own analysis of how these formulas corresponded to the saddle height set from a full comprehensive bike fit in our clinic, taking a random sample of 20 riders, and found a similar pattern.

A possible reason for the differences is that the measurement does not take into account individual variations in femur, tibia, and foot lengths. These individual variations cannot be accounted for by inseam alone and result in the wide variations in knee angles.

Another possible reason could be because the majority of the studies for predicting seat height from inseam length were done a long time ago (around the 1990s), when toe clips instead of clipless pedals were used.

Of these methods, it is preferable to use one that sets saddle height according to knee angle rather than a formula, although there is no absolute consensus on what this angle should be. There is also room for error when using this method to determine ideal bike saddle height.

The accuracy of finding and marking anatomical landmarks is important, which may be difficult for untrained individuals. Knee angle measurement depends on the ankle angle, so care must be taken to ensure the ankle is in the same position when statically measured as to how it operates dynamically during the pedal stroke. There is also some variation in at what point knee angle is measured - some use bottom dead centre (crank at 90 degrees), whilst others use the point of maximum knee extension with the crank in line with the seat post.

Studies show that knee angle varies depending on whether a static or dynamic measurement is used. A study suggested that the knee flexion angle of 25 to 35 degrees during a static evaluation could correspond with an angle of 30 to 40 degrees during a dynamic evaluation. Dynamic measurements require the use of video or motion capture equipment. Furthermore, a literature review suggested that optimal dynamic knee angle varies depending on the intensity of cycling, with the ideal range being 33 to 43 degrees at bottom dead centre (BDC) at low intensity and 30 to 40 degrees at BDC at high intensity.

What else influences saddle height?

Your ankle position can both determine what height you saddle should be set, as well as give an indication that your saddle height is not ideal. For instance, those with a toe down pedalling style will have relatively less knee extension at BDC (resulting in a relatively lower saddle), or it may be a compensatory pattern for a saddle that is too high with your foot reaching for the bottom of the pedal stroke.

Additionally, some people will change their pedalling style under high load or effort. A common practice is dropping the heel in an attempt to engage the calf in power production, resulting in a relatively higher saddle.

Hamstring flexibility could also affect knee angle during dynamic pedalling. Inflexibility of the hamstring is related to greater knee flexion and a lower saddle position.

Your position on the saddle will influence the saddle height. Sitting forward on the saddle will effectively lower the saddle, sitting towards the back will effectively raise the saddle.

Equipment such as shoes and pedals may have different stack heights. Even amongst the best bib shorts, the chamois' may have different thicknesses. Your saddle height may need to be adjusted if changing equipment.

How to know if your saddle height is correct

A correctly placed saddle should result in:

 - A stable pelvis with your sit bones supported - tilting of the pelvis from side to side may indicate the saddle is too high.

 - A stable foot - there should not be excessive toe down or heel down.

 - A smooth pedal stroke - a “dead spot” or a feeling of losing contact at the bottom of the pedal stroke may mean the saddle is too high.

 - Not continually moving on saddle - we often move forward or back on the saddle to find ideal knee extension.

 - Balanced recruitment of muscles with an even load and tension through the muscle groups eg. not quad dominant

 - Minimal discomfort, particularly in the knee (front, back or side)

The repetitive nature of cycling means it is important to have the correct saddle height to help prevent injury. Common issues resulting from an inappropriate saddle height include knee pain, saddle discomfort (pressure, numbness, sores), hip pain/impingement, hamstrings tendiopathy, back pain, achilles issues, neck pain, and hand and wrist pain/numbness. However, you don’t necessarily need to have pain or injury for the saddle height not to be optimal. 

How to determine the optimal saddle height

The above methods can be used as a starting point for setting saddle height, but getting the correct saddle height requires making small adjustments (2mm at a time) based on feedback and awareness. If after this trial and error the saddle height, or position in general, still does not feel right, then you may require the skills of a bike fitter.

Height is not the only thing about the saddle that needs to be considered - the fore/aft position of the saddle, saddle tilt, and saddle characteristics (width, shape, firmness, cut out etc) will influence whether you are comfortable and efficient when pedalling. Changing any aspect of the saddle position may require a small adjustment of the saddle height, as will changing cleat position. For example, moving the saddle up by 10mm will also move the saddle back by about 3mm due to the angle of the seat post.

The bike fitter will use their knowledge and highly trained observation skills to look at pedalling technique and style, smoothness, stability and compensatory strategies, as well as ask for feedback from you. 

They will observe or measure joint angles and use information from your physical screening to determine the optimal saddle height and position for you.

Saddle position is the foundation of a good bike fit. Finding an appropriate handlebar stack and reach cannot be done well if a proper saddle position is not established first.

Float shouldn’t be treated as a sticking-plaster solution for a deeper problem, but provide the foot more latitude to move can help with knee and joint niggles 

Too often viewed as a sticking-plaster solution for knee niggles, the question of cleat float is a little deeper than you might think…

Let’s start off with a quick explanation of what we mean by ‘float’ in relation to cleats. Simply put, cleat float is the  degree of movement offered by the cleat within the pedal before it releases and you ‘clip out’ of your clipless pedals. 

This allows a small degree of rotational movement of the foot when you’re clipped into your pedals, which enables the foot to center itself during the pedal stroke. Cleats without float keep your foot locked in the exact same place on the pedal throughout the entire pedal stroke.

Next there’s the concept of ‘tension’. This refers to how much force is required to disengage your cleat from the pedal, once you’ve reached the limit of your float. On most pedals, the tension can be adjusted simply by winding a screw on the pedal body in or out. 

Float, on the other hand, is generally specific to the cleat - and making changes requires swapping in a new cleat. The notable exception here is the Speedplay pedal-cleat system, which allows you to make float adjustments by tightening or loosening a screw on the cleat. 

With those fundamentals out of the way, let’s jump into the topic of float - how much you should have and what the considerations should be.

Why is float important?

Although the knee is not a pure hinge joint, it likes to operate like one. If the knee does not follow the plane of the foot, it can be subject to torsional (twisting) forces and tracking issues, which often leads to pain and injury over time - particularly patellofemoral (knee cap) issues.

Some amount of cleat float will allow the feet and knees to work outside of a set plane of movement. Most people need some degree of float at certain points in the pedal stroke, often when the leg is unloaded rather than during the power phase.

Float allows for compensation issues further up the chain, so it is safer to go for more float than not enough as a means of injury prevention. There is also more margin for error if the cleat position is not set perfectly with more float, or when the rider becomes fatigued.

Cleat angle, as well as float, needs to be considered during cleat set up and alignment. The foot does not want to be working against the edge of the cleat float in either direction, and hence the cleat may need to be angled slightly heel in or heel out accordingly. 

This can be done on Shimano, Look and Time cleats, but not Speedplay. Getting the right cleat angle on a shoe will mean you rely less on the float to keep your foot, and knee, within the available range.

When should you use fixed float cleats?

Some riders feel more engaged in the pedals with ‘fixed’ or zero float cleats, as no unwanted movement of the leg is allowed - these are particularly favored by track sprinters, crit riders and hill climbers. The theory is that it allows for a more power-efficient pedal stroke.

Although this may not be problematic for short duration events, for most riders a small amount of float can be beneficial for injury prevention - and outweighs the perceived slight loss of power transfer efficiency.

Fixed float cleats require that you know your optimal cleat position precisely and to be set at exactly the angle of rotation that your knee and foot both want to track in. The athlete also needs to be high functioning with minimal asymmetry or compensatory strategies. Even World Champion Mathieu van der Poel has some float in his cleats! 

Image: WielerFlits

If the foot is moving around unnecessarily on the pedal, then there is likely to be an issue with function or pedalling technique, foot stability, bike position or cleat set up. The solution is not to lock the feet onto the pedal with a fixed cleat but to address the issue of why the foot feels unstable on the pedal. If your position and function is good, you shouldn’t notice how much float you have in your cleats.  

How do I know how much float I need?

The amount of cleat float one chooses to a large extent comes down to individual preference, as does the choice of pedal system. Most opt for moderate float - grey Look or yellow Shimano cleats or set a moderate amount on their Speedplay cleats.

As outlined earlier, it is safer to opt for more float than not enough. Certainly if you are experiencing knee pain, you may want to consider if a lack of cleat float is a contributing factor.

Some riders opt for increased float to try to alleviate knee pain without looking at other aspects of their bike fit or function. This can be an acceptable solution for those that just want to ride without pain and aren’t that concerned about or want to invest in fixing the underlying problem. 

Types and variations of cleats

Different manufacturers offer cleats with varying degrees of float built in, alongside their fixed-position cleats. There are also differences in the type of float between manufacturers.

In terms of road cleats, Look and Shimano offer a similar system, with minor differences when it comes to float. Both brands have spring centering float in the pedal that draws the foot back to the centre-line of the pedal.

Both color code their cleats to denote the amount of rotational float. For Look pedals, black cleats have no float, grey cleats 4.5 degrees of float and red cleats 9 degrees of float. With Shimano, fixed cleats have red trim, blue cleats have 2 degrees of float, and yellow cleats have 6 degrees of float. This is the total amount of float eg. 6 degrees of float is 3 degrees in each direction.

All these cleats provide their float by pivoting at the nose, allowing a small amount of angle change from the pivot point back towards the heel. The exception is Shimano’s yellow cleats which pivot in the middle, allowing the toes to point in a wide range of angles and some lateral sliding. 

The pedal brand Time allows both rotational float (5deg each way) and lateral float (1.25mm each way) through their ICLIC cleats. It should also be noted that Time has asymmetrical cleats, marked left and right. Stance width can be altered by fitting the left cleat on the right shoe and vice versa, widening the stance width by 5.2mm.

The Speedplay pedal system and cleats operate differently from the other main brands. Firstly, they have rotational free float or non-centering float meaning there is no resistance to the float by some kind of centering mechanism or spring. Secondly, rotational float can be adjusted independently of fore/aft or side to side position, which could be compromised in a three-hole system. 

Speedplay provides the most amount of float (7.5 degrees in each direction for a total of 15 degrees) which is also adjustable in each direction to the desired amount ie. can have different amounts of heel in and heel out movement. This higher level of float is important as the cleat cannot be rotated.

For more information on bike fit and preventing pain in your joints, you can check out our explainers on everything you need to know about knee pain, back pain and wrist pain. 

After decades of promise but little credible achievement, artificial intelligence has got very clever very quickly, catching the world off-guard. No longer the preserve of sci-fi movies, AI is here to stay, if not here to take over. Powerful, liberating, accurate and, well, intelligent, it impresses and intimidates in equal measure. In the world of cycling, it promises to calculate our optimum set-up at the click of a button. 

In fact, AI bike-fitting has been available since 2021 in the shape of MyVeloFit.com, an online service that promises a virtual fit for less than the cost of a pack of premium bar tape. It’s so inexpensive that I thought it must be worth a gamble. Not too daring a gamble, admittedly, as I also booked a fit at my local bike shop for a human comparison. Cost-wise, they are poles apart: MyVeloFit is one-sixth of the cost of my chosen human bike-fitter. But which offers better value? 

MyVeloFit AI bike fit versus bike fitter: review

If the power of AI is to be challenged, Grant Bayton is the human for the job. An ex-pro and son of 1980s cycling legend Phil Bayton, Grant’s been around bikes and riders all his life. I found him through my local bike shop, Ride 24/7 in Cirencester, which leans towards the premium market. Owner Dave Evans is as passionate about his customers as he is his bikes. The coffee’s great too.

Meanwhile, MyVeloFit is a young Canadian company co-founded by experienced bike-fitter Jesse Jarjour, with investment and mentorship from Shopify’s former chief technology officer Cody Fauser, himself an avid cyclist. Their aim is to democratise bike-fits, making comfort and performance available to everyone. Will its raison d’être render human bike-fitters obsolete? 

I had just the candidate to find out: a barely ridden pearlescent white 2019 De Rosa SK Pininfarina that I’d built up as a lockdown project but never really finished. The noseless ISM saddle is unusual, the FSA carbon cockpit is fixed, the pedals are SPD cast-offs and the carbon steerer remains long because I was too nervous to cut it shorter. 

AI bike fit: MyVeloFit review

Signing up for MyVeloFit couldn’t be easier. Opt for the $35 (£28) subscription and you’ll be able to fit a single bike to one rider over a period of two weeks. If you own a garage full of bikes, the annual ‘unlimited’ $75 (£60) sub is probably a better choice. 

First, the software asks for some basic vital statistics – age, gender, height and so on – in order to build your profile. A simple mobility assessment completes the process, achieved by shooting two videos of yourself holding a variety of simple poses, such as a squat and a knee raise. 

This is the nuts and bolts of MyVeloFit. You upload a video of yourself riding or doing some basic exercises, and it then analyses your content before providing feedback and recommendations. Using your phone, you can upload video directly within MyVeloFit, but because my efforts required the odd re-shoot, I preferred trimming the clips on my laptop first. Either way, the process is straightforward. 

Fits are available for road, gravel, mountain, triathlon, hybrid, TT and spin exercise bikes, so naturally I chose ‘road’. MyVeloFit then presents three additional options that vary the aggressiveness of your riding position, ‘performance’, ‘performance & comfort’, and ‘comfort’. Despite the De Rosa’s racing heritage, I’ll be using it for cafe rides, so I selected the middle option. 

Once your profile is built, and MyVeloFit has an idea of what your body is both capable of and expecting, it’s time to start the bike-fit proper. All that’s needed is your phone, a static trainer of some sort, the bike and a large space with an uncluttered background. 

I prefer to ride bike rollers for indoor cycling and usually confine myself to the hall, but I found that I needed about nine feet of distance between me and the phone to capture a full side-on view, so be warned – even if you train in a large but cluttered garage, you may struggle. In the end, I set up in our living room, the only place large enough with a decent stretch of bare wall. This meant moving a couple of sofas and a coffee table. It was a bit of a faff that I wouldn’t choose to repeat. 

The software needs only a 15-second video clip to analyse, all of it ridden on the hoods. The rider must be as relaxed as possible (not ideal for a self-conscious rider on rollers), with arms slightly bent and pedalling at a natural cadence. 

Uploading the video is child’s play, and it takes MyVeloFit about five minutes to analyse. The results are impressive. The motion capture software successfully recognises key joints – ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, elbow and wrist – and plays back your video with the familiar superimposed animated ‘stickman’ common to most bike-fit software. 

Four stills from the clip are displayed too, capturing overall positioning, stance when at the top of the pedal stroke, the front of the pedal stroke (midway) and the bottom of the pedal stroke. Under each are key stats that include knee extension, hip-open angle, hip-close angle and back angle, together with their acceptable ranges based on your mobility assessment and desire for comfort vs performance. 

If all is good, then these measurements will be displayed in green, but if something is awry they’ll be amber, or worse, red. My initial results featured some green, but the majority looked like I’d run into roadworks on the North Circular, lots of amber and red. For example, my knee extension should have been somewhere between 35 and 40°, but it flashed up red at 34°, meaning it was too open. 

These colourful stats look impressive, but if you don’t know your flexion from your extension, don’t worry, as MyVeloFit provides step-by-step guidance. It’s a case of making the proposed adjustments, shooting another video, then repeating the process until all the figures turn green.

My open knee meant I was instructed to lower my saddle, which also brought my shoulder angle into the acceptable range but threw my back angle into the red. What’s more, based on feel, I was expecting my saddle to go higher, not lower, which shook my confidence in the process. In the end, I went through six cycles of videoing, uploading, analysing, adjusting and head-scratching before most of the figures were green with just a hint of red as my shoulder angle troubled the software once more. This meant bringing my saddle down a whopping 15mm, increasing the bend in my knees discernibly and gouging ugly scratches in my painted carbon seatpost. Ouch! 

As the colours changed with every adjustment, I craved human reassurance. Riding the De Rosa out on the road, I seemed more planted, thanks to the lower centre of gravity, but being unable to stretch my legs felt odd. Was this an improvement? I needed a second opinion. 

Bike fitter: the human touch

A bike-fit with Grant Bayton at Ride 24/7 is a civilised affair that starts with a freshly brewed flat-white and a chat. The bike has been returned to its original spec, Bayton is in the dark about MyVeloFit’s recommendations and there’s no need to rearrange soft furnishings or worry about camera angles. All I have to do is hand over the £175 fitting fee. 

“I want to find out why clients have taken the time to come to see me,” says a quietly spoken yet affable Bayton. “Are they experiencing some discomfort on the bike, seeking a performance gain or both?” As we chat about the style of riding I do, I notice Bayton’s eyes exploring me and my bike, searching out little clues, discovering parts – body and machine – that need attention. He’s already started to assemble the complex physiological jigsaw puzzle in his head, even though he’s yet to see many of the pieces. 

Bayton then takes some key measurements, not unlike being fitted for a suit, before asking me to complete a few mobility exercises. “I ask clients to do some very basic moves,” he says. “Common issues are knee pain, lower back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, wrist pain and hip pain, all of which can point to a problem with the bike and/or with flexibility.”

After the mobility test, it’s almost time to hop on the bike, but not before Bayton has given it the once-over. “Small things like wonky saddles or crazy saddle angles are a big no-no,” he grins. “I also look for misaligned cycling cleats, scuffs on the chainstays and unusual wear marks on the handlebar tape.” 

The hawk-eyed fitter notices that my hoods are positioned too far down the curve of the bars, pitching me forward. He unwinds the handlebar tape, re-fastens the hoods in a neutral position, and asks me to give them a try. Wow, what a difference this small adjustment makes; it’s only now that I notice just how much too far ‘over the bars’ I’ve been riding. 

Bayton uses STT’s 2DMA 2D motion analysis bike-fit system, the kind of tech used by many WorldTour teams. It does require small, sticky reflective markers to identify key joints, but other than that it’s remarkably similar to MyVeloFit. A camera captures my movement while Bayton’s laptop analyses the footage, generating the familiar stickman overlay and a battery of data, some of which is green, some amber, some red. 

I’m on a set of rollers again, but with the sensible addition of a captive front wheel. Remarkably, the STT software recommends almost the same changes, but the process is so much quicker. It takes just seconds to compute the data and thankfully there’s no endless hopping on and off the bike to edit and upload videos. In fact, other than a bit of light pedalling, sipping coffee and staring longingly at Ride 24/7’s display of Italian exotica, there’s nothing to do but sit and relax while Bayton does some occasional spannering. Which gives me the opportunity to pose plenty of questions.

I ask Bayton whether the software’s got it all wrong about my saddle height. “It’s quite common for cyclists, particularly those who started riding decades ago, to keep jacking up their saddles,” he confirms. “Lowering your saddle will allow you to release more power and, as importantly, avoid knee, hip and saddle pain.” 

The figures also suggest that I could lose a 10mm spacer from the unsightly 30mm stack above my headset, another consequence of getting the saddle height in order. This gives Bayton the opportunity to check my position on the bars again. MyVeloFit only looks at one orientation, so although it does take stem length into account, it’s unlikely to pick up on issues such as bar width and depth. Bayton gives my integrated carbon FSA bars the thumbs-up, which is fortunate because MyVeloFit had recommended going 10mm longer on an already longish 120mm stem. 

What if I was younger, more flexible and actively racing, would the entire fit be different? “Certainly,” asserts Bayton. “The figures suggested by the system are very accurate but there’s a range we can play within. If you’re mobile enough, and competitive enough, then we can experiment slightly outside that range too.” But the fact is, I’m no more competitive than Bayton’s average punter. “Most of my clients want to be able to enjoy a three-hour hilly ride in the Cotswolds with their mates, stopping for a coffee and a cake along the way. Some of them have spent a lot of money on their bikes, so getting the most out of them is important. This often means tailoring a race machine to be more forgiving.” 

MyVeloFit versus bike-fitter: the verdict

MyVeloFit is impressive. For a fraction of the cost of a human bike-fit, it diagnosed the problems with my original position on the bike and successfully guided me to a solution that was almost identical to the recommendations from our human fitter, Grant Bayton (see table below). 

So, does that make it better value than someone like Bayton? Frankly, MyVeloFit was a faff and, for a novice like me, an unnerving experience.

To be fair, Bayton’s bike-fit was a bit of a faff too, but it was him doing all the faffing. All I had to do was drink coffee and talk bikes. The result was similar, but it’s hard to quantify the expertise and reassurance Bayton offered. He noticed details MyVeloFit can’t yet compute, such as the position of my hoods and my curious choice of pedals. 

Bayton also had back-up in the shape of Dave Evans and his team at Ride 24/7. Had my De Rosa needed more drastic work than two rolls of bar tape, I wouldn’t have needed to go far. Bayton’s also on speed dial should I have issues with the bike. 

Which makes Bayton better value, right? Well, yes and no. If, like me, you’re short on both time and expertise, then a human bike-fitter is worth the money. But if you’re short of cash, know your way around the human body and have an idea of how bikes are screwed together, AI has become a fitting alternative.

MyVeloFit versus bike-fitter: the changes

On the road: testing the changes

I very nearly didn’t bother with a bike-fit. The only discomfort I thought I was suffering from was the uncomfortable truth that poor fitness was to blame for my lack of performance. I was wrong. 

First, having a fit has cured the mental anguish that’s plagued me for decades around sizing. At 6ft 3in, I’ve always been placed on seemingly jumbo-sized frames (anywhere between 58 and 62cm, depending on the brand). Should I be riding something smaller, with faster response and lighter weight? No. Thanks to MyVeloFit and Grant Bayton, I now know my 60in De Rosa is the best size for me. In hindsight, I should have invested in a fit before spending a lot of money on a new bike. Obvious really. 

My saddle was too high. MyVeloFit highlighted the fact in bright red, and Bayton confirmed it. What’s more, looking at the video playback, it’s clear that my hips were rocking more than the Isle of Wight ferry on a windy December crossing. Dropping the saddle has taken some getting used to, but it’s lowered my centre of gravity for faster, more confident cornering and has enabled me to put more power down. I’m also experiencing less saddle soreness on longer rides. Lowering the saddle brought other parts of my body into better alignment too. I’m hoping that these changes will ward off any potential physiological issues in the future. 

Bayton noticed that my hoods were badly positioned; rectifying this has made a major difference to both comfort and bike-handling. Only now do I appreciate that my aching hands, wrists and neck on long rides were caused by too much weight being pitched forward.

This full version of this article was published in the print edition of Cycling Weekly. Subscribe online and get the magazine delivered direct to your door every week. 

Weirdly, while obsessing about handlebar height and saddle position, besides numerous other bike fit parameters, many riders don't give too much thought to crank length.

If you buy a factory-built bike, the crank length will simply be determined by the frame size, but is that right for you? If not, it can lead to serious discomfort and inefficient performance returns, so it's worth drilling down into.

Shorter cranks are very much in vogue these days, not least because Tadej Pogačar recently switched to 165mm arms, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're right for you.

Here we'll run through the importance of finding the correct crank length and we'll share the pros and cons of various crank length calculators. You can jump straight to the calculating with this link - but we'd recommend reading this piece through first to gain some context.

The general rule of thumb is that crank length should be proportional to leg length, although there are many other factors to consider, which will be explored below. Bikes are designed on a normal distribution curve for height, but that makes big assumptions on the proportions of limb length relative to height, which can vary considerably (43.2% to 50.1% in our clinic). Also, the population possesses a wide range of leg lengths (67.5cm to 94cm in our clinic), but the range of readily available crank lengths is small.

The industry standard seems to be 165mm for shorter cyclists and 175mm for taller people, with everyone in between on a 170mm or 172.5mm crank. Major component manufacturers offer crank lengths in 2.5mm increments from 165mm to 175mm.

There is a large range of bike sizes available to fit adults (typically 44cm to 61cm) but a much smaller range of crank sizes, meaning bikes are often fitted in a way that is unsuitable for the rider (this can be especially problematic for women).

Some companies are starting to address these issues. Shimano and SRAM have expanded their range to 160mm at the lower end and 177.5 or 180mm at the upper end, and Rotor now have a 150mm option. There are also a few companies that specialise in shorter crank lengths, such as J-Cobb and BBK (145-165mm). Zinn Cycles offers very short as well as very long cranks (130-220mm), and Appleman Bicycles have just realised a 100mm crank.

The importance of calculating the right crank length for you

It has been a common belief that a longer crank equates to more leverage, which in turn means more power. However, more recent research has called this into question.

Power is a combination of torque (rotational force) and cadence (rotational speed), with crank length only influencing torque. Longer cranks do cause an increase in torque for the same force on the pedals, but they tend to cause a decrease in cadence due to the larger pedalling circle. The offset of these two factors results in power generally being unaffected.

A study by Martin & Spirduso in 2001 supports this idea. They compared maximum power production for a range of crank lengths (120, 145, 170, 195 and 220mm) and found that power was only reduced for the extreme ranges (120mm and 220mm). A study by Barrett et all in 2011 also concluded that variations in crank length (150-190mm) are not an important determinant in maximal power production.

An exception to this can be found in a very specific condition, namely from a standing start with a fixed gear over a short distance (100-200m) ie. a track start. The longer cranks enable a rider to develop more speed than shorter cranks.

The difference is negated on the road on a geared bike where you are able to shift the gear down, especially in a seated position. There may be a slight noticeable difference in high torque situations, such as standing starts (e.g. when restarting after stopping at traffic lights) and standing out of the saddle on steep climbs, but a very low percentage of time is spent in these situations compared to sub-maximal riding.

In terms of the energy cost, research also suggests that there is little difference. A study by Ferrer-Roca et al in 2017 found there was no difference in heart rate and gross efficiency across three commonly used crank length (170mm, 172.5mm and 175mm). However maximum flexion and range of motion of the hip and knee joints were significantly increased, which can have bike-fit implications.

The results of Martin’s research into metabolic cost during sub-maximal cycling suggest that mechanical power output and pedal speed are the main determinants of metabolic cost during sub-maximal cycling rather than pedalling rate (cadence). Longer cranks result in higher pedalling speed (but lower cadence) so may in fact increase metabolic cost.

Is there an optimal crank length?

When it comes to power production and pedaling efficiency, there does not appear to be much change over a wide range of crank lengths. However, crank length can influence biomechanics and have a number of bike fit implications.

A common view is that there may not be a right crank length, but there can be a wrong one, and that choosing a shorter crank is the safer option. Too long a crank can introduce issues, particularly at the top of the pedal stroke, but there is no performance penalty for using a shorter crank.

A crank that is too long will increase the closed angle of the hip and knee joints at the top of the pedal stroke, compressing these joints and potentially resulting in pain. It may also cause riders to develop compensation strategies, which can lead to more issues down the line, such as pelvic rocking and knee-out flaring.

This issue is further exacerbated if there is restricted hip flexion range of motion, either due to general stiffness or conditions such as femoral acetabular hip impingement or hip osteoarthritis. Besides causing hip pain, failure to keep the hip joint within anatomical range at the top of the pedal stroke will often result in posterior tilting of the pelvis to compensate and excessive lumbar spine flexion.

Pelvic rocking can lead to lower back pain, saddle sores and a loss of power due to pelvic instability. If the cranks are too long for the rider, they may subconsciously hitch their hip/pelvis to get their leg over the top of the pedal stroke.

Cranks that are too long can also make it difficult to spin a high cadence. They can make the knees hit the chest when in the aero position, and cause difficulty breathing.

The benefits of shorter cranks

One of the main benefits of shorter cranks is an improvement in aerodynamics. This is particularly seen in time trial bikes, where shorter cranks are commonplace. For example, Bradley Wiggins (who is 190cm tall) changed his cranks from 177.5mm to 170mm before his hour record attempt in 2015 to improve his aerodynamics. Having shorter cranks allows the saddle height to be raised, which not only opens the hip angle up at the top of the pedal stroke, but results in an increased drop to the handlebars and a more aggressive position.

Shorter cranks also move the thighs away from the stomach at the top of the pedal stroke, which is more comfortable and makes it easier to breathe. Furthermore, they can be used to manage pain and injuries to the hips, knees, and lower back, as described above, by offloading these joints and improving biomechanics.

Adopting shorter cranks will also increase pedal clearance and can reduce pedal strike, which can be particularly useful in crit racing or on a mountain bike (to avoid hitting rocks and tree roots). It will also reduce toe overlap, which can be more of an issue on smaller frames.

Crank length calculator

Data from the Martin & Spirduso article suggests that the calculation for the optimal crank length for maximal power production is 20% of leg length or 41% of tibia length. It should be noted that this crank length calculator is based on maximal power production and not biomechanics or bike fit. Also, the authors concluded that a standard crank length of 170mm would not substantially compromise maximum power in most adults.

There are other crank length calculator formulas suggested (without scientific research) such as the one proposed by Graham Obree (0.95 x height) or Machine Head Software (inseam x 1.25 + 65).

It is interesting to note that using any of these crank length calculators would mean the majority of shorter adults, and especially women, are using cranks that are far too long for them. This is also the opinion of Matt Appleman, a custom frame builder in the US, who advises that we need to have a wider spread of crank lengths available and shift the average crank length.

Instead of calculating crank length based on one of the formulas above, he proposes that a better approach would be:

• 155mm and 165mm cranks for most riders (average)
• 145mm and 175mm crank for riders towards the ends of the spectrum
• 135mm and 175mm for a few outliers

Also, 2.5mm increments are not worth changing cranksets for, particularly because changing cranks is typically an expensive exercise. A change of at least 5mm, and more preferably 10mm will have a more meaningful impact, mainly on the closed hip and knee angle.

While it may seem like leg length should determine crank length, it doesn't appear that this is an accurate crank length calculator. The optimal crank length for two people that have the same inseam may in fact be different depending on their individual characteristics. A rider with greater flexibility and minimal injury history may be able to tolerate longer cranks without any adverse effects.

Ultimately, crank length should be calculated and chosen according to the rider's individual characteristics (such as flexibility, joint range and strength), injury history, riding discipline, cycling goals, and personal preference. Certainly, if you are experiencing discomfort, pain or injury, crank length should be calculated as part of a comprehensive bike fit.

Those looking to improve cycling performance and speed through improved aerodynamics may consider shorter cranks, as may those looking for help to smooth out their pedal stroke and eliminate dead spots, particularly in the presence of restricted joint range of motion.

Shorter people (and those with short legs) benefit most from a reduction in crank length due to standard cranks making up a larger percentage of a shorter rider’s leg length. Very rarely will a rider need to increase their crank length.

Swapping out cranks can be an expensive exercise but for some riders it will be worth the effort.

Saddle setback, also known as saddle fore-aft, is the horizontal distance between the centre of the bottom bracket and the front of the saddle. This measurement will be influenced by the length of the saddle, which needs to be considered when comparing setbacks on different bikes if a different saddle is used.

Read on to find out how saddle setback is measured, why it's important to get this bike fit parameter right, and tips on how to set the correct saddle setback.

How is saddle setback measured?

There are various ways to measure setback. 

Placing the vertical line of a laser through the centre of the bottom bracket then measuring the distance to the tip of the saddle is the method I use in clinic. A plumb bob can also be hung from the tip of the saddle and the distance from the centre of the bottom bracket measured. 

If you do not have any equipment, setback can be measured by placing the back wheel against a wall and measuring the horizontal distance from the wall to the centre of the bottom bracket and then again to the tip of the saddle then calculating the difference.

Why is correct saddle setback important?

Saddle fore-aft is the main adjustment affecting weight distribution on the bike and how much upper body work is needed to stabilise the body under load. The goal is to unload the upper body and hands to prevent expenditure of excess energy through tension in the upper body and allow efficient breathing. Uneven weight distribution between the handlebars and saddle can also cause discomfort and injury at the contact points.

Correct saddle fore-aft will also promote good weight balance between front and rear wheels. Road bikes are designed to handle best when 55 per cent to 60 per cent of bicycle and rider weight is on the rear wheel and 40 per cent to 45 per cent is on the front wheel. This will enable good handling and control when descending and cornering.

An ideal saddle setback will allow the muscles of the pelvis and the lower limb to produce power more effectively by sharing load evenly among the major muscle groups. How far forward or back the saddle is placed will change the relative contribution of the quads, hamstrings and glutes. It needs to be based upon a combination of the cyclist’s flexibility, strength, bias to use certain muscle groups, and injury history.

Hip angle is also influenced by saddle setback. The more forward the saddle, the more open the hip angle is (less hip flexion) and the further back it is, the more closed the hip angle.

How do I know my saddle is too far forward?

The main symptom of having the saddle too far forward is an increased load on the upper body and handlebars. This may manifest as pressure, pain, numbness or tingling in the hands or wrists, and increased tension and pain through the neck, upper back and shoulders.

The next most common complaint of a saddle too far forward is an over-reliance on the quad muscles with a feeling of quad burning or early fatigue. This is generally at the expense of recruitment of the gluteal muscles, which are capable of producing a lot of power.

It is thought that an increase in the work of the quads can create greater forces through the patellofemoral (knee cap) joint, with the potential to aggravate structures around the knee causing pain and injury. However, a study by Bini in 2012 and again by Menard in 2018 found no significant change in patellofemoral joint compression forces of a forward seat position. 

In terms of handling, with the saddle, and therefore weight, too far forward, the rear wheel will be less weighted and therefore riders may experience decreased traction on the rear wheel and skidding.

Some of these issues are experienced when the saddle is pushed forward to compensate for excessive reach. Saddle fore-aft should not be used to adjust the reach of the bars, rather the length of the stem and/or handlebars need to be changed, or a bike with different geometry considered.

What happens if the saddle is too far back?

Having the saddle too far back can result in a feeling of over-reaching at the bottom of the pedal stroke creating a dead spot through bottom dead centre and a resultant loss of power.

Furthermore, this over-reaching can promote a toe-down pedalling style, decreasing foot and ankle stability. Others will experience difficulty increasing cycling cadence due to this dead spot.

Excessive reach to the handlebars may also result. This can cause a myriad of discomforts such as back, neck, and shoulder pain, and hand and wrist pain, tingling or numbness.

The further the saddle is placed back, the more closed the hip angle becomes. This is particularly true for those lacking flexibility in the posterior chain muscles (hamstrings, gluts) as they will be unable to rotate their pelvis forward to lessen hip flexion. These people may also experience reduced power as these muscles are forced to operate outside their optimal length-tension. The problem will be compounded if the handlebars position is especially low.

A excessively closed hip position can result in hip impingement (jamming of the ball against the front of the socket in the hip joint) and needs to be considered in those with a history of hip pathology and who have poor hip flexion range and stiff hip capsules.

A set back saddle will engage the hamstrings complex more. If this is excessive it can overload these muscles causing pain, fatigue, or cramping in the hamstrings, or pain at the insertion points of the hamstrings on the bottom of the pelvis or back of the knee.

Too much weight on the saddle can cause saddle sores or excessive pressure and discomfort where the pelvis contacts the saddle.

Finally, too much weight on the rear end of the bike will decrease front wheel traction and stability causing issues in particular with high speed cornering.

The time trial position

In time trialling, aerodynamics is key, and a lower front end is achieved by rotating the whole rider forward about the bottom bracket. The saddle is much more forward on a TT bike to allow a more open hip angle with a low front end, with the knee often being quite forward of the pedal spindle.

The rider is able to tolerate much more weight on the front end as the upper body, elbows and forearms support this weight on aero bars. Handling is also not as much of a concern in time trialling.

How to set the correct saddle setback

KOPS

KOPS, or Knee Over Pedal Spindle, is a traditional way that some bike fitters have used to set saddle setback. According to KOPS, a vertical line from the tibial tubecle (the bony bump below the knee cap) should intersect the centre of the pedal spindle when the crank arm is at 90 degrees on the downstroke. It is a static measurement i.e. it is taken when the rider is not pedalling.

The origin of KOPS is generally unknown, but one of the earliest publications on bike fitting by CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee) in the early 1970s describes it’s use. There does not appear to be a clear rationale or biomechanical reason for using KOPS to set saddle fore/aft, however, experienced fitters such as Andy Pruitt (Complete Medical Guide for Cyclists) and Phil Burt (Bike Fit) also advocate it’s use in their publications.

On the other hand, KOPS has been heavily criticised by other experienced fitters, most notably Keith Bontrager and Steve Hogg. Bontrager wrote a paper called “The myth of KOPS” in which he argues that KOPS is an accidental relationship with no basis in physics or physiology. Both Bontrager and Hogg consider the rider’s centre of gravity as a more important factor in setting saddle setback.

KOPS is an easy technique to learn, understand and apply, which may be the reason for it’s widespread use. It can be a good starting point or guideline rather than being used in isolation, as bike fitting should not be a set of simple rules and formulas.

Balance Test

The Balance Test is another method that has been used to determine saddle setback, and assesses where the centre of gravity falls on the bike. 

With the bike set up on a trainer, the rider pedals in the drops at about 85 per cent effort and at their normal cadence. When sufficiently warmed up, the hands are taken off the handlebars and placed back to the hips. The rider should be able to pedal without falling forward or rounding their spine for at least 5 to10 seconds. 

The ideal fore/aft position is as far forward as possible whilst still maintaining this balance point. However, this method is quite dependant on having good core stability. It also assumes saddle height and tilt are correct.

What to think about when setting your saddle setback

Saddle fore-aft should aim to set the rider’s centre of gravity in the position on the bike that does not cause undue discomfort, is not too fatiguing, is functionally stable and allows good weight distribution between front and rear wheels. It also should promote an even spread of load through the muscle groups.

Various starting points can be used, such as the KOPS or Balance Test methods as discussed above, or even the rider’s current position. Small adjustments can be made from there to achieve an ideal position. Remember that as the saddle setback is adjusted, the saddle height will also change e.g. moving the saddle forward 10mm effectively decreases the saddle height by 3mm.

Cyclists with long leg to torso ratios may need a zero offset seat post to achieve the correct setback due to a high saddle height.

Individual characteristics need to be considered when determining an ideal saddle setback, with flexibility and range of motion already mentioned. Anatomical variations such as long femurs (thigh bone) and large upper body mass will require more setback. Those with a long torso to leg proportion will generally also be more setback. However, “effective” torso length, which is determined by the ability of the rider to extend the spine and rotate the pelvis forward, should be considered rather than actual torso length. A longer effective torso will result in more hip flexion and better recruitment of gluts.

Core or functional stability will also have an impact on saddle setback. Those with good core strength and the ability to hold themselves in the lean forward position, will be stable in a variety of fore-aft positions, whilst those who are inherently unstable won’t be able to relax their upper back, shoulder and arms.

The saddle can prove to be a major area of grief for a lot of cyclists, whether that be pain, pressure, numbness, sores or chafing. Often riders are quick to blame the saddle for their discomfort, where it is often not the saddle, but the saddle position that is the issue, which includes saddle tilt.

An inappropriate saddle tilt can not only cause issues at the point of contact with the saddle, but also back pain, knee pain, neck pain and hand pain. 

Looking at saddle tilt is one of the best ways to make your bike more comfortable. But if you are yet to find your saddle soulmate, first check out our guide on how to choose a bike saddle that's right for you.

Should my saddle be flat, nose up or nose down?

There are very few occasions where a saddle should be tilted nose up, in fact almost never. A saddle tilted nose up will tend to put the pelvis in a posteriorly or backward rotated position as the nose stops the pelvis from rolling forward. This will result in increased spinal flexion and possibly lower back pain, and over-reaching for the handlebars, resulting in neck and shoulder pain. The glutes will not be at their ideal point on the length-tension curve, which can result in inhibition or poor recruitment. It can also cause perineal pain and numbness due to increased pressure at the front.

Among the best bike saddles, some are designed to be ridden with more of a downward tilt than others. A saddle with a wave-shape in the horizontal plane - or kick up at the back - can be tilted down far more than a completely flat saddle. 

A flat saddle tilted down will create instability as you will tend to slide forward on it. It can also result in you sitting on the narrow part of the saddle providing less support for your pelvis and creating pressure through your perineum. An inappropriately tilted saddle can increase tension through your quads (and therefore knees) as you brace yourself from sliding forward, and you also end up increasing weight going through your upper limbs, causing hand or wrist pain.

Many people tilt their saddles down excessively in an attempt to relieve perineal pressure or numbness. If this is the case you probably need a different saddle that is more suitable for you, often one that is wider or has a (larger) cut out. 

A saddle that is appropriately tilted down will make it easier for you to tilt your pelvis forward and encourage flexion at the hips (rather than spine). This will enable you to recruit your gluteal muscles for power production, and bring your trunk further forward.

A downward tilt has also been found to be helpful for those that suffer from lower back pain. A study by Sarah et al in 1999 found that appropriately inclining the saddle forward decreased the incidence and magnitude of lower back pain in a recreational group of cyclists who were experiencing lower back pain by 70 per cent.

How far should I tilt my saddle?

How much a saddle should be tilted down not only depends on the characteristics of the individual rider (e.g. type of riding, flexibility, core strength, personal preference, etc.) but also the type of saddle they have. Riders in a more aggressive position e.g. those racing criteriums or seeking an aerodynamic position, may want to rotate their pelvis further forward and hence adopt a more nose down position.

A flat saddle should only be set around 0 to 2 degrees of nose down tilt to prevent the rider sliding forward on the saddle. 

A wave-shaped saddle with a kick up at the back is designed to be tilted down to some degree and can generally be tilted around 2 to 5 degrees. However, the area where your pelvis sits on the saddle should remain relatively level.

An exception to this would be the Selle SMP Dynamic saddle, which is highly contoured with very little flat area. It allows for even further pelvic forward rotation, which is also made possible with a very large cut out area to prevent perineal pressure. This saddle can be tilted down more than 5 degrees, depending on personal preference and circumstance.

How to set saddle tilt

The first assumption when considering saddle tilt is that the saddle height and fore/aft position have been set optimally, although these can be fine-tuned when adjusting saddle tilt.

The next is that when measuring the saddle tilt, the floor, or at least the bike is level. Tilt should be measured along the entire length of the saddle for better reproducibility. One of the easiest way to do this is to place a hardcover book or clipboard along the length of the saddle, then use a digital inclinometer (or App on your phone) to take the measurement. 

A good starting point would be to have the part of the saddle where your pelvis contacts level, then make small adjustments from there (1 degree at a time). The aim is to find the comfortable sweet-spot, where the pelvis is stable and supported, you have sufficient pelvic rotation forward, perineum pressure is minimised, and the hands are not overloaded. The saddle tilt should also be tested in the drops to ensure there is not excessive perineal pressure when shifting forward into this position.

Falling outside the bell curve when it comes to height can have its disadvantages in life – but it gives rise to a particular set of issues when you are a cyclist. Whilst being on the very tall end of the spectrum can also be a challenge, being on the short end is more common and presents more people with issues.

Now, short doesn’t always equate to small, but those who are short in stature will generally also have small features such as feet, hands and leg length.

According to the World Population Review, the average height of a male is 178.21cm in the UK, 178.77cm in Australia and 176.94cm in the US.  The average height of a woman is 163.94cm in the UK, 164.67cm in Australia and 163.31cm in the US. 

The clinic I work at in Sydney has produced slightly higher numbers from a sample of 600 or so, with the average male being 179cm and female 166cm. It is logical to conclude that small adult cyclists are far more likely to be women. 

Females are smaller on average, therefore those at the end of the bell curve are even smaller. Whilst women make up a smaller percentage of those who cycle (20% in our clinic), many of those would be considered “short” or “small” and face many of the issues outlined in this article.

Unsurprisingly, most bike manufacturers make their products in sizes that they are able to sell in sufficient numbers to make the most profit, leaving some sections of the population in difficulty finding suitable sizes. This is often also the case for components and equipment.

I’ve found that small women (and men) are generally poorly catered for by the bike industry, with not enough options being available for smaller riders. This leads to a self perpetuating issue - women may be discouraged to ride because of pain, discomfort or frustration, which means less women will be encouraged to start or continue cycling.

The issue of availability has been magnified in recent times with supply issues leading to a shortage of stock, meaning the few small bikes and components that are produced become unavailable very quickly. For those who are very small, children’s bikes can be an option, although not a particularly good one. They tend to be poorer quality, with downgraded specs and components. Also, adults tend to be heavier than children, and hence why they may not be suitable.

By being aware of the following issues, these can be addressed in order to make your bike more comfortable to ride.

The long list of common issues smaller adult cyclists face

1. Bike frame is too big

It appears that the manufacturers of the best road bikes just aren’t making bikes that are small enough. For example, someone around 155-160cm tall with average flexibility and core strength would be looking for a bike with a reach of less than 365mm, which corresponds to an effective top tube length of around 490-510mm. 

A search through geometry charts gives very few options. Of the mainstream brands, only Canyon, Cervelo, and Pinarello appear to make bikes of this size, whilst Chapter 2 and Festka are smaller brands with options. A few other brands have a singular option, although it tends to be an endurance frame with a high stack.

The result of riding a bike that is too big is that the rider will find themselves over-reaching and in an uncomfortable stretched out position, which can lead directly to neck pain, and back pain too. It may also cause people to sit forward on the saddle, causing saddle discomfort and instability due to sitting on the narrow part of the saddle.

Some people have tried to solve the issue by pushing the saddle as far forward as possible, which will shift weight to the front of the bike and can cause wrist pain and numbness, and compromise handling of the bike. Changing to an inappropriately short stem can also compromise handling and make the front end twitchy.

2. Cranks are too long

Crank length is proportional to leg length, so it goes without saying that shorter people need shorter cranks. The shortest commercially available crank length is 165mm, which according to various published reports, calculations and recommendations is much too long for even an averaged height female and smaller males, particularly if they also have relatively short legs.

Whilst a number of studies have shown that crank length does not affect raw power production, it can affect pedalling efficiency. But more importantly, cranks that are too long can also have bike fit implications. A long cranks will increase the closed angle at your hip and knee joints at the top of the pedal stroke, compressing these joints and causing compensation strategies which can lead to issues over time.

This problem is further exacerbated if there are any issues with hip flexion range of motion, as is often the case in femoral acetabular hip impingement or hip osteoarthritis. Reduced knee flexion, although less common, can also cause an issue.

Over here we share the pros and cons of various crank length calculators to help you find the optimal setup for you.

3. Handlebars are too wide and long

Women in particular usually have narrower shoulders than their male counterparts. The average shoulder width in our clinic is 35.7cm for women and 40.4cm for men. Most bike manufacturers supply stock bikes with handlebars above this average meaning many people, both men and women, unless they swap them out, are riding with handlebars that are too wide for them. This can lead to pain particularly in the upper limbs (wrist, elbows, shoulders) and neck. Wider handlebars will also increase reach, so along with handlebars which are not short reach (70mm), can compound over-reaching issues found when the bike frame is also too big.

Many brands do not even make handlebars that are 36cm wide centre to centre, with many starting their sizing at 38cm. Since a significant proportion of the population fall into this range, these sizes tend to sell out quickly. Furthermore, with an increasing trend amongst road racers to fit narrow handlebars for aerodynamics, they are even more in demand.

4. Inability to reach the brake levers, especially in the drops

Small people will often have small hands, with a lot of people having difficulty pulling the brake levers in the drops, as they are just too far away. This will lead not only to sore hands and awkward wrist positions, but decreased confidence with descending and braking.

On most shifters these days, you can alter the reach adjustment and wind in the brake levers so that they sit closer in. Although the method differs between manufacturers and level of component, a quick scan of youTube will find you the answer. The shape of the handlebars and placement of the hoods on the handlebars will also have an influence on where the brake levers sit.

5. Excessive Q-Factor and stance width

Q-Factor is dependent on the bike and its components and is not easily changeable, namely the bottom bracket width and crank brand and model, therefore the only way to manipulate stance width is through the pedals and cleats.

There are numerous ways to widen your stance width, but the only way to narrow it is via the cleats, moving them to the outside of the shoe. Occasionally the stance width may not be able to be made narrow enough, usually in those of small stature. Knee pain is the most likely discomfort or injury to result from too wide a stance width.

The Favero Assioma pedals are one of the best power meters, but it’s worth being aware that there is a huge increase in pedal spindle width between the Look-compatible Favero Assioma power pedals, and the Shimano-compatible ones (54mm vs 65mm). Those who need a narrow stance width may simply not be able to use the Shimano option.

6. Excessive toe overlap

Small frames with standard 700c wheels will have significant toe overlap of the front wheel, which cannot be avoided. Care will need to be taken when sharp turning of the front wheel is required, for example when negotiating bike paths. I have seen cyclists who set their cleats excessively forward in an attempt to minimise toe overlap, which can result in a multitude of other bike fitting issues, and is not recommended.

Follow our guide on how to set cleat position on road bike cycling shoes to reduce your injury risk and boost your efficiency.

7. Riding 650c wheels

Some riders will opt for a bike with smaller 650c (or 650b) wheels, allowing the geometry of the road bike to be better proportioned to their smaller body size. This will also result in less toe overlap and more clearance with standover height. However, it does mean that wheel options are limited, with few companies producing wheels of this size. Tires and inner tubes are also harder to come by. It is also unlikely that you will be able to borrow off your mates should you puncture on a ride, with almost everyone having 700c wheels! 

8. Not enough real estate

Smaller bikes will have less space available to attach accessories to their bike. Some riders are only able to carry small bidons on their frame and often have to opt for side-loading bottle cages. Seat post availability is limited, whether that be for attaching number plates and stickers in a race, or practical items like bike lights and saddle bags. Bikepacking can be a nightmare, with little room for the best handlebar bags, saddle bags and frame bags.

Despite all these issues, the key is not to compromise, especially with the frame size. It may just require more persistence and planning to find the equipment and components that are right for you. Finally, a professional bike fit to set the bike up optimally and allow you to ride comfortably will be well worth the investment.

The foot-pedal interface is one of three contact points where we interact with the bicycle, and the point where most force is applied and transferred to propel our bikes. It is no surprise then, that many cyclists experience foot pain and other issues at this point. The extreme level of repetition related to cycling and an increase in the time spent on bikes contributes to its prevalence. 

An Australian study in 2012 found that over half of cyclists (53.9%) reported experiencing foot pain whilst cycling, with the forefoot region the most likely to be affected (61% of all foot pain reported). The group of cyclists with greatest risk of developing foot pain were those who ride with an attached foot-pedal interface (clipless or toe straps/cages), where force is transferred through a small contact area.

Common foot issues for cyclists

Most foot issues in cycling are caused by compression of the nerves (and blood vessels) that run along the sole of the foot. This can manifest as pain, pressure, numbness, tingling, or burning sensations around the ball of the foot, and is sometimes referred to as Metatarsalgia or “Hot foot”. Riding in cycling shoes that are too narrow or small is a common cause.

People with high arches tend to suffer more from these issues. This is because the reduced contact beneath their high arch concentrates the pressure directly under the balls of the feet. Cyclists may also experience pressure, pain or numbness on the outside, or less commonly, the inside of the foot.

These issues are usually worse on long endurance rides and on sustained climbing. You should also consider if you are prone to foot swelling in hot weather, which will cause further tightness and compression.

Those with an existing Morton’s Neuroma, an irritation of thickened tissue around the nerve between the foot bones, tend to have particular difficulties.

Other foot issues cyclists may encounter are plantar fascia or arch pain, achilles tendinopathy or blisters.

How to prevent foot pain: at-a-glance tips

To keep your feet happy and enjoy miles of comfortable cycling, it would be wise to: 

• Make sure your shoe is the correct fit for your foot
• Get the cleat position right
• Invest in some good quality cycling insoles
• Use wedges and shims as required
• Have your bike fit reviewed, especially saddle height

How to prevent foot pain in cycling

Do your cycling shoes fit?

You may have invested in one of the best cycling shoes, but that’s no good if it doesn’t fit you right. Correct fitting shoes is one of the most, if not the most important factor in avoiding foot pain. Ronan Descy from Form Bikefitting, who worked as a bike fitter for 15 years and now designs and sells a variety of shims, wedges and other bike fitting products, reiterates this:“Shoe fit is paramount. A badly fitting shoe will either create pain in the case of an overly tight shoe, or create an unstable environment in the case of a loose shoe. They should fit like gloves”.

Unfortunately, obtaining a well fitting shoe can be quite complex. We all come in different shapes and sizes, and that includes our feet!

The size and width of the shoe are the first things to consider. Many people buy shoes that are just not wide enough for their feet, particularly around the toe box, resulting in issues with compression.

Another common mistake is to size up to increase width, which then presents other problems such as the cleat holes being too far forward and hence being unable to position the cleat optimally, the foot slipping forward in the shoe, or the arch being located in the wrong position.

Shoes that are too big can also result in toe clawing as the foot tries to gain some stability, overloading the intrinsic foot muscles and leading to plantar fascia pain.

Bont are a shoe brand known for their wide fits. “Our wide fit shoes have always been a true wide fit and this means the base is actually wider than a standard fit,” acknowledges Bont’s Global Marketing Manager, Alex Malone. “There’s only a few brands out there to offer a true wide fit as there are inherent costs on the manufacturing side – with an entire range of wide lasts needed for production – as opposed to simply offering a larger volume and taller upper shoe built on the standard width sole”.

They have also created a range to suit most people’s needs. “Our Vaypor S for example, comes in 19 sizes and four widths (narrow, standard, wide and Asian fit), before you even consider semi and full custom options”.

Shoe brands that produce shoes in half sizes and varying widths, such as Lake, Shimano, and Sidi, will increase your chances of finding a cycling shoe that fits well.

The hardness of the sole may also be of consideration if you suffer from foot pain or numbness. Greater shoe stiffness results in less shoe flex and less energy wastage during power transfer, increasing cycling efficiency, hence the widespread use of carbon fibre soles, especially in top end shoes. However, carbon fibre soled shoes produce higher peak plantar pressures than those of plastic design (18% at 400w), which some feet may not cope with. 

The use of a good cycling specific insole can help to alleviate pressure by distributing load more evenly, which I will address later.

Another aspect of the shoe to consider is the shape and curvature of the sole, known as the last. I generally tell people that if the shape of their foot does not look like the shape of the shoe, they are likely to run into problems!

The closing system of the shoe can individualise and improve the fit to your foot shape and size. A two boa (or similar) system provides firm fastening and will allow you to control the shoe’s volume of the forefoot and rearfoot independently. Shoes with heat moulding can also provide a more customised fit.

I always recommend to my clients to try shoes on before purchasing to determine if it fits your foot. However, this is becoming increasingly difficult, with less shops stocking shoes due to the tendency to buy online. Whilst nothing beats seeing the shoe in the flesh, companies such as Lake and Bont have developed good online guidance on their websites for sizing and choosing suitable shoes.

A good knowledge of shoe brands can also increase the likelihood of finding a well-fitting shoe. Brands tend to have certain characteristics in regards to width, shape, cleat hole placement, materials used, and range of sizing and width options. Some research or an appointment with your bike fitter could prove valuable in this regard.

Are your cleats positioned correctly?

Inappropriately placed cleats is another contributor to foot pain in cycling. Placing the between 10- 20mm behind the ball of the foot decreases compression of nerves and blood vessels under the metatarsal heads, minimising the chances of foot and toe pain and numbness. Ronan also favours this position: “A rearward cleat placement is always better and safer than a forward placement – less chance of something going wrong. Furthermore, cleats with float are always a safer option than fixed cleats.”

“Also, cleat position should be judged in relation to your own foot’s structure. If you have long toes then the ball of your foot will be further back, so a shoe with a more forward cleat bolt position will fast become problematic”.

Placing the cleats further back will also decrease recruitment of the calf muscles by reducing leverage from the ankle pivot point, which in turn reduces the chance of achilles overload and tendinopathy. There will also be less tendency to have excessive ankling (flexion and extension of the ankle throughout the pedal stroke) due to the shortened lever.

A stance width that is too narrow can result in pain or pressure on the outside of foot. Moving the feet further outwards may alleviate this, either by moving the cleats, or using pedal spacers or extenders. Cleats with insufficient float for your needs can also place excess pressure on the inside or outside of your foot.

Do you need insoles for your cycling shoes?

The function of the foot in cycling is to provide stability and transfer power. Cyclists need their foot to act as a rigid lever, to ensure every watt of power is transferred to the pedal. Footbeds or insoles lock up the foot creating more stability, requiring less muscle effort from the intrinsic muscles of the foot and lower leg to stabilise the foot in the shoe.

Cycling insoles need to be different to walking or running insoles where the foot is more dynamic. Walking insoles also tend to be high volume and too bulky to fit well in a cycling shoe, which can cause increased compression, and hence their design has changed over time.

Nathan White, a Podiatrist from Brisbane (Australia) and founder of Cobra 9 carbon cycling orthotics, talks about the properties of his products.

“A cycling insole needs to provide a high level of contour and a high level of stiffness with minimal weight. Our carbon fibre orthoses are 1mm thick with a weight of 10-15g. They provide longitudinal arch rigidity with some side to side flex”.

“The orthoses distribute pressure in a more even pattern, moving some pressure away from the forefoot more proximally into the arch. This shift in loading pattern and sharing of load will increase comfort. We are not aiming for a complete removal of pressure from the forefoot, but a meaningful shift. You can feel the arch but it still feels comfortable”.

“Our orthoses come in three different profiles and five sizes. There is also a custom option for those that lie outside the bell curve”.

Cobra 9 are not the only producers of high quality, effective cycling insoles. G8, Solestar and Lake are other companies that manufacture insoles that provide enough stiffness, support and contour. However, most off the shelf orthoses or those provided with cycling shoes, tend to be too low profile and too pliable, therefore providing minimal foot support and acting to fill up the shoe only.

Besides decreasing foot pain by sharing the load throughout more of the foot, insoles can also help prevent injury by reducing excessive pronation and hence torsional forces further up the chain. This may be particularly relevant for those with knee pain, but can also contribute to achilles, ankle or hip issues.

Increased foot contact area increases feedback to our proprioceptive system. This in turn will provide a signal to the nervous system to fire muscles in our lower limb and hip that provide stability. It can also result in a more powerful pedal stroke. In my experience, I find that those with a high arch or flexible, pronating foot benefit the most from cycling orthotics.

Is there anything else that can help prevent foot pain?

Wedges are used in cycling shoes to tilt or angle the foot. Cleat wedges will tilt the whole shoe, while in-shoe wedges can tilt the forefoot or heel in isolation.

Ronan from Form Bikefitting, who produces these products, outlines their benefits: “The use of wedges can even out medial or lateral pressure and improve one-sided foot pain. It can also improve knee tracking, stabilise the foot at the pedal interface, and improve foot proprioception”.

Cleat shims can be used to correct leg length discrepancies if required. Leg length discrepancies can result in loading one side (and foot) more than the other, or cause an asymmetric ankling pattern.

Metatarsal domes or pads when used appropriately, can reduce loading through the forefoot. They work by spreading the metatarsal heads apart and reducing peak load. However, the increase in volume inside the shoe can cause further compression. Care must also be taken with their placement.

Have you looked at your bike position?

As most bike fitters will tell you, you cannot look at the foot-pedal interface in isolation. Consideration needs to be given to the overall bike set up, and whether it is less than optimal.

Bike seat height in particular needs attention. A saddle that is too high can result in a toe down pedalling style. This can cause instability of the foot and ankle, and the foot may slide forward in the shoe. Having a saddle too far back can cause similar issues.

Another thought...

The International Bike fitter magazine published an article last year about how Covid may have resulted in people’s feet becoming wider. The theory being that  people are working from home more, often walking around barefoot, and not being required to wear tight, narrow dress shoes. 

Given that cycling shoes have traditionally been on the narrow side, being unable to find appropriate shoes could be an increasing problem. I certainly have witnessed this in my clinic! The same can be said for postpartum women, who find that all the relaxin released during their pregnancy has caused their feet to widen. Hopefully shoe brands produce more wide fitting shoe options going forward.

The relationship between saddle and rider can very easily become a one way track for resentment.

We have a guide to the best bike saddles, but finding the one that's right for you isn't always easy. 

We need the saddle to enjoy cycling, but the wrong one can ruin the experience or even result in serious health issues.  But for most people, there's a lot you can do to make your bike more comfortable, and choosing a bike saddle that's right for you is one of the most rewarding areas to focus on.

That said, if you one of the unlucky few who still experience major discomfort after following these tips, you will be best checking in for a clinical bike fit with a recommended fitter. Although many people will be fine with DIY bike fits at home, sometimes a professional eye is what's needed.

Is saddle pain worse for women?

Men and women tend to favour different designs, that's why we also have a dedicated guide to the best women's saddles.

Both men and women can struggle with saddle discomfort. However, women's needs are more diverse, and considered alongside the fact the industry provides fewer solutions for them, it's clear to see why female riders are suffering.

The lack of provision is something former head of physiotherapy at British Cycling, Phil Burt, is looking to address in his work at Phil Burt Innovation. He's both consulting with brands, and working on his own product. But he's keen to highlight that extreme cases requiring surgery are rare.

"Cycling is a very safe, low impact form of exercise and it’s important to know that plenty of women are fine cycling and have few issues," he said. "A handful of people need surgery. But, a lot of women have pain and discomfort and it puts them off cycling."

Why so many problems? A look at the 'Great Wall of Vagina' will exemplify Burt's next point to perfection.

"Whilst there’s different presentations of men’s genitals, there’s much more varied presentations of soft tissue in women, which results in more challenges at the saddle interface. It means it's harder for women to find the right saddle."

Men are far from excluded in this conversation.

"I think men often suffer in silence," Burt says. "Men have this code of ‘you just put up with that’ – but they don’t have to, loads of solutions have been made for men with saddle pain, central cuts outs for example were initially made for men."

Regardless of who has more problems in the saddle department, the same rules on how to choose a bike saddle can be applied to both genders.

How to choose a bike saddle that's right for you

As Burt puts it: "saddle injuries are hugely multifactorial, there’s not any easy answers, but there are some things you can do to get you closer to being optimal."

Starting with choosing the right bike saddle, adjusting your bike seat height and setting to the right position, is crucial.

Your saddle soul mate is determined by the type of riding you're doing and your physiology - including flexibility, core strength, sit bone width and soft tissue distribution.

1. Reflect on your riding position and flexibility

"If you're an experienced rider who cycles in an aggressive position, have the flexibility and strength to rotate far forward over the bottom bracket, and are in a low position, you’re going to want a saddle that allows that.

"The nose of the saddle generally has to be narrower, and the flare will need to come quickly so you can sit back on your sit bones - for example on a climb," Burt says.

People adopting a more upright position are likely to need something very different when choosing the right bike saddle.

"If you’re very upright, you’re going to want lots of sit bone support and lots of comfort and lots of padding," Burt says.

Flexibility can't be ignored. Some riders may want to adopt an aggressive position, but don't have the ability.

"The essence of Fizik's spine concept makes a lot of sense", Burt says, referring to the brand's fit system which puts riders who can touch their toes with ease on a flat saddle and less mobile riders on a curved saddle.

"Where you rotate from has a huge influence – if you’ve got tight hamstrings and have to sit quite far back, you want a good supportive saddle for your sit bones. If you have great pelvic rotation you’ll be able to get onto a more aggressive saddle," Burt says.

Once you've nailed down your riding style, you should have an idea what sort of shape you should be looking at.

2. Consider your physiology

Next, it's time to consider your physiology when choosing a bike saddle that's right for you, and there are tools to help with this.

Sit bone width can be measured in most good bike shops. It's not to do with your jeans size, lightweight riders can have wide bones and vice versa. Most (not all) women will have wider sit bones, by nature of having wider hips designed for childbirth.

Taking it up a gear, saddle pressure mapping is often available as part of a bike fit, and an expert will be able to where you're placing pressure and thus which bike saddles may help to alleviate this.

"Saddle pressure mapping narrows down your bike saddle choice, as does using a sit bone measuring tool. It moves you closer to the better option for you," Burt says.

3. Try out the bike saddle on a test ride

A lot of local bike shops let you test a saddle out, before you buy.

This is the case at all retailers selling ISM and Fizik perches.

Down south, the London Bike Kitchen (LBK) has come up with a more crowdfunded method in its 'saddle library'.

Borrowers need only pay a one-off joining fee of £39 and they can try any saddle within the library, following a 'butt measuring' appointment and advice from experts at the maintenance centre.

"Finding the right saddle is trial and error. We've had around thirty people try the saddle library and about ten have found the dream saddle. About three or four women have found one they say has completely changed their riding," said LBK's founder, Jenni Gwiazdowski.

"A lot of schemes require you to buy the saddle at full price, which can be off-putting. We've gone with an 'honour system' - it's a library that's meant for everyone to be able to access it. That breaks down the barriers for users, and for us as a shop as it removes issues around GDPR and collecting data."

How can you make your bike saddle more comfortable

1. Improve your core strength to better hold your riding position

Sometimes you might need to look outside of your equipment.

If your core isn't strong enough to hold you in position on the bike, you may encounter issues.

"You can have the best bike saddle and shorts in the world but if you’re weak and move around all over the saddle, you might have saddle sores. Then you may need specialists solutions. Or to work on your trunk strength," Burt says.

"I've found quite a few people who have become stronger and had less saddle pain," he adds.

2. Asymmetry could be causing you pain

Similarly, your problem could be down to an asymmetry caused my something like a leg length discrepancy, or a condition causing you to sit heavily in just one position.

A clear symptom of this is repeatedly getting saddle sores on the same side. This can often be countered with bike fit solutions, and Burt recommends a physio led assessment and fit.

Risk of infections

Problems brew when infections join the equation.

Again, women can be more susceptible here. A 2018 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that women who cycle are more likely to suffer from urinary tract infections (UTIs).

Outside of bladder infections, saddle sores themselves can become infected as can ingrown hairs.

"If you're repeatedly getting thrush, or infections, it's a very different issue. I wouldn’t want people to waste money on loads of different saddles when there might need to go through a medical referral process," Burt says.

If problems reoccur, you should see your GP. But on a basic level, hygiene before, during and after chamois time is crucial.

"On long rides, hot and humid skin can lead to infection and is more likely to break down, especially when you add friction. If you're experiencing chafing, rubbing or redness, it’s worth trying a chamois cream."

Burt also says he's seeing more and more cases of 'turbo training' related saddle problems, where riders are getting hotter and sweatier than ever before, whilst spending more time in a static position than they would outside.

To counter this, he recommends a powerful fan and ensuring you don your best shorts. If you're in need of a pair, take a look at our guide to the best indoor cycling clothing, which is filled with gear that's designed to help keep you cooler and more comfortable. 

The effect of bike saddle comfort on your overall riding position

Your comfort in the saddle can hugely influence other elements of bike fit. If you're not able to rotate into an aggressive position because you're protecting your most sensitive body parts, you'll often suffer from back pain (upper or lower) as a result of bending at the spine instead.

Sometimes, you may not even realise saddle comfort is having an impact on your overall riding position - which was very much my recent experience.

I checked in for a bike fit with Burt just over a month ago.

I had been struggling to find a saddle that I found comfortable, and was also having issues with lower back pain and sciatica as a result of a tilt in my pelvis - which I was mostly managing by having myself jolted into place by my friendly osteopath on a monthly basis.

I'd never had any particular problem with 'sit bone discomfort' so tended to ignore the width measurements on saddles, instead looking for a cut-out which would relieve soft tissue pressure - favourites being the ISM, Sella Italia SLR Flow and Pro Stealth.

An initial saddle map showed that I was tilting my pelvis in the saddle quite dramatically, and the Retül sensors used in tandem showed that this had an effect on knee extension, with mine sitting at 38/44 degrees - the right leg quite outside the 35-40 degree guideline.

Burt measured my sit bones and helpfully remarked that mine are particularly child bearing ready - a nice way of saying I'm wider than most, at 169mm.

As a result he put me on a Specialized Oura saddle (since discontinued and replaced by the Specialized Romin Evo Mimic) in 168mm. The Stealth I’d been riding comes available in 142mm and 152mm.

The saddle map showed a marked improvement in the amount I was tilting in the saddle. Not only that, with less tilt, my knee angle evened up to 34/38 degree.

After almost a decade of cycling and countless years claiming I didn't need a saddle that supported by sit bones because "I'm not sitting on my sit bones" - I was finally able to feel some actual support under my bum, whilst still getting pressure relief thanks to the generous cut-out. A bit of a mini revolution, really.

Cyclists have been self-fitting for decades, of course, often with the help of a friend, a mirror, and a trusty plumb line. Is paying someone else to set you up on your bike like buying a dog and barking yourself? Or, a sensible decision, guranteed to avoid injuries?

We'll run you through a detailed how-to on how to get your bike fit dialled at home, as well as taking a look at both sides of the argument as to whether you are best served fitting yourself or whether it's worth getting professional help.

It’s a question on which former British Cycling physiotherapist Phil Burt is surprisingly candid: “I once stood up at a bike-fit conference and said a pretty controversial thing: not everyone needs a bike-fit.

"Some people — who I call micro-adjusters — are more vulnerable to changes in their environment and contact points. Others, who I call macroabsorbers, tend to be able to absorb small changes — their set-up may not be optimal, but it won’t hurt them.”

Few people understand the importance of correct position better than Burt, and yet: “Not everyone can afford a bike-fit, and you might be able to use rules of thumb to sort yourself out.”

At his eponymous studio Phil Burt Innovation, the bike-fitter extraordinaire wrote his book Bike Fit to help other people do his job for him. Naturally, a book-guided fit is substantially simplified, with more rules of thumb and fewer individual considerations.

The self-fitting approach is likely to work better for ‘macro-absorbers’ — people who barely notice if their saddle shifts a centimetre.

For microadjusters, self-fit might not be advised. Physiotherapist at Velophysio, Nichola Roberts, told us: “I would say a self set-up is possible but not advisable. If you are going to do it, use guideline measures to put you in the right ballpark, but be prepared to go by feel and tweak as you feel comfortable.”

And there’s no shame in asking for help. “Ask a friend who has some bike knowledge to observe you or film you on a turbo trainer, from behind and in front. If you are getting any discomfort or pain, seek professional help.”

DIY bike fit: how do you do it yourself?

Bike brand Canyon is famous for the good value it offers, largely afforded by the direct-only sales method it employs.

The German manufacturer knows that its customers are buying online and many of them, rightly or haphazardly, fit themselves to their purchases.

Daniel Heyder, one of Canyon’s product engineers, helped run us through the process of a basic self-set-up.

Start at the cleats

It’s very easy to rush at the bike, Allen keys in hand, but actually good bike-fit begins with the feet. The cleat-pedal contact is fundamental to comfort.

When you’re riding clipped in, your feet are the most locked-in component of your body. Misalignment can have a ricochet effect the whole way up the chain, from ankle to knee to glute and lower back.

The most popular method for fitting cleats is to put your shoes on and feel, beneath the soft upper of the shoe on each side of the foot, for the bony protrusion on the inside (first metatarsal head) and outside (fifth metatarsal head).

Mark each with a sticker; draw a line through the two points, then place the centre of the cleat on this line.

Orientation is important too, and according to Heyder should follow your “natural stance”.

To ascertain this, sit on the edge of a table and let your feet hang loose. Ask someone to look at the angle of your feet (if you look yourself, you’ll subconsciously self-correct) — they’ll naturally turn slightly in or out. Set up your cleats at the corresponding angle to match.

Cleats can be adjusted to account for differences in stance width — the distance between your hips — but the degree of adjustment available is limited. If you have wide hips, it may be worth investigating Speedplay pedals, where longer spindles can be used to bring the feet out, helping to straighten out knee tracking.

Cleat position troubleshooting

Nichola Roberts says: “Where people often go wrong with cleats is that they don’t take into account where their feet naturally hang when the leg is bent or at rest. So they either put not enough or too much rotation into the cleat. This usually results in pain on the outside of the knee, or behind the knee.

“Cleats that are too far forward or too far back generally result in knee pain. It’s rare that you actually feel it in the foot. I’d normally suggest that if you’ve changed your cleats, be aware of any twinges in the knee — and respond by making movements in small increments. When you come to change cleats, draw around them, then draw lines from your outline at key points, and take a photo.”

Find the right saddle position

Starting with the saddle angle, the traditional advice has been to set it so it's bang-on parallel with the ground, at zero degrees. More recently, professional cyclists have been tilting their saddles down a few degrees to help relieve pressure - especially when in an aggressive position, with a big drop to the handlebars.

For beginners, though, who will likely have a less extreme saddle to handlebar drop, the traditional advice of a flat saddle tilt is very good place to start.

For setting your saddle height, the basic formula is to multiple your inseam height by 0.885 — the resulting measurement should be the distance from the centre of the bottom bracket and top of the saddle.

This longstanding equation is called the ‘LeMond Formula’, after the famous American cyclist — though it was actually his French coach Cyrille Guimard who came up with it.

The algorithm seems to have stood the test of time, but doesn’t take into account differences in pedal shapes, shoe soles or crank length. It also assumes that all cyclists have the same dimensions and level of flexibility — which they don’t. It’s a ballpark estimate, but will get you into the right region.

An alternative is to drop the crank to full extension and rest your heel on the pedal, setting the saddle height at the point where the leg is entirely straight (and therefore has a soft bend when clipped in).

‘KOPS’ (knee over pedal spindle) is used to find the correct fore/ aft (front/back) position of the saddle. While clipped in, with the cranks horizontal, drop a plumb line from the back of the kneecap to the pedal spindle — it should pass through the kneecap and pedal spindle.

Saddle position troubleshooting

Nichola Roberts says: “If you get pain or aching at the front of the knee, it may well mean the saddle is too low, which increases the angle at the top of the stroke, creating more force through the front of the knee. If it’s too high, you can experience pain at the back of the knee, around the hamstrings or ITB. It can also give you back pain, from movement in the saddle, and Achilles pain. Bear in mind knock on effects.

“Adjusting fore/aft will change your hip angle. If you move the saddle forward, you open the hip angle; if you go back, you close it. I’ve seen people suffer hip pain from the saddle being too far back, and knee pain from it being too far forward, but it’s very individual. It’s not all about the saddle, either.

“One thing people tend to overlook is crank length. Anyone who is having back or hip pain may need to consider shorter cranks. Bike frames are quite arbitrary in their measurements. If you have a long body and short legs, you will likely need a longer bike, with the saddle height lower. If you’re on 175mm cranks, this might mean your hip angle is closed as you pedal — but a shorter crank could open that up. Shorter cranks could also help someone who is less flexible, and perhaps can’t put the saddle as high.”

Over here we share the pros and cons of various crank length calculators to help you find the optimal setup for you.

Don't forget: making adjustment to fore/ aft affects saddle height. If you move the saddle back, it’ll increase the height, go forward and you’ll see a decrease — always re-measure height after making set-back adjustments. If you change your crank length, remember to add or subtract the relevant distance from your saddle height

Adjust your reach

This is where things become a bit more personal. Your optimum, explains Heyder, will come down to “experience, personal preference, body anthropometrics, aerodynamics and body mobility. Many experienced riders tend to go longer and lower in the front due to a better body mobility.”

He suggests that you aim to maintain a relaxed angle — 160 to 170° — between your lower and upper arm. The drop you want on the front end will change over time, too.

“As a beginner, start off with the maximum spacer height and decrease the number of spacers used over the course of the season — your body will adapt accordingly if you make the changes slowly.”

It’s worth remembering that handlebars play a vital role in setting your reach, with bars that are too wide adding extra distance. The ideal width usually mirrors the distance between the two bony protrusions on your shoulders.

Troubleshooting reach

Nichola Roberts says: “The ideal position is one with a soft bend in your arms. You shouldn’t feel like you’re putting an enormous weight through your hands. Never put the saddle forward to cater for a reach that is too long. Once you have the back end right, don’t move it — reduce reach with a shorter stem. Don’t ignore warning signs.

“Shoulder and wrist pain are signs of handlebars that are too wide. Check yourself in a mirror — look at the width of your shoulder, your arms should fall directly to the handlebar.”

DIY bike-fit: for or against?

Sorting your own bike set-up… is it a shrewd way to save cash or stingy false economy that risks needless injury?

Yes, you can do it yourself

Michael Hutchinson, former national champion and CW columnist believes it's possible to do a good job on your own.

I’m not sure anyone had even heard the term ‘bike-fit’ until about 2001. Before that, you might have had someone in the bike shop give you a look-over or (even longer ago) had a custom frame builder apply some home-spun wisdom.

But most people did it themselves. There were a few formulae around for saddle height — inside leg times 0.883 was the one I used, and my saddle remains that height to this day — and some rules-of-thumb, like the guideline that when you were on the drops your view of the front axle should be obscured by the handlebar.

The body is pretty adaptable, and a few millimetres one way or another is the sort of thing that most people can absorb quite well — so the rough way worked fine for most. If it didn’t, of course, it was more complicated. Discomfort, injuries, saddle-sores… a fitting can solve all of these. But there’s probably not much harm in having a go yourself first.

No, check in with a fitter

Peter Weir, bike-fitter at Bike Fit Lab, Ballymena, Northern Ireland reckons you should never try and do it yourself.

I would encourage every cyclist to have a professional bikefit. It is amazing how many people think that numb hands and feet, saddle discomfort and knee pain is a normal by-product of road cycling. It really isn’t. A good bike-fitter will be able to solve these problems (in the absence of underlying injuries).

The most common issue that I see in my studio is poor cleat alignment and saddles much too high, leading to knee pain. Good bike-fitters do not fit by numbers, they work with the rider to find their optimum position based upon said rider’s unique bio-mechanics and feedback — improving comfort, preventing injury, increasing efficiency and often even power.

Talk to your local bike-fitter — ask what they can do for you. If they talk about their software and system more than talking about you and your needs, try another fitter.

Reasons to pay for a bike fit

Paul Drake, an experienced bike-fitter at Maison du Velo in Reigate, Surrey, points out that, even with his experience, he doesn’t try to do his own fit.

“I don’t really advocate doing it at home,” he says. “It’s really tricky because you haven’t got anyone looking at you. You’ve got all the old adages, but guidelines based on multiplying your inseam length by a set figure are very rough, based on averages.”

Using a plumb line single-handedly is awkward and it’s easy to make mistakes.

“The difference between DIY and a bike-fit carried out by a professional is that the pro will first spend time getting to know your parameters, in terms of your body, where you have tightness, imbalances and rotations that you can’t measure yourself — then translating that on to the bike.”

A good bike-fitter will assess the range of movement you have in your hamstrings, your pelvic rotation, and how much you rotate forwards on the saddle, all of which affect your reach. Those biomechanical elements are then factored-in to reach, saddle height and fore/aft.

“Even if you’re a new cyclist,” adds Drake, “I’d advise you to bite the bullet and get a fit on your first bike. You can cause yourself so many avoidable problems with bad fit. And as a beginner, you’re a blank canvas — arguably it’s the best time to develop optimal muscle patterns.”

If you're looking for a cheaper alternative, there are online services offering virtual bike fits - read our full review of MyVeloFit to find out more about one of the options that we've tested.

Transferring bike-fits

Regardless of whether you’ve set yourself up or had a professional bike-fit, there will come a time when you want to set up another bike to replicate your primary machine. That could be when renting on holiday, or during the excitement of ‘new bike day’.

Were all bike geometries, saddles and handlebars equal, this would be an easy job — but they’re not.

Saddle height is fairly simple: measure from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the saddle, and you can get the angle right with a spirit level. Fore/aft can be harder, but there are several, not inexpensive, tools specifically designed for this job — or you could make your own. Drake uses a clear piece of Perspex cut into a ‘T’ shape.

“I set the bike up on a turbo trainer or in a stand so it’s level, then run the straight line from the centre of the bottom bracket. Nine times out of 10, the line is falling in front of the saddle. The correct layback is the distance between the tip of the saddle and the edge.”

This only works if you’re using the same saddle. If not, you’ll need to take into account any difference between the lengths of the two perches. An alternative option is to use a builder’s laser, instead of the Perspex plastic, to shine a straight line through the bottom bracket.

Reach can be measured by checking the distance from the centre of the saddle to the tip of the hood. If you want precision made easy, there are all-in-one tools available. VeloAngle, for example, uses polar coordinates to establish the relative position between the saddle, bottom bracket and bars.

This allows for precision and repeatability — but will set you back (from) £159. This does not include the accompanying app, which allows you to plug in existing measurements and calculate the x/y coordinates required for a completely different bike.

When to adjust your fit?

The optimum bike-fit for you is not a set of coordinates etched into stone.

Phil Burt again: “Many people will have a bikefit, get put in one position, and then leave it. But bodies are adaptable, and the bike is adjustable — the right fit is a marriage between the two.”

Bear in mind that your adaptability changes over time, advises Burt: “There isn’t one ideal position, but there’s definitely an optimum window for each measurement, height, saddle set back and reach.”

The important thing is to remember to stay within your comfortable window, and to make small changes, gradually. Test your adjustment with some shorter rides, and never make big changes ahead of a long day out.

Before going any further we should define what is meant by Q Factor. Sometimes known as 'quack factor' (a references to ducks and their waddle-y legs), Q Factor is the distance between the outside of one crank arm to the outside of the other. 

This is an important bike fit parameter as it effects your stance width, which is how far apart your feet end up being when placed on your pedals. We'll get into the details on the risks of an incorrect stance width, how to determine the right stance width for you, and how to adjust the stance width on your bike.

It's worth just noting that beyond just the Q Factor of your cranks, there is a range of other factors that determine your stance width. Your pedal spindle length, how you mount your cleats to your shoes, and even spacers between the pedal and the crank all give scope for altering the distance between your feet without changing your Q Factor.

How to tell you need to adjust your stance width

Stance is self-selected, influenced by posture, habit and anatomical features. Your lower limb alignment, such as if you have bowed legs (genu varum), knock knees (genuvalgum) or a large Q-angle, can effect your ideal stance width. 

A wide, toe-out stance in everyday life may indicate the need for a wider stance width on the bike, although this is not always the case. Checking your stance during a squat on two legs and one leg may also give further clues on your loading pattern. Stiff hips can also indicate the need for a wider stance, especially if you are lacking flexion and internal rotation.

To determine whether changes will need to be made, observation of your pedalling on the bike is essential. Knees kicking out during the pedal stroke can indicate a stance width that is too narrow, knees dropping in can mean the stance width is too wide.

However, poor knee tracking can be due to factors other than stance width. A saddle height that is too low or too far back can result in a closed off hip angle, forcing the knees to kick out at the top of the pedal stroke if the hip does not have sufficient range of movement. 

Cranks that are too long can also have this effect, particularly in those with stiff hips. Poor control of rotation or muscle imbalance at the hip can also effect knee tracking and alignment, as can poor foot stability. Therefore stance width needs to be considered and adjusted as part of the bike fit as a whole. Issues such as stiff hips and poor muscle control may need to be addressed off the bike. 

The majority of time I find that stance width needs to be widened rather than narrowed, and there is an argument that the Q-factor of road bikes are just not wide enough for the general population. Occasionally, the stance width will not be able to be made narrow enough, usually in those of small stature, which is more often women.

Common issues from incorrect stance width 

The knee is the most likely area to experience discomfort or injury with an inappropriate stance width. The most common knee pain issue when stance width is too narrow is pain on the outside of the knee, often involving the ITB, due to strain being placed on these lateral structures.

The patellofemoral (knee cap) joint can also be irritated by torque force/twisting being applied to the knee when the stance width is too narrow or too wide, causing increased compression on the medial or lateral structures under the knee cap.

Another issue may be pain or numbness on the outside of the foot as it tries to push out against the shoe.

A promotional feature in association with Boardman , first published in 2019

‘Will a time trial bike really make me that much faster?’ – it’s a question I’ve been asked a lot of times. I’ve always answered in support of our heavier, tri-barred rigs: it’s massive. Minutes, easily, over a blue ribbon 25.

However, checking myself in at the (since closed) Boardman Performance Centre in Evesham, I finally had the chance to get into the windtunnel and collect the data behind my assumption – and some of it surprised me.

In short: the results... 

Boardman’s Aerodynamicist Dr Jamie Pringle was there to test and advise me, first aboard Boardman’s AIR aero road bike, followed by the AIR road bike with clip on bars, then the wind cheating TTE time trial bike.

Testing the AIR aero road bike, at 40km/h with a 7.5-degree yaw angle, we began by assessing my coefficient of drag (CdA) and resultant watt saving in an assortment of positions: on the tops, on the drops, 'tucked' on the drops, and 'hunched' on the tops. The final position is often considered to be the optimum for mimicking time trial savings on a road bike, if you can ignore the bicep ache and sustain it.

For me – on the AIR in this set up, tucking into the drops proved fastest – at an impressive 38 watt saving vs sitting on the tops. This represents an increase of 2.13km/h, and a time saving of 3 minutes 03 seconds over a 40km event.

The 'hunch’ on the tops was remarkably not much faster, suggesting I’m best off abandoning my pursuit of this position. However it’s worth bearing in mind that further optimisation – narrower bars and a longer stem - could see an uplift here.

Next, we added a pair of clip on bars to the AIR road bike. You can purchase a pair of these for around £100. This cost effective hack proved to be remarkably successful, saving 66 watts - equating to a saving of 5min 20s vs the ‘tops’ road bike position, and 2min 17s when compared to the fastest ‘drops’ position.

However, when Pringle stepped in to optimise the position: narrowing and raising my hands, pushing the saddle forwards and instructing me to tuck my head into the famous “turtle” stance, the difference was greater: 83 watts.

This new position was a substantial 6mins 51s faster than the ‘tops’ road bike position, and 3min 48s faster than the ‘drops’ position. Granted, you'll need to move your hands to shift gear, an inconvenience saved on a time trial bike, but this is still a chunk carved off the time spent in the pain cave which is hard to ignore.

We can't ignore the fact that the AIR is not a 'standard road bike' - it has been designed to be tinkered with and taken very close to a TT ready rig, with a four-position seat post. This allowed for effectively a 76 degree seat position and a low front end on the X-Small road bike I was aboard, and a taller rider might not be equally rewarded on a larger bike.

In part, the position I was able to work myself into on the AIR may explain my surprise at the next result. Once we fitted me in an identical position on the TTE time trial bike, the CdA saving was 2.3 per cent, equating to only 4 watts – or 26s over 40km.

Both bikes have been windtunnel tested and optimised to push through the air as quickly as possible. But the TTE has additions: the integrated front end, tidied brake levers and the lack of hoods, to name a few.

With eyebrows raised at the limited improvement, we tested the same position at a higher speed: 50km/h, with a 2.5 degree yaw angle, the sort of pace the bike is arguably designed for.

At this speed, the saving afforded by the time trial bike shot up to 5.9 per cent – 21 watts faster than the AIR with clip on bars, equating to a 55s saving: a valuable near-minute for a competitive tester.

Commenting on the findings, Pringle explained: “Some readers might have expected a bigger margin between the AIR aero road bike and TTE time trial bike bike. However, we’re often seeing well-designed aero road bikes getting very close to their thoroughbred time trial bike counterparts.

“Indeed, the AIR and TTE share much of the same DNA, with similar tube profiles and finishing kit.”

The 50kph speed of the second test equates to a 50-minute 25 mile time trial. That’s six minutes faster than my best ever performance. However, Pringle points out that we don’t ride at an ‘average’ speed.

“Some riders may think these speeds are unrealistic and out of their league, but remember our on the open road the average speed of the race doesn’t tell the whole story and there will be times in the race when the 40 km/h rider exceeds 50 km/h and perhaps even nudges 60 km/h - downhills and so on.”

Finally – it’s worth remembering that we didn’t delve deeper to investigate the further savings available from helmet and skinsuit choice.

“There is, undoubtedly, gain to come from these areas, albeit no-where near the very big differences that position on the bike can make.

“We’ve taken the biggest leaps in performance in simply getting her onto TT bars, and further strides in optimising that and then the bike change.

“My suggestion is that with a further session or two, we could take Michelle’s CdA down to around 0.17 to 0.18 and probably lower, with a number of smaller steps. That would bring her closer to the best performers against the clock.”

With that, perhaps I’ll be dusting of my Cycling Time Trials account for some summer racing…

This article forms part of a week of women's focused stories, in celebration of our Women's Special edition of Cycling Weekly Magazine, one sale from Thursday, March 10. See the full schedule of upcoming articles here.

The debate over women’s specific bikes has dragged on for well over a decade.

Women's specific geometry bike frames - typically with shorter top tubes and taller head tubes, designed to cater for claimed anatomical differences - have been around on the mass market since the early 2000s. 

These frames were said to better cater for women's reportedly lower center of gravity, and trend towards carrying a greater distribution of muscle mass in our lower body. 

Outside of the frame, women's bikes will have narrower handlebars and women's saddles - to meet the needs of women who have statistically narrower shoulders, and different saddle requirements.

The marketing argument

The creation of a women's specific bike also appeals to the shopping habits of the mass market. 

Elsewhere in our consumer lives, women are marketed to according to their gender: most will buy a Venus razor over a Mach3. This means that the 'women's bike' aisle may feel like a more natural home. The difference within cycling is that being a male-dominated pursuit, choice tends to be more limited. 

What do the big brands do?

It would be helpful if the bike manufacturers with the greatest access to data and research all took the same approach. However, if we look at Specialized, Trek, Liv and Canyon, what we’re left with is a raft of differing viewpoints. 

Specialized and Trek were the first brands to create 'women's specific geometry bikes', with models arriving in 2002 and 2003 respectively. But both returned to unisex frame design around 15 years later, initially with women's models that featured gender-specific touchpoints, before these were replaced with one model to meet all needs.

Trek's Domane, Madone and Emonda models now have a unisex geometry, replacing the likes of the women's Silque, and Specialized replaced its Amira women's road race bike with a unisex Tarmac years ago now. Initially, it maintained the Ruby women's endurance bike, stating that these customers wanted a different experience compared to the male Roubaix shoppers, but the Ruby was axed at a later model launch.

Specialized, which owns the Retül bike fitting system, reportedly bases its "beyond gender approach" on data from 8,000 bike fits, "we’ve learned that all riders are unique, and that the stereotypes of body shape are largely inaccurate," the brand said at the time. 

Meanwhile, Liv (the women's arm of Giant) is entirely dedicated to separate geometry for female riders. When I referred to 'unisex frames' at a recent bike launch, its founder Bonnie Tu looked told me: “those bikes are made for men, they’re not unisex.”

Liv says that its research papers show "significant anthropometrical differences that will determine the best bike fit", with its data placing women's legs as longer whilst our upper bodies and arms are shorter, proportionally vs men. It also says that "a woman’s percentage of lower body to upper body strength is greater than that of a man’s. We use this data on strength differences to tailor the stiffness and compliance of our frames to meet a woman’s power demands, without sacrificing the strength and durability of the frame."

Canyon takes a similar stance. The brand used 60,000+ data sets to determine its approach, concluding that women had a shorter wing span on average, so needed a shorter top tube to get the same ride quality.

“We position the women in the same way that we do men on a bike – taking into account the average differences between measurements," said women's brand manager, Katrin Neumann at the Canyon WMN road bike launch.

'No statistical difference'

The conflicting approaches above don't bring us closer to an answer. So what do custom bike fitters - who have no warehouses full of bikes to sell - feel the majority needs?

Bike fitting expert at VeloAtelier, Lee Prescott, tells me: “Based on the Dreyfuss Human Scale – the most comprehensive ergonomic data display there is – there’s no statistical difference between women and men’s limb lengths," not mincing his words, he reiterates: "There's no measurement which is different between men and women that affects bike fit.”

Numbers collected in the NASA anthropometric summary tell the same story, as do those produced by the USA Military database, based on 132 body measurements on around 4000 individuals.

It is worth bearing in mind that the anthropometric doesn't take into account flexibility, position on the bike, or the distribution of muscle mass. 

"Women are typically more flexible than men - so to ride in an ideal position many female riders might actually have a slightly longer top tube," Prescott says.

Former lead physiotherapist at British Cycling, Phil Burt agrees that there's no statistical difference in limbs that required a differently shaped bike.

The founder of bike fitting services at 'Phil Burt Innovation' believes women are massively under served by the market - in terms of kit, saddles and more. But he doesn't think they need women's bikes; "I don’t think they [women's bikes] exist. Does a woman pole vaulter use a women's pole?"

"The only women's specific parameter is stance width. All bikes come with the same stance width [Q-Factor], all pedals except Speedplay, come with the same 53mm axles - but women have wider hips. So your Q-Factor is greater – which is why some women have knee pain, because their knee goes inwards as they pedal."

Small bikes for smaller riders

Despite being against women's specific geometry, Prescott does believe that shorter people - and taller people, anyone outside of the statistical norm - in general are not well served by the current market.

This is a position shared by frame builder Adeline O'Moreau of Mercredi bikes: “My personal experience with the men and women I’ve built bikes for is that the differences in reach and saddle to bar drop have all been to do with general fitness, and how much they stretch - it has nothing to do with your gender.

"What you find when you look at anthropometric data sets is that men and women have similar proportions, it’s just that more women are slightly shorter. What we need is more bikes for smaller people, not more bikes for women."

Many brands currently produce fewer bikes in small sizes - and sometimes the smaller bikes share moulds with larger versions - resulting in dramatic jumps in seat and head angle, and discrepancies in handling.

"If you're not producing many small bikes, the space between the steerer and the saddle needs to be as small as possible, so you can increase it by putting a longer stem on, or more setback on the saddle" says O'Moreau, "so you make a really steep seat angle, and a really shallow head angle. That means those bikes don’t handle well, but it’s a problem that affects everyone who is smaller – not just women.

“Off-the-peg manufacturers could make more smaller off-the-peg bikes – so the changes in top tube, or seat angle, would be less dramatic."

Many women's specific models have been designed around a shorter average height - and for that reason their handling can be more consistent.

One such selection is Canyon's WMN range, which provides for smaller riders in a way no other mass produced off-the-peg brand does (if we exclude kids' bikes): with smaller wheels.

The women's models range from 3XS (suitable for a rider or 152cm ) to Medium (186cm rider height), and the 2XS and 3XS bikes use 650b wheels, designed to alleviate the compromises made when attempting to design a small bike around the 700c standard.

“When you get to small sizes, if you’re using 700c wheels,  you still need to maintain a certain distance between the two wheels, and between the crank and the front wheel to make it rideable. So you end up slackening the head angle, increasing the fork rake", says Canyon's Marketing Coordiantor Jack Noy.

"That pushes the front wheel back out again which solves the problem but affects the way the bike feels and affects the consistency of handling."

“By using a small wheel you gain the extra room, the size range increases and the consistency between the sizes stays the same,” he adds.

Prescott certainly supports this approach, “I would say smaller people are better served by 650b wheels. There is always going to be a rolling resistance penalty. But the smaller wheel allows them to get into a better position," he comments.

Also not covered by limb measurement stats is carbon layup.

Women's bike manufacturers often adjust the material to cater for a smaller individual producing less power and with a lower weight. This means lighter riders aren't forced to pay a penalty for stiffness they won't utilise, and it's something Canyon allowed for with its WMN range, creating the lightest bikes in its brand offering.

What should customers buy?

The debate continues to drag on. Whilst one set of brands tones down its approach to female specific geometry, a new host of 'women only' machines arrive from their competitors.

Statistical differences in limb length appear to be downplayed by independent experts. However, none of the data sets used consider flexibility, riding experience, fitness or personal preference.

Regardless of limb length, height, weight and experiential desires - when all is said and done, the only person who has to ride your bike is you.

So the bike fitters, brands and custom builders can have their own debates. As a buyer, your best bet is to find the bike that fits you and your individual needs: that means test riding as many bikes as you can.

This article forms part of a week of women's focused stories, in celebration of our Women's Special edition of Cycling Weekly Magazine, one sale from Thursday, March 10. See the full schedule of upcoming articles here.

If your last professional - or even DIY bike-fit - was more than five years ago, you’re not alone. Time flies, and we generally assume our position, once set, is sorted for life. Sadly not. If your measurements have been gathering figurative dust for quite a while, your current position might be less your current optimum, more an obsolete record of the rider you once were. Making progress means letting go of the past.

"Bike-fit needs to be an evolution rather than a revolution,” says Phil Burt, former lead physiotherapist at British Cycling and Team Sky consultant. Burt now offers his own eponymous fitting service, Phil Burt Innovation, offering elite-level expertise and attention to detail to amateur riders as well as beginner rider bike fits.

“Many people will have a bike-fit, get put in one position, and leave it. But bodies are adaptable, and the bike is adjustable — the right fit is a marriage between the two.”

In other words, your body doesn’t remain the same year after year, so nor should your bike.

“People’s adaptability wavers over time,” says Burt. “When we’re teenagers, we’re all fairly flexible and adaptable, but during life, years of attrition and injuries and work mount up and we become less adaptable. Everyone has a bike-fit window; there isn’t one ideal position, but there’s definitely an optimum window for each measurement, saddle height, saddle setback and reach.”

This optimum window should be set according to goals, strength, flexibility and any injuries or niggles. Not everyone needs a bike-fit, of course. If you are consistently free from pain and injury, and happy with your aerodynamics, carry on. Signs that you do need to revisit your set-up include pain, discomfort, or just a nagging feeling that you’re not reaping the benefits of your efforts.

We asked Burt to outline common scenarios where riders stand to benefit from a fresh fit, and then asked Paul Drake — highly experienced fitter at Maison du Velo in Surrey — to put the theory to the test on three guinea pig riders.

If you realize after reading this that it's best that you book yourself in for a bike fit, you might want to consider a cheaper alternative, such as an AI app like MyVeloFit.

1. You’ve grown older

Bad news: we’re all getting older, all the time. Good news: whilst there are changes that will affect your riding after 40, they need not interrupt our riding nor slow us down (at least not dramatically).

“Cycling is one of the best things you can do into old age,” says Burt. “You don’t see many 70-year-olds running marathons, but you do see loads of 70-year-old cyclists. There are no eccentric forces involved in cycling, so lots of people gravitate towards it from other sports.” Older riders don’t have to accept being less aero, either.

“Growing older doesn’t always mean your bike-fit has to get less aggressive or less performance-driven,” Burt continues. “If you’ve got time to work on your adaptability to stay in the position, you might even be able to get more aggressive. Like anything in cycling, the more you do it, the better you’ll be at it.” In fact, as vocational life slows down, attention to detail in cycling can be ramped up.

“Someone who is semiretired, for example, has more time on their hands for stretching and core work than guys who work 50 to 60 hours a week at a desk or commuting. Make the most of it.”

2. You’re chasing greater performance

“There are three pillars of bike-fit: aerodynamics, comfort and sustainability, and power,” says Burt says. “Put simply, bike-fit is essentially rotating someone around the bottom bracket. One position might be much more aggressive and aerodynamically faster, but harder to hold, and another might be easier to hold and suited to long endurance rides.”

If outright speed is paramount to you, you can adjust your position to be accordingly aggressive. If you’re riding an all-day event, comfort and sustainability are higher priorities. One thing’s for certain: you need to be able to hold your position for the duration of the event.

Bike-fitters can assess the sustainability of a position using pressure mapping. If you’re moving around, you’re not holding the coordinates. The low-tech alternative is to have a friend ride behind you and provide feedback.

Fit should be geared towards goal, as Burt explains: “The track sprinter’s road bike position may be completely geared towards recovery” — entirely unlike their race position. The key, after making adjustments, is to give the body time to adapt. “Don’t have a bike-fit before a major event,” warns Burt. “You need to let your body adapt, and that takes weeks, not days.”

3. You’re recovering from a crash

“Let’s face it, road cycling can be dangerous,” says Burt. “But cycling is often a good rehab activity. We just need to use our knowledge to set up injured riders correctly. You need to bring the bike to meet you while you’re recovering after a crash; the bike-fit must be an evolution back to your optimal position, reflecting where you are in your recovery and rehabilitation.”

Cycling injuries — broken collarbones, ankle fractures — can permanently alter your riding position. After a crash, you need to work to regain previous condition — muscle mass or range of movement. In the meantime, your position may need to change to accommodate your current physical condition. Remember, the body is remarkably adaptable.

Citing former rugby players who have switched to cycling, Burt says, “The average age for a hip replacement in an international prop is mid-40s. When someone’s range of motion at the top of the hip is limited, we often see their knees go out as they pedal. What we need to do is accommodate their lack of range of movement. Parameters such as pedal float, crank length, saddle height and stance width can all be manipulated.”

Check out our crank length calculator guide over here to find your ideal crank length.

4. You’ve had a child

For women, a key time for having a fresh bike-fit is after childbirth, and it's likely you'll also want to make changes as you cycle through pregnancy. Expectant mothers often change their position during pregnancy, raising the handlebars to accommodate a growing bump. But what about postpartum?

“Giving birth is a pretty traumatic thing for the female body,” says Burt, tackling a sensitive matter. “It changes you in a place that’s really important when you cycle, it’s where you sit. What worked in the past might not work for you any more.”

As with an injury, it’s important to be cautious and progressive.

“Bike-fit will change as you return to fitness. Initially you may need to relax the position and make sure that you’re comfortable. It’s not performanceorientated at first, just about comfort.” You might need a saddle swap, and it may be worth going to a fitter who uses saddle pressure mapping. The next task is strengthening.

“The first thing is to get trunk stability back,” Burt adds, “as core muscles can be weakened by the ordeal — even more so in the case of a caesarean section.”

5. Your flexibility, core strength or weight has changed

A rider’s flexibility and body composition make a big difference to their riding position. If yours have changed, for whatever reason, you might find your old measurements don’t work any more.

“If you end up stopping your ride because your belly is forcing your hip out and you get hip pain, then yes, it’s better to relax that position,” Burt says. A common symptom is the distinctive ‘Kermit’ pedalling style, “riders whose legs kick out to the side — it can be because their belly is larger than it used to be, or because they don’t have full hip range of motion.”

Expert advice will help you identify which parameters to manipulate — float, crank length, stance width, height or layback. Saddle height is affected by flexibility, too: more flexible riders can extend more fully, whereas those with tight hamstrings require a lower saddle and shorter reach. Similarly, stronger riders are able to stabilise themselves in a long and low position without pain.

‘Don’t go too aggressive’

Phil Burt’s top tips for recognising when your position is too extreme:

• Handling will become twitchy
• Numb hands are a sign there’s too much weight over the bike’s front end
• Penile numbness, if you’re rolling too far forwards
• Back of the leg pain if the saddle is too high
• Neck pain. Holding a low front end can be like painting the ceiling if you’re having to look up to see the road ahead.
• Stubborn pain. If it’s lasting once you get off the bike, we either need to look at the bike, or you. We may need to have the rider work on strength and flexibility, and then gradually change the position over time.

TT bike tip: when it comes to getting a fast position on a TT bike, Burt advises, “The single most important change is saddle setback, height, and tilt — and the saddle itself. Tilting your saddle just a couple millimetres down allows you to tilt your pelvis and moving it upwards and forwards allows you to get the most power. After that, we address hand position.”

Testing the theory: three case studies

Maison du Velo's bike fitter, Paul Drake took some guinea pigs through their bike fit paces...

Adrian Blacker: ‘I want performance without pain'

Company director Adrian Blacker, 54, is a time triallist who rides every distance, from 10 miles to 12 hours, racing up to three times a week through the summer. He rides daily and is disciplined about core strengthening and stretching.

Bike-fitter Paul Drake says:

Adrian is flexible and keeps himself in very good condition but, even so, his saddle was too high, by 15mm. I don’t think he was activating his quads and glutes enough, and he was overreaching with his hamstrings. A saddle set too high can cause lateral pulling, hitting the IT band and vastas lateralis, stressing the knee joint and causing knee pain when cycling.

Towards the bottom of the stroke, the knee is flapping around, putting stress on the medial and lateral ligaments. Lowering the saddle allows Adrian to better activate his glutes — that’ll probably take three to four weeks.

I also moved his cleats back, as they were too far forward, causing him to isolate his Achilles tendon and calf muscle. Moving them underneath the mid-line of the body means he’ll get better drive with bigger muscle groups.

Adrian complained of a new right knee pain after the fit. I think it’s because we’ve made big changes in the middle of the season. A better time for a fit would be October or November. I have given him some stretches to do until his muscle memory catches up with the changes.

Adrian Blacker says:

My first observation post-fit was that the left leg was under better control at full extension, and I could push hard through the pedal around the full rotation. I felt properly planted and the rearward movement of both cleats was obvious out on the road; I felt I was ‘ankling’ less.

I had a hard turbo session the day after the fit. Power was where I expected it to be and I felt comfortable in the saddle. However, the next morning I had a new right knee pain, so I raised the saddle to between the old and the ‘fitted’ saddle height.

Since then, I’ve ridden a good few road miles and raced over 10, 25 and 50 miles. In the latest 10-mile time trial, the slightly raised saddle relieved some of the right knee pain while still allowing my left leg to stay in control through the full rotation.

In the 25-mile race, I achieved a personal best by more than a minute. I’m certain that the changes haven’t harmed my cycling performance, and I suspect they are responsible for at least some of the gain.

Lisa Davie: 'I've had a break from the bike'

Royalty protection officer Lisa Davie, 48, got her custom Parlee as a 40th birthday present eight years ago.

In the past few years, she’s been suffering from stubborn back pain, causing her to take some time away from two wheels and into running shoes. Now intent on returning to cycling, first she needs to defeat the pain.

Bike-fitter Paul Drake says:

Lisa had pain in the lower back, plus foot numbness. We sorted the feet by moving the cleats back, as having them too far forward can cause pressure on nerves, leading to tingling and numbness.

Her pain was all the way up the back and into the shoulders. There was quite a curve in Lisa’s lower back, and she wasn’t comfortable on the hoods, so we swapped her 90mm stem with an 80mm. After this, her wrists and elbow were nice and relaxed, as were the deltoids; she looked far more relaxed on the hoods.

We opened up the hip angle by moving the saddle forwards, which took stress off the hip flexors. Lisa said she was struggling to feel powerful on the bike, so by raising her saddle we gave her better glute activation.

Core conditioning can play a big part in reach and how low and aggressive you can be on a bike. Though Lisa does a lot of running, her break from the bike may have led to postural weakness. Having changed her position, we need to allow time for the muscles to strengthen.

Since then, I’ve ridden a good few road miles and raced over 10, 25 and 50 miles. In the latest 10-mile time trial, the slightly raised saddle relieved some of the right knee pain while still allowing my left leg to stay in control through the full rotation.

Lisa Davie says:

I got my Parlee eight years ago and it was built to the specifications of a bike-fit. I had no issues until about four years ago when my lower back starting hurting so much that I took up running. However, after a few years of a persistent running injury, I decided to return to the bike. When I did, the back pain was crippling, so I jumped at the chance of another bike-fit.

Everything needed changing! I’ve ridden the 23 miles to work and back a few times since, and not a twinge. The biggest and most immediate difference I noticed was the decreased distance between the saddle and the handlebars; I’m no longer overreaching. It feels like a stronger, more comfortable cycling position. I’m looking forward to being able to ride for longer and regaining cycling fitness.

David Claxton: 'My back injury is stopping me riding'

Former infantry soldier David Claxton, 43, now has an office job in military intelligence. His body has been through its fair share of trauma over the years: he’s had a separated shoulder and broken hip (rugby), five breaks in his leg resulting in a shortened shin bone (motorbike crash), and he’s now suffering from painful medic plate change in the lower back.

Doctors say he’ll need surgery if it worsens, but exercise could keep this at bay. Claxton’s goal is to ride the triple Mount Ventoux this summer.

Bike-fitter Paul Drake says:

David was experiencing chronic lower back pain in the lumbar area and into the sacrum, so we needed to take stress off the lower back.

David was experiencing chronic lower back pain in the lumbar area and into the sacrum, so we needed to take stress off the lower back.

His position was far too rotated, and he was overreaching. There was a lot of stress going through his arms; you could see his triceps were doing a lot of work. So we moved his handlebars up, meaning that everything from his hands to wrists and deltoids was more relaxed; and his upper and lower back is relieved of the pressure.

The new position will help with descending, too — he’ll be more confident and comfortable on the drops, getting his body weight low and over the front of the bike.

I also moved the saddle forwards to open up the hip angle. We then took the pressure off his quads and better activated the glutes by raising the saddle.

David Claxton says:

Having already had a bike-fit, it hadn’t really occurred to me to have another. Since injuring my back, I have struggled to get comfortable on the bike at any distance over 40km.

The new position felt different and took a little getting used to. At first I felt as though I was in a more aggressive position over the bars, but it’s gradually felt like I’m more in control, with less pressure on my wrists. I don’t lock out my elbows any more, so have less stress through the arms and shoulders.

The adjustment made to my saddle position has made a huge improvement. After riding Ventoux this summer I had none of the lower back or subsequent shoulder or neck pain that I was previously getting which left me free to enjoy the ride. This has been a really good experience for me.

UCI article 1.3.006 states that: “Equipment shall be of a type that is sold for use by anyone practicing cycling as a sport.”

One of the aims of this is to ensure that the team with the biggest budget doesn’t gain a competitive advantage by using prototypes or one-off specials that are unaffordable to others.

>>> Beginner’s bike fit: how to set up your bike

But while it helps level the playing field in pro racing, is it a good idea for the clubman, the weekend warrior, the fourth cat and the sportiviste to ride a bike with geometry designed for Geraint Thomas or Chris Froome? Should we try to bend our bodies into the same extreme positions as the pros when riding replica bikes?

>>> Road bike size guide: how to choose a bike that fits

“Amateurs can if they have the time to spend on the bike that the pros do,” says Phil Burt, former head of physiotherapy at British Cycling. “But most of the time amateurs have something else to do like a day job, so I think the biggest mistake people make is to try.”

But how is an amateur to know if the position on their new aero bike is too aggressive? “It’s normally the amount of drop to the front end,” Burt says.

“If you’ve got too much weight on the front end handling will become twitchy or too fast. Numb hands is a sign you’ve got too much weight on the front. Penile numbness is a sign that you’re rolling too far forward. That could also be the wrong saddle height but these are the general things. Back of the leg pain, hip pain, neck pain as well. If you’re that slammed at the front it’s like painting the ceiling for a couple of hours.

“But what you’re looking for is lasting pain that goes on for more than 24, 48 hours and if you know it comes from your position, you’ve got to do something about it. [As a physio] I would ask, can we do something about you or can we do something about the bike? The answer is normally a mixture of both. The bike is the quick fix and the person is the longer term project.

“A bike-fit might tell you to drop your front end 40mm and raise your saddle 30mm. That’s huge and I would say we’re not going to get there now, we’re going to go 10mm a week. We’re going to ride 50 miles in that position and not feel any aches and pains and feel like it’s better.”

However, Burt explains that what might be considered too aggressive for one type of cycling might be acceptable, desirable even for another.

“There’s a sweetspot for everybody and it’s different for everybody. What some people do is they find a really fast position in a wind tunnel or by aero testing and it can be really fast but if you move outside it every three seconds it’s not aero. It depends on the length of the events.

"If it’s a four-minute pursuit you can be really uncomfortable if you can tolerate it. If it’s a 50-mile time trial I would invest a lot in comfort and sustainability.”

Expert view

Giuseppe Giannecchini, Velosolutions

My father was a Gimondi fan and wanted to have exactly the same Bianchi that Felice used to ride. Geometries and materials have changed but it’s always been the way.

“I always invite people to try to look further than the marketing and ask: ‘Is the bike suitable for me and my type of riding?’ The answer to the question, ‘Is Chris Froome’s geometry suitable for my body?’ can be, ‘Potentially yes, why not?!’ Talking about aggressive riding, and pro versus amateur positions really doesn’t make sense. We all need to pedal in our own bio-mechanically correct position. Once that is achieved the adjustments between a novice and a pro’s needs are minimal. Comfort and performance go hand in hand.

“We need to be very careful when buying a bike because we are all different. I may well have similar proportions to Froome but do we both have the same pelvic flexibility? There are many aspects to consider; I might suit Mikel Landa’s geometry instead.

“Determining which frame geometries are suitable for our bodies, with a proper bio-dynamic fitting session before the purchase, is fundamental to avoiding costly, uncomfortable, performance-restricting and even dangerous mistakes.”

Booking in for a bike fit can help you to avoid injury, make the most of your power output, and better tailor your position to your riding style.

Bike fit services vary dramatically in approach, tools used and price. The most expensive is not always the best, though a pricier fit might mean that the tools used are more sophisticated.

>>> Bike fit breakthroughs: four riders who fought off injury

We've explained what to look for in a bike fit, what to expect, and highlighted a few of our favourite fitters in the UK...

Why get a bike fit?

The best time to get a bike fit is generally before you start ramping up your training in preparation for an event. That way you have plenty of time to get used to the new stance on the bike. However, there are other events which might force a bike fit outside of the ideal time frame.

If you're considering buying a new bike, then having a fit first will mean a trained professional can take your ideal measurements and help you to choose a bike that's most suited to your strength, flexibility, riding style and goals.

>>> Beginner bike fit: how to set up your bike

If you've made a change to your training regime or goal, or had any major change to your body (crash, injury, pregnancy, loss or gain in fitness, strength or flexibility) then revisiting your bike fit may be a good idea.

And of course, if you're struggling with pain then a professional bike fitter might be able to help you relieve this. If the pain is related to the way you're positioned on a bike, they'll adjust it to avoid this - but they may also be able to manipulate the bike to cater for pain from outside factors.

Good bike fitters will also be able to suggest exercises that could help prevent pain in the future.

As Velo Atelier's director and bike fitter Lee Prescott explains, "The difficult thing in a bike-fit is understanding the human body — that’s where the real skill is. You’ve got these organic, asymmetric bodies that you are trying to mate to a perfectly symmetrical engineered piece of machinery.”

“Understanding how that person’s body moves, you can see whether the bike is forcing them to move in an unnatural way, and what you can do about that.

“If an injury is approached intelligently and sympathetically, there’s nearly always some sort of answer to get you to your goal.”

Finally, having a bike fit can provide a huge psychological boost, thanks to the reassurance that you've been placed in the optimal position for your given goal or event.

What to look for in a bike fit

There are many outlets offering bike fit, and it can become quite a job to differentiate them and pick out the best.

A basic bike fit can be carried out with you on the bike, attached to a turbo trainer. A well trained eye can get a lot done without additional tools, however extra tech can help to inform adjustment decisions, and to reassure you as the rider that changes made are beneficial.

When a 'jig' is used at a more premium studio, the fitter will be able to make minute changes in seconds, allowing for intricate fine tuning. The measurements can then be applied to your own bike, or planned bike if you're getting fitted in advance of a purchase.

Many fitters will also use devices to capture your old and new positions, and the effect that's having - such as the Retül 3D motion capture system. Here, markers are placed on the body, so that key measurements such as knee angle and extension can be displayed on a screen.

This allows the fitter to use numerical evidence to inform their decisions, and the rider to see what differences small adjustments make to the way their body interacts with the bike.

Often on offer are saddle pressure mapping, and insole moulding. The former may be useful for riders struggling to find a saddle that's comfortable, whilst the latter can help optimise knee tracking or influence foot comfort.

In the hierarchy of importance, the fitter's knowledge and experience far outweighs the tools at hand. As former British Cycling and Team Sky physiotherapist Phil Burt told us on a visit to his clinic in Manchester, “data is great, but it’s not the data that makes you knowledgeable, it’s the analysis of it.”

There are several well regarded training programmes offered for bike fitters, qualifications to look out for include Specialized Body Geometry Fit, Trek Precision Fit and CycleFit training.

What to expect at a bike fit

Good bike fitting begins with the rider. Therefore, a bike fit should always begin with a rider interview around the sort of cycling you're doing, any goals your have and any discomfort you've encountered.

Following this, the bike fitter will usually want to assess your flexibility and core strength, since this will dictate the position you will be able to maintain comfortably.

Next, the fit will usually move on to the bike, with a shoe and cleat assessment followed by a look at how you're currently sitting and how that can be optimised and improved.

Ideally, you'll be given a document with your measurements, so you can apply them to other bikes or keep them on record should you hire a bike or need to take yours apart at a later date.

Sometimes, it can take a little while to adjust to the new position, so the fitter may ask you to go away and ride your new set up, providing feedback to inform any later adjustments in a few weeks.

UK bike fitters we recommend

Phil Burt Innovation, Manchester

The eponymous studio from Phil Burt boasts his expertise as former Consultant Physiotherapist at Team Sky and Head of Physiotherapy at British Cycling - a post he held for 12 years.

Burt worked with some of the world's best athletes over three Olympic Games cycles and seven Tour de Frances, and now brings his expertise to amateurs. His aim is to help everyone from World Tour riders to weekenders to "ride faster, further and fresher".

The studio is based at the Manchester Institute of Health and Performance, so there's access to a range of complimentary services from MRI scans to DEXA scans. Burt uses the Retul 3D Motion Capture system to conduct fits, and Gebiomized saddle pressure map tools.

A bit fit assessment of 90-120 minutes costs £350, and there are off-bike assessments, specific saddle mapping and aero assessment options too.

Website: philburtinnovation.co.uk

Address: 299 Alan Turing Way, Manchester, M11 3BS (Satnav postcode M11 2AZ)

Soigeur, London

Tim Allen is the man behind Soigneur London. The studio opened in

He prides himself on bringing a more personal touch to bike fitting, with a combination of both science and the 'experience eye'.

Comprehensive fits (£250) take up to four hours and are completed on a jig, so that the measurements can be applied to a bike, or used to build a new or even custom machine to the perfect spec. A basic fit (£165) is carried out on the turbo trainer and takes around 1.5 hours.

Allen has a degree in Sports and Exercise science, and is also trained in Specialized Body Geometry Level 1 and 2 fitting as well as Trek Precision Fit Level 1 and 2.

Website: soigneur.co.uk

Address: Unit g10, Belgravia Workshops, 159-163 Marlborough Rd, London N19 4NF

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v9xVYmpxTU

Velo Atelier, Warwick

Head fitter and director here is Lee Prescott, pioneer of the 'Clinical BikeFit Protocol', which tailors bike fit to a rider's lifestyle, goals and current muscular skeletal condition. Prescott is one of seven IBFI (International Bike Fitting Institute) certified bike fitters in the UK.

The studio is located next to Core Physiatry, a leading clinic which is home to a selection of highly experienced physiotherapists and chiropractors. Rather than charge one set fee for a bike fit, at Velo Aterlier riders will visit Core Physiatry if need be, and fit is charged at £100 an hour. Other services include pedal stroke analysis, custom insole moulding, saddle optimisation and more.

Here you can have a bike fit on your own bike, be fitted on a jig for advice on the best bike to buy if you're shopping, or have custom geometry drawn up.

Website: veloatelier.co.uk

Address: Unit 9, Technology Park, Dark Lane, Hatton CV35 8XB

WyndyMilla, Surrey

Surrey's WyndyMilla is best known for its stunning custom bikes, but they carry out bike fits too - either to devise a custom geometry, or for a rider looking to get faster and more comfortable on their existing machine.

David Barnes Page is the chief bike fitter and designer, and he has seven years experience including training in the Specialized Body Geometry Fit programme plus qualifications in Biomechanics of Sport, Analysis in Sports Biomechanics, Structural Kinesiology and Applied Sports Science from Loughborough University’s Sports Technology Institute, and Manufacturing Design, Materials and Manufacturing Processes and Computer Aided Design from Wolfson School of Engineering.

A three hour fit costs £200 whilst four hours is £280, or you can pay per hour for smaller jobs.

Website: wyndymilla.com

Address: WyndyMilla, Manor Farm Cycle Centre, Wood Lane, Seale, Surrey, GU10 1HR

Know a great studio we've not mentioned?

We're just kicking things off with this list. Do you know of an excellent bike fitting service that we haven't included? Or do you run a bike fitting service of your own and think you should be included? If so, contact us at cycling@ti-media.com.

This article is produced in association with Six Physio

Stephen Garvey from rel="nofollow">www.sixphysio.com is a physiotherapist and bike rider, he has taken part in many sportives himself so knows what riders will put themselves through.

“I see people with bike fits at events that make me wonder how they are able to cycle! When I speak to them after the sportive and ask how they got on they often say they have had problems, they have been in pain but have been able to push through it.

Cyclists are often willing to sacrifice their bodies in search of a good result but in fact if you are cycling through pain you probably aren’t performing that well. I would argue that you should try and improve your bike fit first and your performance will probably improve.”

Sound familiar? Garvey’s recommendation is that once you sign-up for an event, as part of your preparation, you have a bike fit.

“Whether a commuter, a weekend warrior or someone taking the sport seriously quite a lot of people think they have a good bike fit when maybe they don’t. Bike fit can make a huge impact on power, aerodynamics and comfort so I really would encourage everyone to have theirs checked.”

Getting a good bike fit isn’t just about riding faster, although if your position is poor it will help with that, it is also about ensuring you enjoy your time on the ride.

“Neck, back and knee pain are common in sportive riders and it is all about setting the bike up to minimize those things. Comfort is key for people to enjoy the event.”

A physio-lead bike fit doesn’t look at your body, or bike, in isolation, both are looked at together.

“There are two things in the relationship, there is the person on the bike and the bike itself,” for best performance and comfort it is the relationship between the two that has to be right.

It’s no good setting the bike up in a ‘perfect’ position if you as a rider don’t have the strength or flexibility to ride that way, “people can get fixated on what they see the professionals doing with their racy set-ups but that doesn’t always translate very well to the normal person,” agrees Garvey.

A visit to Six Physio for a bike fit starts with the person, “if you are coming in specifically as a cyclist I would book you in for a cycling assessment instead of a physiotherapy appointment.

I would take a full medical history, any past injuries, any current issues, I’d look at your training history and if you have ever had any previous bike fit. After taking a verbal history I would use some tools to get a base line of your flexibility and physique and I’d look at your control and ability to hold certain positions on the saddle.”

Once the human part of the relationship has been rigorously examined it is onto the bike, “no two bikes are the same, they all have different geometries so the next stage is to see how that person and their measurements look on their bike. We video them from the front and side to find any discrepancies.”

Bike fit is not rigidly prescriptive, “what I go off is Phil Burt’s philosophy (Team GB physio and author of Bike Fit) that there is a ‘bike fit window’.

"There are typical angles of knee bend, torso or shoulder bend that you work toward but there is a certain amount of lee-way as you are always bearing in mind the things you discovered during their assessment.”

Once the interview, screening and bike fit are done it is onto the fourth stage.

“After that would be the rehabilitation, or in some cases what we term, pre-hab. Pre-hab  is something you would do before events where as re-hab is something needed long term to correct a pre-existing problem. As part of my screening I would be looking for any deficits in their body’s performance and would put together a specific programme for that athlete to follow.”

Now it is time for you to go away and do your homework! “We would then see you again in 4-6 weeks so we can monitor how you are doing. We measure the difference before and after and help to set goals so that you can progress.”

To find out more visit www.sixphysio.com

If you have any aches or pains while riding or want to improve your performance and comfort in your next cycling event, then a physio-lead bike fit could play a significant role in your training and preparation.

Take a look at most of the bikes in the pro peloton and you’ll notice that most riders run their stem very low, often snug up against the headset. Slamming your stem, as this is known, is en vogue, but does it yield performance benefits for normal riders like you and me, or does it expose us to injury risk in pursuit of fashion?

>>> Handlebar reach: how to get it right (video)

The most obvious performance benefit from slamming your stem, and the reason that many pro riders such as Lotto-Soudal’s Adam Hansen do it, is that a lower front end is more aerodynamic.

According to Dr Xavier Disley, founder of AeroCoach, “A reduction in stack height by something like 20mm could easily save six to 10 watts in aerodynamic drag at around 20mph, if the cyclist reduced their torso angle accordingly.”

>>> Why amateurs shouldn’t try to pedal like Chris Froome

However, this aerodynamic benefit only manifests itself if the rider is strong enough to maintain a low position. Indeed, Specialized aerodynamic R&D engineer Chris Yu thinks that the idea that lower equals faster is a big misconception. “In working with many of our pro athletes, we’ve found that it’s nearly 50/50 whether lower is better or worse aerodynamically,” he said.

“Many times, lowering the stem can have unintended consequences such as causing additional shoulder strain that leads to a minutely higher head position, the net effect of which is a higher aero drag signature.”

How to set your handlebar height 

Positioned for power

Just as important, according to Yu, is finding a position that doesn’t compromise power output. “Each athlete has a sweet spot that optimises the combination of aero drag and power output to achieve the fastest overall position. And for many athletes — myself included — that position is not necessarily slammed.”

Disley agrees: “Any reduction in stack height needs to be evaluated against the individual’s morphology and anthropometrics.

“If you have terrible flexibility, then you might be better served maintaining a lower position on the bars just by bending you arms a touch more rather than putting the stem lower.”

>>> Five exercises to prevent and treat cycling neck pain (video)

Indeed, talk to most bike-fitters and they will tell you that flexibility is the most important factor when it comes to deciding whether to slam your stem. “The limiting factors are lower back and hip flex upper limits,” says James Wakelin, senior bike-fitter at Condor Cycles, who stresses the importance of weight distribution with different styles of bikes and riding.

“Weight distribution will vary depending on the style of the bike. For example, a road/criterium race position will put much more weight on to your arms than a sportive rider set-up.

“In essence, the basic rule is that you should be able to turn the pedals smoothly in the drops without affecting your hip rotation and putting too much stress on to the arms.”

Get aero on your road bike 

Potential pitfalls

So what are the potential pitfalls of slamming your stem without having the necessary flexibility? Unfortunately, injury seems to be a common outcome; Wakelin tells of numerous problems caused by riders slamming their stem. “I’ve seen customers experience massive pain in their hips and lower back from trying to run too little stack.

“I have also had a few customers who have ended up with big problems in the groin from applying too much pressure caused by a low front end.”

>>> Are electronic groupsets necessary?

If you’re considering slamming your stem, the best advice is to consult a bike-fitter, who will tell you whether it’s a feasible change for you. And if the answer is no, it’s best to pay attention — unlike the customer who came to Wakelin for a bike-fit and then took it upon himself to fit a -17º stem at a later date. “He did have a few problems as a result of that…”

Our take

If you’re flexible enough, there’s no reason not to slam your stem. If you can hold the position and keep your head and shoulders low, there are certainly aerodynamic benefits, especially when combined with narrower bars.

However, with cyclists not exactly renowned for their flexibility and upper body strength, slamming your stem could make you a less efficient rider and even put you at risk of injury, so it’s best to have a bike-fit before you go cutting that steerer tube.

What do the experts think?

Yes: Adam Hansen, Lotto-Soudal pro rider

“I do it for aero reasons. If you can gain a 10-15-watt advantage from your normal riding position, then do it. It’s very difficult to improve your power by 10-15 watts, so if slamming your stem gives you free watts, then slam it and get used to it. Plus, it just looks the part.”

No: James Wakelin, senior bike-fitter at Condor Cycles

“Only flexible riders should slam their stem, as the limiting factors are lower back and hip flex upper limits. I think most studies have shown that the aero effect is mainly down to a smooth style and narrow body posture.”

Your handlebar reach is the distance you have to stretch (or ‘reach’) to get your hands on the bars, with your arms, glutes and lower back in a comfortable riding position. 

It is dictated by a number of things. Top of that list is the rider’s saddle position, and the flexibility of that rider. As with all elements of a bike fit, getting your handlebar reach right is hard to perform in isolation, but we’re here to give you the science and practical advice you need to get started.

So what is handlebar reach?

In terms of road bike geometry, the ‘reach’ is a measurement that can be used to ascertain what frame size a rider requires. If you take a vertical line from the bottom bracket up through the top tube (the frame’s ‘stack’), and a further vertical line from the centre of the top of the head tube, your reach measurement is the distance, in a horizontal line, between the two.

Stack and reach are used by many bike manufacturers as a clearer alternative to effective top tube measurements to measure up riders for the correct frame size. Of course, depending on the size of the frame, and variables such as top tube angle, the reach can change significantly.

From a practical point of view, this measurement gives you a ballpark figure for frame size, but to make sure your riding position is least likely to cause you discomfort, the distance to the bars and controls is obviously a factor in getting it fine tuned.

Everything’s connected

Getting a bike fit spot-on requires a skilled mind and a trained eye (and often a fair amount of computer software). Of course, the locations of your bike’s contact points (saddle, pedals and bars) are entirely interdependent.

Nick Smith, of Core Cycling Solutions (corecyclingsolutions.com) is a Retul bike-fitter and coach. “If you lower or heighten the front end of the bike, or extend or shorten the reach by changing the stem length, you will change the rider’s back and shoulder angle,” he explains. “For instance, if you lower and extend the reach, you will have a more aggressive back angle and a longer arm reach.”

But there’s something you need to get bang-on before you start — your saddle height and position. Smith continues: “If you move your reach or stem height around, your saddle might need to be moved to compensate for this.

“However, it is your legs you ride with, so you should always look at this part of the fit first, and move the handlebars and stem around what has already been done to your saddle position.”

Don’t overreach yourself

Adjusting reach in different ways, at its most extreme, can affect bike handling, as Smith explains: “If we look at a mountain bike or cyclo-cross set-up, you can see that the handlebars are a lot closer to the rider, and the stems shorter, which provides more control around those tight corners.”

At the opposite end of the spectrum, and dependent upon the flexibility of the rider, he adds: “If your core and upper body strength is good, you will be able to have a very good aero position without suffering from a lack of control — within reason. Obviously, if you’re assuming the Graham Obree ‘Superman’ position, your bike’s handling is going to be very poor indeed.”

Fit for purpose

So what’s the ideal riding position for you? Is bolt upright the way to go, or is a lower, more aerodynamic position what you need to save watts? The answer, as Scott Tomkinson of Kernow Physio (kernowphysio.co.uk) explains, isn’t cut and dried.

“The reach will depend on each rider’s personal body shape, and limb length in addition to the range of movement in their lower back,” he explains. “And flexibility plays a massive part in the ability to reach and maintain comfort on a bike. You see pros on the telly with a slammed, long stem, which looks great. But apply that position to people who predominantly work in offices and spend much of the day sitting at desks, and their inherent muscle tightness will come into play.

“The important point to make is that reach depends not only on personal body geometry, but also your daily activities and profession, and ability to stabilise their lower back with appropriate muscle strength.”

Smith echoes this sentiment, suggesting: “Every rider is different and that is why a Retul bike-fit always includes a detailed physical assessment. The most comfortable position is entirely dependent on the rider’s flexibility, core and upper-body strength.”

Clues your reach is wrong

Poor bike posture can lead to all manner of aches and pains, or even a physical inability to control your bike properly. If you’re suffering from any of these, the source might be reach-related.

Sore neck/shoulders

If you ride with your arms outstretched, with insufficient bend, you’re putting pressure on the muscles in your neck and shoulders. Beyond this, you won’t be engaging your core muscles efficiently.

Lower back pain

Lower back pain is often caused by hyper-extension as a result of overreaching, and can be alleviated by performing hamstring and core exercises to strengthen and add flexibility.

Saddle soreness

If your seat is too high, the flexibility of your hamstrings becomes crucial. Once the limit of their flexibility is reached, your hips will begin to rock, causing chafing to the saddle area. You may find it useful to raise the stem on your steering tube to put less demand on the hamstrings and lower back. If your reach is too long, you may be rolling your pelvis forward onto the soft tissues at the front of your groin to stretch for the bars.

Pins and needles in hands

Exacerbated by vibration from the road; excessive pressure on your hands — e.g. by compensating for a long stem by moving the saddle forward — can cause wrist pain or numbness along the ulnar nerve that runs through your wrist and the outer edge of your hand.

Can’t reach the drops comfortably

If you’re unable to extend your reach to put your hands on the drops, chances are you’re already reaching too far in your normal riding position. Shortening your stem or raising your bars could be an option.

Top tips

1. If you can avoid it, don’t compensate by moving your saddle; try a different length stem instead.

2. Aim for a 90-degree flexion in your upper arm from your torso; straight arms are a one-way ticket to discomfort, and possible injury.

3. Get a friend to check your back is at roughly a 45-degree angle to your top tube.

4. Make it personal. If you’re a flexible racer, you might be able to go low and long; if you just want a comfy position, aero isn’t the be-all and end-all.

Your flexible friend

While we’ve identified underlying physiological factors that can determine your ideal reach, there are ways to adapt and improve flexibility, specifically in the hamstrings and lower back.

Tomkinson elaborates: “Cycling teaches you to move in only one plane repeatedly. Core strength is valuable in carrying out those repeated movements, but unless you perform a regular functional strength routine, this can lead to muscle imbalances in your back, legs and core, which may lead to injury.

“More importantly, it leads to a reduction in performance, as you are then no longer able to support yourself on the bike when applying power. A stable engine is a fast engine. So in terms of things a rider can do at home in addition to stretches, strength work using their own body weight alone to functionally strengthen their body and improve performance is key.”

Position v efficiency

Tomkinson touches upon a key consideration in discussing flexibility — performance. Smith takes up the subject: “Yes, a lower position allows less mass of the rider for the air to hit, making a rider more aero. However, this doesn’t make them quicker, as their power could be affected by this.

“A client of mine came in a few months ago. We couldn’t put him in a very low position, as his flexibility and other issues wouldn’t allow it. All the same, he did his first race a couple of weeks later and won. There would have been other riders a lot more aero than him, though not more efficient.”

Of course, most of us aren’t getting our reach sorted in order to be better racers. The nature of your cycling is going to have a major part to play in your set-up. Tomkinson advises: “A rider has to be clear about their goals. Are they just looking to lose weight, commute in comfort, or do they want to become a first-cat road racer? The answer to this question should determine their reach.

“A pro rider needs to be able to save energy at speed. Because they ride at 27mph-plus regularly, their bikes will be differently set up compared to Joe who commutes daily just to keep fit.

“In short, wind resistance is more important as a pro. Of course, pros know this, and many stretch and do core work to maintain their long, low positions.”

Do you need a full bike-fit?

You’ll have a good idea that your reach is wrong if you start to experience one of a number of aches and pains, specifically in the neck, shoulders or lower back (see ‘Clues your reach is wrong’). But is it necessary to go for a full bike-fit to get your reach dialled in?

“In an ideal world, if everyone’s bike fitted them perfectly, their bikes would be set up so their elbows have a slight bend when their hands are on the hoods, to absorb shock and bumps,” says Tomkinson. “If your arms are dead straight, this indicates the reach is too long and you may end up with neck pain as the shoulders and neck take the brunt of road buzz and bumps.

“Your shoulder or arm flexion in relation to your torso should also be around 90 degrees.”

However, unless you have a full-length mirror and a patient friend with a protractor, this will be hard to determine... Unless you have a professional fit.

Smith says: “Not everyone wants to spend £150-£225 on a top-end bike-fit, but when I started doing fitting, I obviously checked my position. My reach was too far, my back angle was way too low, I was too far forward in my saddle and a little too low in it.

“Not one of my cycling friends thought there was anything wrong with my position, and neither did I.”

Bike-fitters come from different backgrounds, including cycle retail, physical therapy and coaching. Each approaches bike-fitting from a different direction, but very often they reach common solutions.

>>> All the latest bike fit news

We spoke to a cross-section of bike-fitters from different backgrounds to ask them what common mistakes they see when people set up their own bike; what are the most common physical problems that impinge on cycling performance; and how best to put them right.

The traditional bike shop

Sowerby Brothers 7 Princes Street, Mirfield, WF14 8AQ 01924 496873 www.sowerbybrothers.co.uk

Dave Sowerby does the bike-fitting at his family-run business in West Yorkshire. His customers fall into two categories: experienced club racers, and newcomers. Sowerby says that each group makes a characteristic mistake when they set up their bikes for themselves.

>>> Saddle height: how to get it right, and why it’s so important

"The serious racers are usually good at getting the right reach, handlebar width, and handlebar height, but they tend to have their saddle a little bit low. When we set up saddle-to-pedal height, we're looking for an angle of 30° at the knee and we generally see around 40° with club cyclists," Sowerby says.

"Newcomers tend to come to us with the right-sized bike for them but it's not been fitted, and their position is wrong. Ninety per cent of our new customers ride sportives, but a lot of them have been sold race bikes, when they need a more relaxed position that's higher at the front. So we end up doing what we can to raise their handlebars, and maybe shorten the reach a bit."

Sowerby also explains that there are common physical idiosyncrasies that affect both racers and sportive riders. "Leg length discrepancy is the most obvious," he says, "or more particularly femur length discrepancy, but we can allow for that by adjusting their cleats so that each femur is in the correct position relative to each pedal spindle.

>>> Cleats explained: How to set them up correctly

"We also work closely with a physiotherapy business, Mirfield Protherapy, who co-sponsor our shop team, and there's a lot that they can do to correct discrepancies and imbalances."

What he means is that tight muscles can skew the pelvis, which pulls one femur back relative to the other, and that has the effect of making the leg ‘shorter'. Also, the pelvis can also get knocked out of line in a crash, which can also cause apparent femur length discrepancies. Physios can work to redress the imbalances with various techniques to get a client straight again.

Another fact that many cyclists are unaware of is that forefoot angle affects the way you pedal. As Sowerby points out: "People have either a varus or valgus forefoot. Eighty-five per cent are varus, which means the ball of their feet rests higher than the little toe. Occasionally that might mean their knees come in towards the top tube, then out, during each pedal revolution.

"We might solve that by using an arch support in their shoe or put a wedge under the first metatarsal so effectively it's the same height in the shoes as the fifth.

"With a vagus forefoot, the fifth metatarsal is higher than the first, which can throw the knee out during each pedal revolution. If so, then we might put a wedge under the fifth."

>>> Lower back pain? Don’t blame the bike!

Forefoot angle is important because of the effect it can have on your knees. If your knees don't track straight up and down when you pedal, you can get problems with ligaments and tendons in and around the knee. You can also lose power, because most people's legs deliver more power if their knees track straight when they pedal.

"During a Specialized Body Geometry Fit, we can also address things like high foot arches and weak arches, both of which can have consequences when you pedal," Sowerby adds.

The woman's bike specialist

Trek Bikes Coventry c/o Leekes, Silverstone Drive, Gallagher Business Park, Coventry, CV6 6PA 02476 356 222 www.trekcoventry.com

‘Woman's bike specialist' is a bit misleading when talking about Trek Bikes Coventry. They have a full range of men's and women's bikes, and they offer a bike-fitting service to both sexes. It's just the shop happens to be managed by Claire Parfrey, who is a BC coach and can bring a woman's perspective to bike-fitting, which female customers really appreciate.

"The most common problem we see is people who are too stretched on their bikes," Parfrey says. "Their handlebars are too low and their arms are locked straight when they hold the drops. They end up with arm, neck and/or shoulder pain, so we end up flipping stems over or fitting a shorter one, so they aren't so stretched.

>>> Injury prevention: foot pain

"Incorrect cleat position is another regular mistake, as is saddle width."

And that's not a problem only with female customers - Parfrey says she sees men on the wrong saddles too. "We all have different sit-bone width. There's a big difference between men and women, but there are still differences within each sex.

We have a machine that measures sit-bone width when you sit on it, and from that we can get the right saddle for each customer. We have three widths of saddle for men and three for women in the shop."

People with old injuries from other sports such as running are another regular problem highlighted during a bike-fit: "Women who are just starting cycling often have their saddles too low.

They think they have to be able to touch the ground with their feet from the saddle, but when we show them how to stop and get their feet on the floor off the saddle, then raise their saddle, they feel the difference in power straight away."

The British Cycling coach

Neil Walker's Cycling 45 Main Street, Kilmaurs, Ayrshire, KA3 2SY 01563 544488 www.walkerscycling.co.uk

The main problem Neil Walker sees in his bike shop and coaching business is "people riding bikes that are too small for them and they've made big changes because of it. They do things like fit really upturned stems. The other thing is where a bike isn't set up wrong in the sense that it does fit, but it's been set up wrong for the rider's level of flexibility and core strength."

Walker is a Scottish national champion who represented Scotland at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. He later worked as a coach with British Cycling, then in 2005 became performance director with Scottish Cycling. He runs Cycling Performance Consultancy from within Walker's bike shop: bike-fitting with a performance focus.

>>> Buying a custom bike – Part 1: Fitting 

"I'd call my approach longitudinal bike-fitting. Everyone can get more aerodynamic on their bikes, and when they do they ride faster for no extra effort. The things that prevent them being more aerodynamic are a lack of flexibility and poor core strength, so I give clients stretches and exercises, to work on those key areas," he says.

Walker also sees a lack of flexibility manifesting itself in physical problems. "They might have their handlebars set low, which isn't necessarily a bad thing because it would be more aerodynamic, but only if they had the flexibility to take advantage of it.

What they do, though, is support themselves with their bones rather than with their muscles, so they have their arms locked out, and that means their wrists are flexed and they get numb hands.

"If they were more flexible they could bend their elbows and get lower, which as well as making them more aerodynamic would take the strain off their wrists. They need to strengthen their core and upper body so they can hold the lower position."

>>> Which pedal system is best for you?

Walker reckons most cyclists can improve their aerodynamics to improve their performance. "I send them away with exercises, and take before and after photographs. Then when they come back, I'll say, ‘OK, let's try this or that to get a bit lower.' Like I said, the way I do bike-fits is an ongoing process," he says.

The personal bike-fitter

Personal Bike Fit 11 Lexham Mews, London, W8 6JW 020 7937 4688 www.personalbikefit.com

Personal Bike Fit is based in Kensington and offers fitness testing, coaching and one-to-one sessions on the bike and in core training, as well as bike-fitting. Spencer Wilson does the bike-fits, and he says there are three common problems customers present.

"The first is they say, ‘I go really well on the flat, but I can't climb.' That generally means that the rider's seat height is too low, which reduces back stabilisation and glute muscle engagement.

"The second problem we see is where people say, ‘I'm not sure what's happening, but I feel like I can't get power down with my right (or left) leg.' That's very often due to bad knee tracking due to incorrect shoe alignment and cleat fitting.

>>> Cycling neck pain: how to prevent and treat it

"The third common case is where people come in with lower back and neck soreness. This is a little bit more difficult because there can be a broad spectrum of problems causing it, from the seat being too low or too high, and I think that's why it affects so many people."

Those are the physical problems that present themselves. Wilson also sees two recurring mistakes customers make when setting up their own bikes.

"They have their saddles positioned too far forward, often because they feel their bike is too long, where in reality it's the stem that's too long and that can be changed at the bike-fit.

"I also see handlebars set as low as they can be because the client is trying to be as aerodynamic as possible, but in doing so they restrict their power output and reduce the stability of their core."

Why it's worth it - Take-away points

- A professional bike-fit should allow you to make the most of your physical strengths and help you work on your weaknesses.

- Old injuries picked up doing another activity can affect how you ride, but a good bike-fitter should identify and address these.

- The position of your cycling contact points is crucial. Everybody's feet, their hands, leg and arm length, flexibility and even where they sit is different. A proper bike-fit will find your unique dimensions.

- These differences can affect equipment choice and the way you ride, but the technology exists today that can ameliorate negative effects the differences could have on your cycling.

- Good aerodynamics translates into more speed, but you won't be able to hold an aerodynamic position unless you have good upper body, core strength, and flexibility.

- A professional bike-fit can work on the aerodynamics of your position, but you need to work on any physical weak spots with specific off-the-bike exercises and stretches.

Having a tennis ball pushed into my bottom cheek wasn't what I was expecting during my bike-fit at Bespoke Cycling, but it was just one of the tricks up Ben Hallam's sleeve to get me into a more efficient position on my bike.

And with his racing family pedigree and the fact he came very highly recommended by people who make it their business to know about such things, I thought I'd better let him get on with it.

I'd booked an appointment for a bike-fit with Bespoke because I was getting an increasing amount of niggly pains in the front of my hips, my lower back and my knees, and pins and needles in my left hand, after riding for an hour or so.

None was hugely worrying on its own, but collectively they added up, and with a place in the RideLondon 100, I wanted to be in the best possible condition. So if Ben could help alleviate the niggles and at the same time improve my riding efficiency, I'd be happy. I also wanted cleats and pedals fitting properly, having previously had a bad experience with a misaligned set.

I took my bog-standard but much-loved Specialized Dolce along to Bespoke's swanky showroom on East London's Farringdon Road and tried not to be too envious of all the glistening Parlees, Pinarellos and Colnagos on display.

Finding the ideal footbed

Ben assured me it wasn't obligatory to have spent thousands on your bike to benefit from a fit, and said the majority of his clients were sportive riders who were relatively new to spending extended hours in the saddle. Some people he sees are totally new to cycling; others are top riders such as Germain Burton, a member of the Junior Olympic Development Squad.

Our session began with a chat to discuss my injury history, my riding goals and the pain I experience during cycling. Then, with my bike set up in the turbo, I was introduced to Ben's pièce de résistance, the 3D motion capture system.

'No, it won't cost one of those'

With eight motion sensors stuck to key anatomical points on my body - including ankle, knee and elbow - they communicated with the base unit a couple of metres away and, as I pedalled, Ben was able to capture my existing riding position and record my current body angles, posture and pedalling technique down to the nth degree.

The accuracy was far better than using a tape measure, and provided a base picture to be compared at the end of the fitting.

He instantly highlighted a few areas to be worked on: my hips were dropping to the right, I was riding toe-down at the top of the pedal stroke, and I was over- using my hip flexors, plus my bars were wider than my shoulders and my saddle was deformed from my hips dropping to the right.

The main appeal in coming to Bespoke is the emphasis Ben places on adapting your body, rather than tweaking the bike.

He quoted a finding from a journal from the Nineties which still holds true today: the bike is adjustable but the body is adaptable - so the body can adapt to a poor fit, which is why it's crucial to find a functionally efficient position for the body, then adjust the bike to work with the body, not the other way round.

Flexibility is fundamental

Let the body rule the fit

Following this logic, we then spent the next hour or so of the fit assessing my body's alignment and learning exercises to help with my flexibility and biomechanics, and this is where the tennis ball came in. Ben's prompt but thorough assessment told him I had a tight right piriformis (one of the muscles in your glutes), which could be contributing to my lower back pain.

The pressure of the tennis ball created a release of pressure through me. It was certainly something I'd replicate at home.

So that I wasn't bombarded with exercises I'd either forget how to do or not find time to do, Ben focused on four key practices which would only take five to 10 minutes a day to do. These included a ‘dead bug' exercise to strengthen my lower abs and core, helping ease my lower back pain, and a method to strengthen my glutes, meaning I'd be more efficient when pedalling by using them instead of my hamstrings.

Ben inspired confidence in his ability to quickly get to the root of a niggle, and it was fascinating learning more about the importance of biomechanics and how one seemingly unrelated thing impacted on another.

We moved on to the shoes and pedals, and Ben presented me with a range of options. I'd an inkling that he knew which set-up was ideal for me from the outset. I was more than happy to follow his guidance, and with the addition of a footbed he quickly had me comfortably set up in a pair of Specialized Torch shoes, on Shimano SPD SL pedals.

Using the data from earlier, Ben used the Retul Muve jig to adjust my position, which would be replicated on my bike. We spent time working on pedal technique and the importance of keeping ankles relaxed. Next, Ben fitted new handlebars and saddle to my bike. The handlebar hoods matched the width of my shoulders so I didn't have to overreach, which had put pressure on my pecs and restricted my chest; the new saddle fitted me better too.

Relieving strain

In my new position, my knees and ankles were aligned (previously I'd been making an A-frame with my legs) thanks to the narrower pedals and cleat position. I could easily reach the levers, and Ben moved my saddle up and forwards so that my hips would open more.

Physical assessment first

He also advised me to hold my core stronger and not put my weight on the palms of my hands, as this was causing the pins and needles. Lastly, Ben had improved the angle of my back to 48° - over time he wanted to evolve that down to 45°, but didn't want to push me into it straightaway. He noted all the adjustments and new measurements down, then emailed them to me in a clear PDF so that when I do get round to buying that new Parlee, I can have it fitted to me properly.

As I rode away from Bespoke with my new set-up and a raft of information, my mind was swimming with techniques and alignments and efficiencies. By the time I got home, all the information was starting to sink in and I was enjoying the greater awareness I had of my position on my bike. The next day, I felt like I flew to work.

And now, whenever I come to a hill or a headwind, I focus on breathing through my core and maintaining a relaxed but strong and even pedal technique. Most significantly, after 70 miles in the saddle at the weekend, I had no pain in my hip flexors, and my lower back pain was noticeably less. If these are the consequences of having a tennis ball pushed into my bottom cheek, I'm an uncomplaining convert.

An expert eye on pedalling technique

Bespoke Cycling

A bike-fit at Bespoke Cycling costs £200, fully refundable on bike purchases over £2,500 when purchased within three months of the fit. For purchases of under £2,500, 50 per cent will be refunded.

www.bespokecycling.com 020 7837 0647

This article was first published in the August 15 issue of Cycling Weekly. Read Cycling Weekly magazine on the day of release where ever you are in the world International digital edition, UK digital edition. And if you like us, rate us!

Although saddle and handlebar comfort are both vital for comfortable cycling, it's the pedal-foot interface that is the primary site for that all-important energy transfer from you to your bike.

Yet while lots of studies have been carried out on cycling injuries of neck, arms, buttock, perineum and knees related to handlebar and saddle design and set-up, there's very little scientific data on foot injuries that occur as a result of cycling and in particular, the pedal-foot interface.

Thankfully Australian scientists have now conducted a study to try and identify the typical types of foot injury suffered by cyclists and how common these are.

The science

In the study, the researchers set out to answer four questions about foot injuries encountered by cyclists:

1) What is the distribution of age, gender, foot/pedal interface use and distances cycled among cyclists who experience foot pain?

2) What type of pain and what region of the foot do cyclists typically experience pain in?

3) What techniques do cyclists use to try to cope with/overcome foot pain caused by cycling?

4) Are there key groups of cyclists at greater risk of foot pain than others?

To do this, an electronic survey was used to collect information from cyclists within South Australia, during December 2010. Cyclists were invited to take part and complete the survey if they were riding a non-stationary, upright bicycle at least once per week for a minimum of one continuous hour, and were at least 18 years of age.

The study's 397 subjects were drawn from Bike SA (the main representative body for South Australian cyclists) as well as Mega Bike (a large bicycle shop in Adelaide) and staff and students of the School of Health Sciences at the University of South Australia. The cyclists were asked to provide information about their level of cycling participation, the pedal interface used (clipless/toe-straps etc) and the types of foot pain suffered.

In a nutshell

The first key finding was that over half of the cyclists (53.9 per cent) reported experiencing foot pain while cycling. Secondly, it was the forefoot region of the foot that was most likely to be affected by pain (accounting for 61 per cent of foot pain reports), with the participants reporting that the toenails, toes and ball of the foot were particular problem areas. The cyclists typically described the pain as ‘burning' and/or ‘numbness'.

The most common methods of dealing with this kind of pain included stopping during the ride, shoe removal, walking around and massaging/stretching the foot. In terms of risk, cyclists who rode with an attached foot-pedal interface (ie clipless and toe-straps/cage) were 2.6 times more likely to suffer foot pain than those who did not and there was also a correlation with age - cyclists under the age of 26 years were less likely to suffer foot pain than those over 26.

So what?

This study reveals just how common foot pain can be among cyclists. The fact that ‘cleated in' shoes increased the risk of pain is no surprise; studies have already shown that these types of shoe tend to localise plantar (base of the foot) pressures, which in turn can be detrimental to nerve and blood supply integrity in that region.

Overall, these results suggest that cycling shoe design and choice could be as important as saddle and handlebar options if you want to remain pain-free on the bike!

Journal of Science and Cycling 2012; 1(2): 28-34

This article was first published in the June 20 issue of Cycling Weekly. Read Cycling Weekly magazine on the day of release where ever you are in the world International digital edition, UK digital edition. And if you like us, rate us!

Traditionally, cyclists' training has involved three things: 1) ride your bike, 2) ride your bike and 3) ride your bike some more. However, it can be very difficult to improve the strength and control of a specific muscle group responsible for a part of your pedalling just by riding the bike.

The pedal stroke can be broken down into four phases, with different muscles responsible for each phase. Weight training is a very time-efficient way specifically to strengthen these muscles.

Cycling is a single-leg activity; while one leg is pushing through the power stroke, the other leg is doing the opposite action. Therefore, it is important to train using single-leg exercises that encourage independent activation and challenge the body's core control.

To develop control and muscular endurance, the exercises can be performed just using body weight. A slow tempo is important to develop control of the movement (four seconds down, hold for two seconds at the bottom, push up quickly). Two-three sets with high repetitions (12 to 15 repetitions) with 90 seconds' rest between sets will help to develop endurance.

To increase strength and muscular activation, the exercises can be loaded with dumbbells in the hands or a bar across the shoulders. Perform three-five sets with fewer repetitions (three-five) but with longer rests between sets (three-five minutes) and at a higher tempo (two down, two up).

It's also a good idea to have your bike set up on a turbo and gently ride between sets to remind your legs where and how you'll integrate each exercise back into the pedal stroke.

Phase one -

Before top dead centreto power stroke

Target: Drive pedal forward over the top of the stroke and start to push down.

Muscles targeted: Quadriceps

Exercise: Lunge

Step forward, keep the chest up, drive the knee over the foot and drop the back knee down until it nearly touches the ground. Push down and back through the heel of the front foot to return to the starting position.

Phase two -

Mid power stroke

Target: Drive the pedal straight down

Muscles targeted: Gluteus maximus and quadriceps

Exercise: Split squat

Step back with the non-exercising leg and keep your weight going down through the heel of the forward support leg. Drop hips straight down, until the rear knee almost touches the floor. Squeeze the glutes and push straight down through the heel of the front leg to return to the start position.

Phase three -

Power stroke past bottom dead centre 

Target: Scrape the pedal quickly through the bottom of the pedal stroke so the other side gets onto the power stroke more quickly.

Muscles targeted: Gluteus maximus and hamstrings

Exercise: Single leg dead lift

Start holding the bar in front and pinch the shoulder blades back and down, keeping the back straight throughout. Stand on one leg, sway the hips back and bend the knees slightly. Slide the weight down the front of the thighs towards the ground, squeezing the glutes to control the descent with your weight through your heel. Drive through the glutes to return to a standing position.

Phase four -

Back dead centre to recovery stroke

Target: Continue to rearward travel of the pedal and reduce the resistance on the pedal as it travels up the back of the pedal stroke.

Target muscles: Hamstrings

Exercise: Single leg Swiss ball hamstring curl. Lie on your back with your heels on a Swiss ball, knees bent at 90°. Squeeze your glutes, push the hips up off the ground, balancing on the shoulders, and straighten one leg. Extend the support foot out until the knee is nearly straight. Return leg to the start position. Keep your core contracted and glutes squeezed throughout.

Body imbalance: Are you pedalling symmetrically?

A winter bike should make riding more comfortable. Mudguards protect feet and bottom from the worst of the spray and keep you on friendly terms with the people you ride with - they deplore having cold, gritty water flung in their face. A winter bike is your faithful companion through long, cold and often wet rides. It might not be as fast or flighty as a summer bike but it is solid and reliable.

How you create your winter bike is up to you. Some people downgrade their old, retired race bike; others build a bespoke, winter-specific bike. Using a winter bike saves wear and tear on your best bike. With the salt, mud and grit on the roads, your bike quickly becomes covered with an abrasive and corrosive paste. Even if you clean it religiously after every ride, this pernicious paste takes its toll.

The priority features for winter bikes are primarily weather related: clearance for mudguards and winter tyres, solidly built wheels to contend with rough roads, two bottle cages for long rides, plenty of lights, and thicker than usual bar tape for added hand comfort. Most people building a winter bike don't worry much about weight; they're more concerned with longevity and reliability of components. A winter bike doesn't have to be top-end, just functional.

Cyclo-cross bike: the perfect winter ride?

If you fancy mixing up your road miles with off-road adventures, cyclo-cross bikes are perfect for winter. They are great fun to ride all year round. Designed for muddy and rough off-road conditions, they have plenty of frame clearance for wider tyres. Cantilever brakes, or even disc brakes (as on some new models), are more able to handle mud accumulation and stop more forcefully than road calipers.

Whereas cross racing bikes don't have bottle-cage mounts - because of the short duration of races and the need to shoulder the bike - some models are hybridised for touring or long-distance off-road riding so you can mount two bottle cages and even panniers, making them incredibly versatile.

A cross bike opens up a whole new way of riding; it's just as happy on road as off, so you can mix up your rides with a blend of fire-track, bridleway and road. For some extra excitement, throw in some singletrack. If it's snowy, fit some spiked ice tyres and head off-road, which will give you a tough workout and challenge your handling skills at a time when riding on the road is too dangerous.

Gain from terrain

Slip-sliding in mud and powering through sandy or loose terrain will increase your leg strength and improve your cadence, as you'll need to pedal in circles to maintain traction. Off-road riding will develop your balance and bike handling, which will benefit your summer riding. Plus, it's a lot of fun and, because of the slower speeds and higher effort, you'll feel much warmer than on a road bike.

While there is little debate over the fundamentals for a good winter bike, there is an argument to be had over set-up. Opinion is divided between setting it up for comfort for long, steady rides, or keeping it as close to ‘race' as possible so that you train your muscles in the position in which you'll race.

The best choice for you depends on your summer goals. If your targets are long sportives, it makes sense to do your long winter rides in the position you'll ride in the events. For sportives, your winter training will focus on blocks of low-level endurance riding and long, sub-threshold intervals - similar to the efforts made in a sportive.

Getting your body used to maintaining its position for several hours and being comfortable in the saddle is a significant part of your sportive preparation. Using a different position in the winter is wasting an opportunity to develop your riding posture.

Ring the changes

On the other hand, if your summer cycling is time trialling or track racing, you may well want to set up your winter bike very differently. Being a little more upright than your race position will allow you to cover miles more comfortably, while catching a little extra wind resistance won't do your training any harm either.

Saddle height should be kept the same, as there is no need to change it.

A lower saddle won't increase comfort but could result in an overuse injury. How upright you are - the reach - can be altered according to preference. However, if your winter bike position is different from your race position, you will need to factor in training time in your race position before the season starts.

Some argue that your race position should be comfortable anyway, which, to a certain extent, can be trained. Dedicated stretching, strengthening and core work help support a more stretched position and overcome tight hamstrings or lower back issues. If you are going to follow this approach, work with a coach or physiotherapist, who'll advise on the correct exercises for you and manage the pace at which changes are made.

If your race position isn't suitable for road riding, make sure you schedule in opportunities to practise it through the winter. Turbo-training provides the ideal opportunity. Start by doing your warm-ups and cool-downs on the drops or tri-bars, so your body becomes accustomed to your race position at a low effort level. Make progress by doing intervals in your race position.

Coach Adrian Timmis: Train like you race

Former Tour de France rider Adrian Timmis runs www.cadenceSport.co.uk, dedicated to all aspects of cycle coaching.

"I advise a position as close to race bike as possible, if not exactly the same - ideally with the same saddle and bars, although they don't have to be the same quality," he says. "Geometry may be different, due to bigger clearances needed for mudguards, but contact points should be the same.

"The winter is the biggest uninterrupted block of training you will have. It will set you up for the season ahead. Why would you want to have to adapt your position for race season?

"I have a different approach to winter training. Riders I coach work on building the threshold engine up slowly over the winter with sub-threshold training together with steady Zone 1-Zone 2. This has added 40-50W at threshold over four months, even before beginning race prep. This follows the same model coach Tim Kerrison has been employing with Bradley Wiggins. It is important to me that riders train in the position they are going to race in."

Mudguards: Dave Marsh

Dave Marsh has raced since the late Sixties and has been a cycle dealer in South Yorkshire since the Seventies. He's a stickler for full mudguards on winter bikes, with the addition of the ubiquitous flaps mentioned by Scott Thwaites.

"Mudguards work for you without fitting flaps, but they don't work for the person following you," Marsh says. "Years ago, mudguards had flaps. There was this plastic add-on bit on the bottom of the front and back mudguard, held in place by a strip of bendy metal that went through slots in the guards.

"They don't have them on modern mudguards so we make them. You need a strip of plastic about three inches long and you can either rivet it, or I use two tiny nuts and bolts, to fasten it on the bottom of the guards. I make at least a rear flap for everyone in the club, and a front one helps to keep a lot of rubbish off your feet."

Hips down: Ben Hallam

Ben Hallam is head of the BespokePerformance Lab and specializes in bike fittings; he has a background in sports therapy as well as competing professionally on track and road.

"It's an interesting question. The mechanics hips down should certainly be the same. As for the position hips up, I'd say it depends on how aggressive your race

position is," he says. "If it has been optimised for crits and races that are up to two hours long, then adjusting the front end slightly higher and shorter will enable you to more comfortably get long endurance miles in.

"If your position has been optimised for long distance races, then I'd suggest that part of the point of winter training is that you train your core strength to maintain your race position and posture for long distances. If the bike has been correctly set up, it should be comfortable over these distances anyway.

"Personally I would always replicate my road race position on my winter bike but make it as heavy as I could using 36 spoke wheels, 25c tyres, a steel frame and mudguards. I'd do all my winter training on this and then switch onto my race bike for my last few training rides before my first race. This always made it feel like I was flying and gave me a good mental boost before the race."

My winter bike: Scott Thwaites

"You have to have a proper winter bike to go out with the training groups in the Yorkshire Dales, it's the law. It must have full mudguards, with extra flaps added to them front and rear, and you can ride no other bike between November 1 and February 1. If you come out on a normal road bike they make you ride at the back all day.

"My winter bike is an old Kinesis with ancient Shimano equipment, lights and heavy tyres and full mudguards with added flaps. I pimped the bike up with some blue anodised bits, including a Bike Pure headset spacer, to add a bit of colour. It's got extra lights on it too, and a heart rate monitor, but I don't use a power meter."

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