bike fit
OK, you have a bike and it is (hopefully) the right size for you, so that’s all you need, right? Not really. Allow us to introduce you to the bike fit.
A properly fit bike can do a lot of things for you. Simply put, the way you sit on a bike affects how you ride.
- Proper positioning ensures proper power production.
- Proper positioning improves cycling efficiency.
- Proper positioning reduces the risk of injury.
- Proper positioning makes cyclists more comfortable.
These benefits are best summarized as improved performance and reduced risk of injury.
- Improved performance
- Your body’s position on a bike affects two distinct measures of performance, power production and efficiency.
- For a long time, cycling power was not given the credit it deserved for improving performance. It has (rightly) become much more popular.
- A cyclist’s power output determines not only how fast he or she can pedal down the road or up a hill, it also indicates his or her cardiovascular, metabolic, and perceptual responses to the activity.
- Therefore, power output matters both biomechanically and physiologically.
- Changes in power are detected quite rapidly, without the lag inherent in HR, or even in velocity meaning that knowing your power makes it possible to better regulate, or at the very least assess, the overall intensity of training.
- Lastly, regularly measuring power in training indicates the effectiveness of your training, and allows the training program to be fine-tuned to achieve maximum results.
- Performing the same amount of work with less effort . . . that is cycling efficiency.
- Another way to describe efficiency is the amount of work you’re able to perform compared to the amount of energy you expend
- So, if you are able to perform the same amount of work using less energy, you can go longer.
- One way to improve efficiency is to be more comfortable on the bike; when you’re more comfortable, you will use less energy.
- Reduce injury risk
- While not as common as some other sporting activities, injuries do occur in cycling . . . and many can be prevented
- A seat that is angled down, a seat that is too low . . . more pressure is on the knees and quads
- What about a cranks that are too short? Too long?
- What about handlebars that are rolled too far back?
- Each of these can cause abnormal stresses . . . stresses that might lead to injury