How tall bike seat

If you can easily reach make your saddle height higher. A saddle that is too high will cause the hips to rock back and forth.

Not only does this detract from pedalling efficiency, but it can also be extremely uncomfortable. Discomfort can show up in your lower back or as knee pain especially in the back of the knee.

Have someone watch you ride from behind, whether out on the road or on a stationary trainer. Or, if you bring your foot to the bottom of the pedal stroke, your heel should barely be able to touch at the bottom when your leg is fully extended see photo above. This is particularly true when changing from one saddle to another. The differences in padding thickness and design can throw off your bike seat position drastically.

Changing saddles should always include taking a good hard look at seatpost height. However, because this method is basic mathematics, and bodies aren't formulaic, it doesn't always produce the most accurate of results for finding the correct saddle height. Different muscle tensions can cause the saddle height to feel either too high or low, meaning this method doesn't necessarily take individual differences into account.

A mobile person could feel that the saddle height using the formula is too low, while someone with tighter muscles might feel that it is too high. If, after numerous trial and error attempts, you still can't find the right saddle height for you, then a bike fit may be necessary. This is because there are other factors involved in finding the optimum height, such as saddle tilt, fore aft and cleat adjustment, that make it so difficult when doing at home.

However, as a beginner, riders should find that the aforementioned methods should work adequately, until they become more serious cyclists.

The favoured team-mates have been testing their equipment ahead of the event in Belgium. The organiser of the Italian Grand Tour has confirmed the stages for the edition. Cycling Weekly is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site. All rights reserved. IE, you should be able to sit on the bike seat and touch the ground with your toes, but not flat feet. They do mean saddle to top of pedal but that leaves most people about 2cm too high!

This is incorrect. Thanks for your illuminating article. I have a question on foot size and crank length. I am cms in height and have a 54 cms frame size road bike. I have tried a professional bike fit as well but still road bike ride is not comfortable. Even the knee angle method gives quite a huge difference in saddle height. Are you a heel dropper or heel up? Where are your cleats positioned and how long are your feets?

I would recommend following one of the methods in the blog and trying that out. Otherwise try to get a professional bike fitter to help you! No wonder so many people here are finding it too high. Mine is Interesting and very worthwhile advice.

I was a time of bike revival. The saddle height method in this book was inside leg measurement times 1. Using 1. I use old-fashioned toe clips with fairly loose straps to keep my feet straight and positioned correctly on the pedaIs. I think the advice of moving the saddle height up or down incrementally is very sound. I am very new to biking so please forgive me.

But obviously if I lower the saddle, I no longer have that straight leg measurement. Any advice or help is greatly appreciated! Are you able to advise? I think it makes a difference. Hi there, the method is intended for a person with shoes, unless you prefer to cycle barefoot of course!

Well written! Hello…i like your advice… after 1hour ride my road bike i got numb feet …what can i do to stop this uncomfortable felling? Thank you for your message. Do you use pedals with cleats? If you do it could be that the adjustment of your cleats is not correct. This is easily a few cm difference. Maybe it can be added to your article.

Happy cycling, Christine Mantel. This allows you to maintain good posture when biking. Your comfort level also depends on the correct top tube and stem length. There are different ways to set your bike seat height properly so you can be more comfortable and at ease when riding on your bike without worrying about sore muscles and bike fatigue: Holmes method, heel method, etc. Comfort is the key for a more fun and enjoyable bike ride. The seat height has a direct impact on the level of convenience and comfort when cycling.

Having the correct bike seat height that compliments your stature or anatomy is very important. Hi Andrew, You are right, there are more important facts to keep in consideration. Bike geometry and bodystructure can influence saddle height as well.

But for most of us the steps above helps a lot. The best fit will be done by a professional bike fit. Unfortunately, it happens to the best of us: a bike crash.