Loving my Men's Selle Italia ProLink Gel

[yogabear]

Hi,

Just had to share because I am so happy with this new saddle I just put on my road bike. It's a men's Selle Italia ProLink gel saddle. I had been riding my husband's old ProLink gel LOL and had stolen his Flite gel a while back, but now, I have my very own :)

After 8 years of road riding, I discovered last year that I was much more comfortable on a guys' saddle. Even though I have some hips on my size 4 body, my ischial tuberosities or sit bones are placed very closely, so I kept feeling very sore on some of the 'women's specific saddles'. I tried everything from chamois butter to my mountain bike saddle to about 4-5 different saddles...until, eureka! We finally realized what I needed...

It makes such a big difference for me, along with a better-fitting road bike...Last year, I bought a 46 cm road bike with 650c wheels so no more pain! I fit so much better...I have a short torso and long legs and was always alternating between wrist and upper body pain and crotch pain...I could not ride more than 30 minutes without extreme discomfort...I toughened it out for many years, but finally, my body said enough and I was forced to figure things out...

I am happy to report that 2 hour rides are becoming more common place in my training and riding...It's hard to race when you can't train LOL, so I see light at the end of the tunnel again...yay!

Just wanted to share because if any of this can help one person, I will feel like my suffering was not in vain :) And, to give hope to others that if you stick with trying to find a solution, you will eventually get there...It is possible :)

Bear hugs to all,
Lisa

[Ali]

Hi Lisa,
Which saddle did you prefer, the flite or your new prolink. I'm looking at mens saddles as I had my sit bones measured and the're only 130mm, same as my hubbys. I have a terry butterfly but always end up sitting in the middle, seems to be too wide for me.

Ali

[yogabear]

Ali,

Hi, I can relate to what you describe with your body :)

I only tried the Flite a while back for maybe a month or two about 2 years ago and I had no complaints about it. Then, I had a older version of the men's ProLink gel that was my hubby's...for some reason I was just intuitively guided to try the ProLink of his instead of the Flite.

Recently, I ordered a newer version of the men's ProLink saddle and I just love it...It's the one I am referring to in this particular thread here :).

I think the main reason is because it fits my sit bones better than my women's saddles I've owned. Also, because it is a new one, I am excited because I get to break it in for my own body.

I remember with the female specific saddles I always felt like I was 'stuck' or I would ride sitting more on one side to ease the pressure I experienced there...It's hard to explain but it was very uncomfortable! Ouch! I would also sit more on the front to avoid the sit bone pain issue and then would get the other type of pain...as well as wrist pain or neck and shoulder pain...argh!

Which saddles are you considering? I think a lot of companies have the measurements in detail which helped me in my selection a lot...If you can't find them, you can always call the companies or bring a measuring tape to the bike shop :)

I hope the saddle selection goes well :) Let us know what you picked and how it worked for sure :)

Bear hugs,
Lisa

[Ali]

Lisa,

I'm considering the specialised alias in 143mm, the SI prolink, SI signo gel flow, SSM SKN Pro, terry fly in new aloha print, because its pretty :) I have a gift certificate for performance, so I'll probably try the SI saddles first.

I got my husband to put his old SI XO saddle on my bike last night, so I'll go for a short ride today. I don't think I'll like his saddle, its very hard (came with his bike, he switched out for a WTB shadow within a week). Hope I don't get too sore :eek:

The butterfly came stock on my bike and its not that its uncomfortable, no bruises or squished bits - its just that with every pedal stroke I move forward until I get to a narrower point on the saddle and there I stay. I 'm not at all stretched out on the bike, I can just feel the edges of the saddle.

I'll post follow-up with the results of todays ride :)

Ali

[Ali]

Rode 10 miles, very short for me, but didn't want to do too much damage. The good new is that I didn't slip forward once as I was pedalling, sit bones feel ok, but oh, the squishy bits :eek: I've been back 2 hours and they still feel tender. I think I'm on the right track as far as width is concerned but need gel or something in the middle.

Lisa, which prolink model do you have, there are 2 on the SI website Prolink light genuine gel and prolink light gel flow.

Thanks,

Ali

[Ali]

After trying the prolink light gelflow saddle (with cut-out) for the past week or so, I had to send it back. The sit bones felt great, but on rides 30 miles or longer, my squishy bits were starting to be really sqished into the small cut-out in the mens saddle and it hurt :eek: . So, I'll be looking for another saddle to try, preferably without the cutout.

[Squirrel 2]

Had the same cut-out problem with other Selle Italia saddles. The cut-outs are way too narrow, and their gel-flow design is hard as a rock around the cut-out, hurts like heck. You might give the Arione a try -- it doesn't have a cut-out, but it is flat & very long. You have lots of places to sit & move around on, plus if you are supporting yourself properly on your sit-bones, then your soft-tissue should be ok & not squished.

Caveat -- it is narrow & quite firm, not a lot of padding. So if you are looking for a cush seat for your tush, this ain't it. I find I need firm for longer rides, and none of the cut-out designs ended up working for me (tried 14 torture devices). I borrowed this one from my LBS 2 wks ago to try out on some longer rides, including a 75-miler this past Sunday. Guess what -- it ain't goin' back, the Arione is a keeper.

[Etincelle]

How did you have your sit bones measured??? :confused:


Hi Lisa,
Which saddle did you prefer, the flite or your new prolink. I'm looking at mens saddles as I had my sit bones measured and the're only 130mm, same as my hubbys. I have a terry butterfly but always end up sitting in the middle, seems to be too wide for me.

Ali

[Ali]

Hi Etincelle,

I had my sit bones measured in two ways.
My lbs is a specialised dealer, so I sat on their measuring device, which is basically like a piece of foam that indents were your sit bones are.

I also followed this up at home using information posted by Lorri Lee Lown, a USAexpert cycling coach on another womens discussion board.
She says "for a bike fit you'd be wearing cycling shorts. If you lay on your back with your knees bent and feet on the ground, you can find the sits bones (ischeal tuberosities for you science types), by compressing the soft
tissue on the butt (buttocks for you science types). This can be a challenge with folks who have more soft tissue or very defined hamstring muscles). Once you find the bones, you measure the distance from one to the other. The crown of the saddle (the highest, flat part before it dips down on the sides) should be at least as wide as the measurement of the sits bones, but not wider than 1 or 2 cm more."

I had my husband measure the distance for me, as I think it would be too difficult to measure all by yourself :)

Hope this helps,

Alison