I hate padded cycling shorts. The make my soft tissues feel like they are on fire. I have a Brooks saddle with a cut-out, and I add a little BodyGlide if I'm going over 20 miles.
I'm going to have to try these.Quote:
Originally Posted by KnottedYet
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I hate padded cycling shorts. The make my soft tissues feel like they are on fire. I have a Brooks saddle with a cut-out, and I add a little BodyGlide if I'm going over 20 miles.
I'm going to have to try these.Quote:
Originally Posted by KnottedYet
My top choice is no longer made. They're an '80s vintage pair of Terry shorts, and the chamois is just a layer of fleece. No one could possibly consider it "padding."
My next favorite chamois is the one in the Etxe Ondo Very shorts. They're not my absolute favorite shorts overall, but that chamois puts them near the top of my list.
Almost as good for me as that one - and a much nicer pair of shorts overall - is the one in the LG Neo Power shorts. It looks thick in the picture, but up against my parts it doesn't squish or insulate me from the saddle at all.
I've never found a pair of workout/running shorts with a gusset the right size and shape that the seams don't chafe on the bike. I'd be happy to wear something like Knott does if I could find a pair that works for me.
HTH. It's really an individual choice.
At the start of the cycling season I find myself reaching for bike shorts with the chamois. As my sit bones get acclimated to riding I find myself going longer distances without the chamois. Someday I hope to ride tons of miles perched on top of my saddle sans chamois.
Have you looked at any tri shorts? All of my tri gear has a chamois that appear to be just a piece of fleece--some Zoot, some Louis Garneau. It might be something worth investigating if you like a minimal chamois.Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
I've looked at tri shorts, but they all seem to be super-short. Same thing for "spinning" shorts. Then they ride up my legs. That's why the Castelli Provocante shorts - another one with a nice chamois - aren't at the top of my list. Do you know of any tri shorts that have leg hems more like cycling shorts - 8" or longer?
I had the same impression that tri shorts were typically pretty short. I just checked TE & it appears that they have a few styles of 8" tri shorts. Maybe these are relatively new. Here's the link http://www.teamestrogen.com/product/...-c118-c14.htmlQuote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
I'm pretty sure TYR makes a short with an 8" inseam (model name might be Splice), and SkirtSports also has "multi-sport" shorts with an 8-inch inseam. And I've seen some Orca shorts in a local store that look longer than most tri-shorts, but I don't know any specifics about those.Quote:
Do you know of any tri shorts that have leg hems more like cycling shorts - 8" or longer?
Men's tri-shorts also tend to have longer inseams. Depending how you're shaped, those may work for you.
Out of curiosity, I checked what TE had to offer and found some CW-X tri-shorts with a 10-inch inseam and fleece pad.
http://www.teamestrogen.com/prodCW_135805.html
They also have 8-inch shorts from TYR, SkirtSports and Zoot.
Hope that helps. :)
(ETA: I didn't see Artista's reply above. Oops.)
In between my last post and now, a non-TE friend suggested I look at tri shorts instead of regular cycling shorts, I'm definitely gonna give them a try. Went out in just compression shorts today and could see where they would start getting uncomfortable.
I think I am sitting wrong, too...
Cool, thanks! I might have to try a pair of those Zoots. Not that I really need new shorts right at the moment :p
I thought about the Zoots, but TE staff recommended against it due to my shape. Apparently they don't work well if you have curves...if I remember what they said correctly. I don't know what shape you have but it might be worth the phone call.Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
Ah, thanks. "Curves" would be a polite way of saying I have a big @ss. :p So they probably wouldn't fit me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Catrin
I love my CW-X running bottoms, but I just question the idea of compression on the bike.
I don't have a big @*** - all of my weight is in my stomach :o So I am "curvy" as well, just in a different way :)Quote:
Originally Posted by OakLeaf
I got the same advice from knot last season and I picked some up - i really like them. For me, I can go either way - padding or no. I wear Louis Garneau cycling shorts w/ chamois most of the time. But if I feel like going padless, I wear the underarmour compression shorts and am quite comfortable. I guess I'm bishortsual. I also don't wear cycling shoes and I use platform pedals.Quote:
Originally Posted by mariacycle
After years of trying every padded crotch out there I have reached the same conclusion as a few others here. Padded crotches just squish into my girly bits (makes me feel like I'm in 7th grade to say that) and cause chafing, boils and swelling. Angelina Jolie ring a bell? I certainly agree that it is counter-productive to put a padded crotch over a saddle cut-out that is designed to give your soft tissues somewhere to go. When I first realized this, I cut out the center of all my pads. That caused some serious problems and I do not recommend it at all. Fail! Then, a few months later I started spinning. After a month of spinning with plain compression shorts, I wore padded shorts one morning. Immediate problems. I literally split open the skin on my labia and dealt with the accompanying boil for weeks. The lights came on.
Now I ride without a pad at all and have a much more comfortable ride. I have invested in some very expensive seats that serve me well- a Selle Italia Diva and a Terry ti. Generous cut-out without pressure ridges on each and the padded nose on the Diva for time trials. I do wish I could find padding just for my sit-bones. But I'll live with this over the alternatives. I do think that it may take some conditioning to get comfortable like this but no amount of conditioning ever got me comfortable with a padded crotch.
Ultimately, all you can do is ride and find out. Before you invest a lot of money, perhaps you have friends that aren't squeamish about these things that would loan you some to try. I have a stack of padded shorts you could have.:)