Anyone else sit sorta 'crooked' on the saddle?

[zoom-zoom]

My hubby noticed during a couple of rides last week that I seem to list over to my left by about a half inch. When I tried to scootch over to the right just a hair it did very bad things to my girly bits, though...instead of being over the cut-out in my saddle I was straddling the right side of the cut-out...ouchie!!

So am I just crooked, or what? My right leg is just a tiny bit longer than the left and pretty much every injury/discomfort I have ever suffered while running or biking has been on my right side (my ankle sprain was on my left, but that was obviously an acute injury, not a chronic/overuse sorta deal).

I do tend to wear out the inner thigh issue of shorts far before the left side shows any wear.

This makes me wonder if the outer foot pain I've had while riding isn't a shoe issue, but a weird body issue. I thought maybe my Sidis were too narrow, but some days they seem to fit me just fine...other days they feel snug. I think there's some water retention issues at play. I bloat like a mofo!

Should we be doing anything with my saddle issue or cleat stack or something to counteract my body weirdness...?

[Biciclista]

boy, before you mess your back up but good I wish you'd get a professional bike fit done!

[zoom-zoom]

boy, before you mess your back up but good I wish you'd get a professional bike fit done!

That's the weird thing...back issues have never been, well, an issue for me. The relatively short-lived, chronic sorts of things I've had (primarily while running) have been of the knee and peroneal tendon variety. The few times I have had minor lower-back pain have been while running. I haven't had back issues while biking a lot (last year was my first full year on the bike and I logged just over 3500 miles).

[Velocivixen]

Prior to visiting a chiropractor my pelvis was rotated and I had leg length discrepancy. Not sure if I was "caddy-wompus" on my saddle, but I was in pain often. Now I'm all okay.

[7rider]

boy, before you mess your back up but good I wish you'd get a professional bike fit done!

The other day, I heard a horrible "CRACK!" from my saddle, and it canted backwards, towards the rear wheel. Thinking me and my BFA just busted my carbon seatpost or my saddle, or both, I gingerly rode to my LBS (fortunately, only a few miles away). I stood mostly, sat lightly on the saddle when I couldn't bear it, but boy...just those few miles sitting "off" on my saddle put my back in a world of hurt.

Zoom-Zoom...do you wear orthotics in your shoes? That may help correct for any leg imbalances. Also...do you have a saddle appropriate for your butt? Maybe it's too narrow.

[zoom-zoom]

Zoom-Zoom...do you wear orthotics in your shoes? That may help correct for any leg imbalances. Also...do you have a saddle appropriate for your butt? Maybe it's too narrow.

I don't wear true orthotics in my shoes. I wear Superfeet in my running shoes, but that is mostly because I need moderate rear-foot stability, but can't tolerate the stiffness front-to-back of most moderate stability shoes...stiff shoes anger my peroneal tendons. I wear neutral or very mild stability performance trainers. I don't have room for Superfeet in my Sidis (I'm considering a wider shoe, for this very reason).

My saddle is a Jett 143. My sit bones measure about 125...that's wide enough, right?

[zoom-zoom]

Ooh, I should add that I do have BikeFit cleats on my shoes.

[Crankin]

I defintely look crooked on my saddle. Every picture I see of myself shows me this, and my left shoulder is often hunched up toward my head . My recent PT said I do not have a lld, but I *know* I do. I actually feel crooked. I had a shim under my cleat for about 2 years, but it was interferring with the action of the cleat... I couldn't clip in about half the time.
I am pretty sure this is why all of my cycling issues are on my left side. My recent back pain, which was on the right side was definitely from running. I can keep it under control with the exercises he gave me, but my left side issues, which extend pretty much down the whole side of my body never go away. I've had 3 road bikes, 3 different saddles, and been to 3 PTs, the last one being MacKenzie trained. I've pretty much given up.

[nscrbug]

I'm thinking the same thing that 7rider regarding orthotics. I recently had a PT bike fit done and he found a whole bunch of weird stuff going on with my right side. I was rocking my right hip, my right knee was swinging outward, and my right foot was supinating at the bottom of the pedal stroke. I too, have a leg length discrepancy (right is shorter than left). I've been using an OTC heat-moldable insert by Sole, but it's their slim-design version that is ideal for cycling shoes and other low volume footwear. REI sells them for $45. My fitter approved of these inserts, but also put a Specialized valgus shim into my right shoe to help tilt my foot more inward. It seems to be helping, because I haven't had the toe numbing and pain that I normally get on rides over 35 miles. My feet seem "happy" at the moment...which is a huge improvement for me.

Linda

[Xrayted]

You've already gotten sound advice about getting checked medically. I would suggest a leg length x-ray on your legs, maybe a scoli x-ray for your back at the same time. It will tell the whole story in just a few pics. It will show where exactly the length discrepancy is so it can be properly handled. IT can twist your pelvis to one side a bit, twist your spine a bit, lower or raise a shoulder, etc. It's not always about a shim in the shoe kind of fix. Actually, it's rarely a shim in the shoe kind of fix as far as riding on the bike. Or, as Knot can attest to, sometimes things just pull themselves one way or the other and you need to rebalance that.

For me, I have a shorter left tib/fib due to being hit by a car but my femur on the right is slightly shorter compared to the left femur from birth. So, while my left leg is overall shorter, when I'm over the pedals, my right femur is shorter. It makes me want to twist my pelvis towards that side, but when my foot is in the down stroke, my left whole side is shorter, making me want to rock that way. No professional bike fitter in the world will be able to fix that without the proper measurements from a good ortho xray series. Many of us fall into this category, one femur is longer on one side while the tib/fib is longer on the other.

I remember reading a thread in here, maybe a year or two ago, where you can get custom crank arm adjustment thingies made. They study your leg measurements and how you pedal and make something that attaches between the pedal and crank arm, or something like that. It can account for one leg being overall longer but the other side having a shorter femur, or any combination... It's hard to describe with out the pics.

Any of you who've been on here for years remember that? I don't have time for the search right now as I'm about to head out the door. But, I know it's here. Whoever it was that did it, loved it and it really helped them on the bike. I really thought of doing it at the time but then life went in another direction for a while.

[hulagirl]

I don't have room for Superfeet in my Sidis (I'm considering a wider shoe, for this very reason).

I have SuperFeet Yellow's in my Sidi's and they fit fine. I LOVE THEM in my Sidi's.

Have you tried pointing the nose of your saddle a HAIR in the direction you don't lean towards? I was getting more issues on my left side, pointed nose a mm or 2 to the right and felt better.

I also got a bigger saddle as mine was too narrow. Your's may be too wide?

ETA:

I had outer foot pain that was cured with a wider saddle. My foot pain was not hot foot. It was a sharp pain that started on the outer edge of the foot, just near that little bone that sticks out on the bottom. Then it would begin to go numb. This happened in slippers, gym shoes, Keen's, everything. It was not a shoe issue. It was 100% solved by me finding a saddle that fit me. And then I stopped pinching those nerves that led down to the foot.

Perhaps your sitting over the edge is pinching something?

[zoom-zoom]

I have SuperFeet Yellow's in my Sidi's and they fit fine. I LOVE THEM in my Sidi's.

Have you tried pointing the nose of your saddle a HAIR in the direction you don't lean towards? I was getting more issues on my left side, pointed nose a mm or 2 to the right and felt better.

I also got a bigger saddle as mine was too narrow. Your's may be too wide?

I pulled the trigger on a $75 pair of discontinued Northwaves, which everyone says run really wide, so I can't wait to see how they compare. Then I have room to play with Superfeet (which I wear in all of my running shoes) and/or forefoot wedges under the insoles. Maybe I can even wear heavier socks during the cold months!

I was thinking about the saddle nose thing today, too. I really think moving it a hair to the left may be worth trying. I'm guessing it would only take a few mms to notice a difference.

Not sure if a narrower saddle would be the key. I definitely don't need wider, but I think narrower would have me hanging off the edges. My saddle is a 143...next size down is 130. My sit bones are in the 120-130mm neighborhood. I actually have a new 147mm Fizik on order, since the cut-out on my saddle has been bugging me (I'm less upright on my newer bike and seem to be hitting the front of the cutout where it narrows...and getting pinched where I don't want to get pinched). New saddle will have a channel down the entire length.

[zoom-zoom]

ETA:

I had outer foot pain that was cured with a wider saddle. My foot pain was not hot foot. It was a sharp pain that started on the outer edge of the foot, just near that little bone that sticks out on the bottom. Then it would begin to go numb. This happened in slippers, gym shoes, Keen's, everything. It was not a shoe issue. It was 100% solved by me finding a saddle that fit me. And then I stopped pinching those nerves that led down to the foot.

Perhaps your sitting over the edge is pinching something?

What makes me inclined to think that my foot issue is my shoes is that I had a wider saddle, previously...and still had the foot issues. Only then I also had inner thigh and up-front numbness/pain issues, as well.

My feet are seriously wide...I measure D width--or even a hair wider, but that would put me in men's cycling shoes...I have wide toes, but narrow heels--I have never had luck with men's shoes. Back in the day I played soccer...before there were women's shoes. I always had raw heels. Sidis are probably the last brand I should be in (it's about all our LBS carries, though). The meaty outer side part of my feet spills over the hard plastic sole, especially on my larger right foot. If I had the velcro forefoot straps much looser they'd not hold at all.

I also think I probably require some more medial stability features (this page really shows what my knees do when I pedal--the insides of my lower thighs often brush my top tube), but I can't add any sort of insole or forefoot wedging to my shoes...those paper-thin Sidi insoles are too thick, as is. Today I was pedaling up a hill, butt out of saddle, and my right foot cramped-up...toes overlapping. That was fun.

[Becky]

Yep, except it's more "front-to-back" for me. My left sitz bone sits a little further forward than my right. I think it's something to do with a very small femur length discrepancy that shoves my hips out of alignment, though I've never had a formal diagnosis of such. My overuse-type injuries tend to be on my left side too.

We're all a little crooked, I think. I find that it gives me less trouble when my flexibility and core strength are good. Hooray for yoga!

[bellissima]

My hubby noticed during a couple of rides last week that I seem to list over to my left by about a half inch. When I tried to scootch over to the right just a hair it did very bad things to my girly bits, though...instead of being over the cut-out in my saddle I was straddling the right side of the cut-out...ouchie!!

So am I just crooked, or what? My right leg is just a tiny bit longer than the left and pretty much every injury/discomfort I have ever suffered while running or biking has been on my right side (my ankle sprain was on my left, but that was obviously an acute injury, not a chronic/overuse sorta deal).

I do tend to wear out the inner thigh issue of shorts far before the left side shows any wear.

This makes me wonder if the outer foot pain I've had while riding isn't a shoe issue, but a weird body issue. I thought maybe my Sidis were too narrow, but some days they seem to fit me just fine...other days they feel snug. I think there's some water retention issues at play. I bloat like a mofo!

Should we be doing anything with my saddle issue or cleat stack or something to counteract my body weirdness...?

Seating crooked can be few different things and it has to be addressed or some bad complications can arise over time. You should try to find a bike fitter that has experience with this issue and specially with dealing women. One of the main causing factors is the saddle, as women may tend to rotate a little to one side in order to avoid discomfort or sensation on our front area. Another can be foot pronation or a leg length discrepancy among few other factors. The best is to find a bike fitter that really knows that he or she is doing, so you can find out what the issue is.