I've just moved to my first road bike, from a hybrid bike that I always thought had too wide handlebars (but was never sure). Turns out that I actually have very narrow shoulders for a guy, with a width of 37cm between the acromion bones, so I'm wondering if I should be looking at narrow handlebars.

I'm quite tall and the bike currently has 44cm bars (c-to-c) as it's a large frame (58cm). I got a really basic fit done prior to buying the bike (just height and torso length), and believe the frame is the right size.

I do find when I'm in the drops I can only just reach the brake levers with the tip of my index fingers, but when I'm standing over the bike I can grip it much better if I lean to one side. So I think what I have currently is too wide.

My question is, do most people use a bar size that is the same as their shoulder measurement, or a little wider? I'd be interested to hear what combinations the members here use, as looking at other threads 38cm (which is what I think I need) is a common width here.

My local bike store doesn't really stock bars, and only guys work there (and they're not the most clued up either). So I'm probably going to have to order something in or online. I just need to figure out what size...

Thanks in advance.