Quote Originally Posted by hirakukibou View Post
If you have access to a trainer, another thing that might help, is put the bike on the trainer and practice shifting until it becomes easy. This way you have some "muscle" memory when you are actually on the road.

Your plan with the saddle is also a good one. This is similar to what I do, as a cycling instructor, with students who are new to a specific bike and want to get used to something new for them.

But it is also a good point, that as you increase your miles, you do want to raise your saddle, as you will be uncomfortable and your knees will suffer.

Best of luck!
This is better to do than lowering the saddle - practice mounting and dismounting on a trainer, and raise the bars instead. On the trainer, your rear tire will be higher than on the road, so as you get used to the trainer, once you get out on the road it will almost feel "too" upright.