Wish I knew how I was supposed to sit on my bike...

[DebTX]

It's been 900+ miles now on the road bike - and I'm still not sure I'm sitting properly in the saddle.

I was professionally fitted when I bought it, and they did alot of adjustments to let me ride "more upright" since I learned to ride on a hybrid. So I know I don't "lean" down into my handlebars as much as many of you probably do.

Yesterday, for the very first time, I actually got down into the drops and it felt kinda cool (I was there for about 40 seconds going down a small hill).

But it's my butt position I don't quite get - all this talk about "sitting on your sit bones". I know from yoga what my sit bones are and I think I tend sit more in dog position than in cat position (I don't mean the arch of my back, which tends to be kinda flat while riding, but rather the arch of my sit bones, which tend to "arch out/upward" as in dog pose, putting a lot of my soft tissue on the front of the saddle. I know I'm not "tucking my sit bones under", because that would force me to sit "more upright" on the bike and I'm trying to learn to lean forward and down.

But I worry that I'm really putting my weight on my soft tissue, instead of my sit bones. While they make contact with the saddle, I don't think that's where my weight is. I know if I tucked my sit bones under, putting my weight on the bones themselves, I'd be able to sit upright on the bike (maybe hands free for a moment, like folks do crossing a finish line). That's something I can't do now - my weight is too far forward.

Anyway, I'm probably making no sense at all.

But I keep thinking about replacing my saddle to get the pressure off my soft tissue, but before I do it, I want to figure out if I'm sitting right on the saddle in the first place.

[Aggie_Ama]

I am going to try to make sense of it- lol. You should be back on your saddle. I have a tendency to slide up on the nose instead of pushed back. I have my sit bones rolled out, at least that is how it feels. When I sit up like a chair they feel more tucked under. I may not be using the correct terms.

My fitting at BSS I was told to push myself back on the saddle. I tend to sit on my saddle like a chair which reduces the power transfer (I think). Some people may be able to help a little more.

BTW- I can ride hands free and it requires me to rotate to a more chair position. I cannot do it in a position that will allow me to reach the drops. Also if you are not a flexible person no matter how you are sitting the drops will not be a very comfortable. I am very short and find the drops make me feel stretched out too much, I am working on being comfortable in them but so far I am not. I have been riding nearly 5 years, I wonder if I will ever be!

[Biciclista]

I honestly don't understand how you can bear to bear your weight on soft tissues!
If I had to do that, riding would be constant misery and i would not do it.

[DebTX]

I honestly don't understand how you can bear to bear your weight on soft tissues!

Oh trust me, it's altered my sex life - without sounding too crude, there are whole parts of me that are untouchable after a ride. But admittedly after 900 miles, I don't get saddle sores anymore, just tenderness for a few hours afterwards.

I had a laugh in September at my annual visit with my male GYN (who's a cyclist). I told him we needed a gynecologist consulting on the design of women's saddles, someone who really understands the anatomy of the vulva. He laughed when I said I refrained from riding that weekend, so I wouldn't lie in the stirrups and present him with a red, swollen mess.

DH is encouraging me to try a new saddle (I'm sure he's motivated to see me solve this problem ) - and during yesterday's ride I spent the entire 90 minutes trying to figure out where my butt was "supposed" to be. I'm scared I'll go out and try 12 new saddles and still not know if I'm sitting right to begin with.

Argh!

[OakLeaf]

It's not just the saddle itself, it's the tilt, the length of your stem.... And you'll sit differently on every different saddle, so I don't know that there's an answer to your question really.

My guess is, if your saddle is a size and shape that allows you to sit on your sit bones, but you're not doing it, the saddle probably isn't the culprit. Try tilting the nose up just a bit. If you don't have a micro-adjustable seatpost, you can shim the tilt with a little piece of metal cut from a can (steel can is best because it's thicker and won't compress as much, but you can use aluminum, folded in half or fourths). Especially if you're constantly sliding forward on a T-shaped saddle, a tilt adjustment might help.

Off topic - but Aggie, maybe just some shallower drops would be useful. The stock bars on our bike are rather deep. Obviously it wouldn't put you in as low an aero tuck as your stock bars, but if you can be comfortable, it'll give you a better position for pacelining and descending. Earlier this year I put on a set of Ritchey Biomax Pro bars (thanks, Liza!) - a bit wider but also much shallower and ergo drops - and I'm really loving them.

[Aggie_Ama]

Off topic - but Aggie, maybe just some shallower drops would be useful. The stock bars on our bike are rather deep. Obviously it wouldn't put you in as low an aero tuck as your stock bars, but if you can be comfortable, it'll give you a better position for pacelining and descending. Earlier this year I put on a set of Ritchey Biomax Pro bars (thanks, Liza!) - a bit wider but also much shallower and ergo drops - and I'm really loving them.

I have been wanting to put Salsa Short and Shallows on the bike. I used to have them when I had my Fuji and really liked them. I don't need anymore carbon so alloy is fine. Going to replace those probably this summer when I need new bar tape anyway. Back to Deb's thread.

[gingerale]

I bought my bike back in July. I'd been riding a borrowed bike before that. I was professionally fitted and then went and did a week ride in Iowa. I thought I'd had another child...except with more pain. lol! Came back and changed my stem. Better. Went back again and changed my seat tilt. MUCH BETTER!!! I am now convinced that it takes more than 1 or even 2 fittings for it to be perfect. Because in the end, while it may technically "look" like it fits based on measurements and all, your butt may say differently after several miles. But that's just my ever so amateur opinion. I hope you get it all figured out. I know how much it hurts sitting on those girly parts your entire ride.

[equus123]

But I worry that I'm really putting my weight on my soft tissue, instead of my sit bones. While they make contact with the saddle, I don't think that's where my weight is. I know if I tucked my sit bones under, putting my weight on the bones themselves, I'd be able to sit upright on the bike (maybe hands free for a moment, like folks do crossing a finish line). That's something I can't do now - my weight is too far forward.

If your weight is too far forward and you really have to try to rotate your pelvis back to be on your sit bones then I think your fit has way too far of a reach for you. How was your professional fit accomplished?

Another thing I think about with your problem could be lower back and hamstring flexibility or a possible lack thereof?

Anywho, wanted to offer some different suggestions outside of the saddle conversation. Good luck with everything!!