Help!

[snohobiker]

I am 51 years old and starting riding again with my husband. My first ride was approximately 15 miles and my butt hurt so bad I thought I would never get back. I was told to by a gel seat and gel biker shorts, which I did. The next ride ( and every ride since) my butt feels fine but I get this terrible burning sensation in my vagina. The burning stops when I get off the bike. I have been told that I need to lower the front of my seat but it doesn't seem to help. Do any of you have any suggestions? I want to keep riding but it is really uncomfortable. Thanks,

[gilly]

I have this on my mountain bike, but not on my road bike
I put it down to the different riding positions, but I'm sure that someone more experienced on here will be able to tell you exactly what position your saddle needs to be in to eliminate this... I hope so, I tend to leave my mountain bike in the garage in favour of the road bike, just for this reason really

[Trek420]

snohobiker wrote"My first ride was approximately 15 miles and my butt hurt so bad I thought I would never get back. I was told to by a gel seat and gel biker shorts, which I did....."


Hi snoho and welcome to TE and to cycling, you'll find many helpfull cyclists here! You are not alone.

Many have faced and surmounted this problem.

I steer away from a mechanic whos first recomendation is "buy more stuff". My first choice would be adjusting the bike you have...then, if that doesn't work.... You also may be OVER padded, there's such a thing as too much gel but maybe that's just me.

First I suggest you read some of the "favorite saddles" section such as
http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...t=saddle+hurts

much helpfull stuff there!!

~Tailwinds

[emily_in_nc]

Hi Snohobiker,

I would recommend you ditch the gel shorts, and if your saddle does not have a cut-out, try one with a cut-out (it does not have to be a gel saddle). I used to get terrible rawness and burning as you mention in the vaginal area and actually gave up riding for years because of it. This was back in the days before saddles had cut-outs.

I finally got back into riding 2 years ago on a recumbent bike, but that caused it's own set of problems, like a sore tailbone and terrible difficulties climbing hills (it was very heavy). So, reluctantly, I tried a road bike again, this time with a Terry Butterfly saddle and regular (non-gel) bike shorts. It did take a few rides to "toughen up" down there, but I got to the point quickly where I could do long rides without any of the previous problems! For me, a cut-out saddle is an absolute bottom-line MUST. I also bought some gel shorts to try at some point and got the same vaginal burning back again. I got rid of those fast and stick with non-gel shorts now. So, you might want to try these two things. You will probably have some soreness for awhile as your body toughens up for the saddle, but it should not last for long, and it should be in the "sitbone" area, not the vaginal area. And it shouldn't be burning!

Good luck and keep us posted. You can lick this thing! I rode 4000 miles last year and am on target for the same this year, so I know it can be done!

Emily

[kimba]

I just had the saddle on my new bike adjusted -
it was previously on my old bike,and is a velo anatomical cut out, so it was a familiar and comfortable one.
But when it was put on my new bike, it had to be adjusted again....
First ride out- it felt pretty good - for a while.
Then I got that horrible burning sensation that I'm assuming you had too.
When I got home, I found that the nose of the saddle was tipped up slightly- but it was enough to put additional pressure on the girly bits.
It ceased immediately when I got off the bike.
I've experienced a similar situation with the old bike- that's a - don't laugh- a Lemond anatomical cut out...cost me all of 7 bucks. It's my favourite!
But- It was slightly too far back, and the cut out and the girly bits didn't quite match.
so again, there was pressure, and some burning and crushing.
Since I've re-adjusted my bike... it's fine.

I recommend you try to adjust the seat both horizontally and vertically before you give up on it. And- if it's not a cut out- get thee to your LBS (or Ebay) and get one!

Kimba

[Biking Chick]

Welcome back to biking Snobohiker ... in a few months I'll also celebrate my 51st birthday .. nice to see another youngster on the board!

My husband and I started biking about four years ago. We started out with comfort bikes but after our first charity ride (30+ miles) hubby decided we *needed* road bikes. Long story short - after four years we each have 2 road bikes and a mountian bike. Talk about spending your children's inheritance!!

I recently swapped out the saddle that came on my road bike - the bike shop owner swore that it was the same saddle that was on my other road bike ... I don't think so. After a month of constantly adjusting trying to find the right position that did not numb my entire rear end we finally went with another saddle - one that has a cut out. It wasn't until we took the old saddle off that we realized that the problem was that the saddle had way too much *give*. You may be finding the same thing - while gel may sound like a good idea, if there isn't enough stiffness in the saddle to support you, you can end up with a lot of discomfort.

Don't give up .. and let us know how you are doing!!

Cindy
Ride Like A Girl!

[JanT]

Welcome! It does take some experimentation in both clothing and saddles to find what's right for you. Your local bike shop will probably work with you on the saddle. My LBS gives a 30 day trial period with the saddle; if it doesn't feel right, you bring it back. I exchanged three different times before I ended up with one that works. I had the same problem with the "privates," especially since being post-menopausal makes that area more tender. The saddle that works for me on the road bike is a Men's Serfas seat with a cut-out . I tried a women's serfas, but it was too wide and chaffed my thighs. BTW. I never had any problem with the mountain bike seat. In fact, until I bought a road bike, I never understood what all the fuss was about. When you mountain bike, you don't sit enough to be bothered by the saddle!