General Cycling Discussion - hand/palm pressure question from a new cyclist

Hi,

I recently purchased a Specialized Sirrus and have a few issues regarding the fit/comfort of the bike. To alleviate some initial knee pain, I raised the saddle--which I believe/hope has helped. A side effect appears to be that of more of my weight being supported by my arms/hands. In particular, I have noted increased pressure where my palms grip the handlebars. I would like to know:

-how much, if any, of my weight is supposed to supported by my hands?

-what adjustments I would need to make to reduce hand pressure? Is it a matter of switching out the stem? Can improvements be made by adjusting the horizontal positioning of the saddle, setting it either closer to or further away from the handlebars?

Thanks!

RHZ

As a general observation, moving the saddle back will decrease weight on your hands, BUT it also changes your position over the crankset. I've found that when I notice too much weight on my hands, I'm usually out of KOPS (knee over pedal spindle) position. When I adjust for KOPS, the weight problem is typically resolved.

Hi,

I recently purchased a Specialized Sirrus and have a few issues regarding the fit/comfort of the bike. To alleviate some initial knee pain, I raised the saddle--which I believe/hope has helped. A side effect appears to be that of more of my weight being supported by my arms/hands. In particular, I have noted increased pressure where my palms grip the handlebars. I would like to know:

-how much, if any, of my weight is supposed to supported by my hands?

-what adjustments I would need to make to reduce hand pressure? Is it a matter of switching out the stem? Can improvements be made by adjusting the horizontal positioning of the saddle, setting it either closer to or further away from the handlebars?

Thanks!

RHZ

If I'm not mistaken, the Specialized Sirrus has flat handlebars like a mountain bike. If it does, you can have bar ends put on so that you can alternate hand positions which might help.

Just an idea. (besides raising the handlebars)

As a general observation, moving the saddle back will decrease weight on your hands, BUT it also changes your position over the crankset. I've found that when I notice too much weight on my hands, I'm usually out of KOPS (knee over pedal spindle) position. When I adjust for KOPS, the weight problem is typically resolved.

Moving the saddle back will put more weight on your hands and the first thing to determine when experiencing this problem is that the top/tube length is not too long. With drops,to get a rough guide, with your arm bent at 90 degrees place your elbow against the toe of your saddle. You outstretched fingers should just reach the bars. With flat bars add on two inches to the distance between your fingertips and the bars. Adjust the saddle laterally to achieve this and if this is not possible the a new, shorter stem may do the trick. This may throw your KOPS out but that's the compromise and I've never noticed too much of a problem. Again it is as well to check that the bars (for a touring position) are level or just below being level with the saddle (not the toe but the widest part) as this can cause hand problems also. With flats which do give this problem,fit barends projecting forward and pad them well with foam and then tape. You will benefit from having a straight wrist with no twist when using these.
Good luck!