vsudhir18

It is important to have saddle height just above the hips, that way when you're pedaling on the way down your legs stretch down and back up in a smooth circular motion.

sjanzeir

This. You should make sure that you don't set it too high - high enough to cause your leg to extend fully and for your knee to lock up at the bottom dead center of each down stroke. That, my friend, is a recipe for disaster, which I also learned the hard way: As a style-conscious beginner, I used to think that setting the saddle too high would make me look all nice and professional in front of all those college chicks, but after exactly two days of my knees locking and unlocking for thousands of times, I got to a point where I couldn't ride another yard, and had to stay off the bike for a week waiting for the excruciating pain to wear off. I'm lucky I haven't damaged my knees for good!

MRT2

OP should return and weigh in. I have noticed that newbies usually set their saddles too low, rather than too high.

jefnvk

I dunno what the recommended practice actually is, but I adjust my saddle until I have just a bit of a knee bend at the bottom of my downstroke, probably to the point where I could get another inch or so out of a stroke. Hard to explain, I just "know" where it is. Never had any sort of pain with said method. I also prefer the so-called "French fit" relaxed fit though, have no idea what it is like setting up something with a more aggressive stance.

I adjusted a new bike tonite. Took three stops on the trail, up a bit, down a bit, finding the sweet spot, but once I hit it it is evident.

When I got my first bike, I took measurements, sat in front of a mirror, tried to calculate everything out perfectly. Turns out just riding on the trail and adjusting what felt bad worked out much better.

rekmeyata

depending on where the knee hurts it could be the saddle is too high.

read this info: Injury Prevention: Patellofemoral Syndrome | Bicycling

Cycling Knee Pain: Causes and Solutions

sjanzeir

What he said. That's how I do it, too.

There are parameters, of course, but it has to feel right. Case in point, my earlier Trek Pure. One day last August, when I decided it was about time I got back into the sport (and my wife was abroad, so I was taking liberties .) I walked into the local Trek shop and asked for something simple (no need for suspensions and multiple chain rings; just a rear cluster with deraileur would do,) old school (rim brakes,) and affordable (read: discounted; wife had to come back home at one point, gotta keep her happy .) So they handed me their last Pure in stock for a not-too-lofty 1,4xx riyals (that was a 25% end-of-summer sale) which seemed to fit the bill just nicely - on paper.

Problem is, in the eight months that I've owned and used it, I grew to hate the bike with a level of rage usually reserved for Nazi collaborators and child molesters: I just couldn't get it to "sit right" underneath me, even though on paper it was the right size - 16". The top tube reach was too far. The feet-forward geometry was ridiculous. I tried everything: raise the stem. Drop the stem. Tilt the handlebars back. Tilt the handlebars forward. Raise the saddle. Drop the seat. Take the saddle as far up as it will go. Take the saddle as far down as it will go. Nothing worked. Finally, after eight months, I said "***** this," posted it up on the local auction site and got the Shift 2 instead, which I find far more agreeable.

Moral of the story: Make sure you get it right before you lay down your cash! Spend as long at the shop as you have to, and insist on a test ride. Only after you've become positive that a given bike is a perfect match to you should you ride it out of there.

rs23

I thought i responded but it did not go through my phone.

The knee pain went down yesterday evening but i can feel the great 9 mile ride

Not going back and forth but after riding few bikes at dicks it was down to telera and Nishiki Adult Manitoba Road Bike | DICK'S Sporting Goods

I picked talera because it had disc brakes and shocks compared to the nishiki. I was told Telera comes in only one frame size and the nishiki that i rode was 21 inch frame and it was more comfortable. I am wondering for a just $50 extra should i go back and exchange it. Is not having disc breaks or shocks a deal breaker?

2 days of riding i mapped out a nice bike ride in our neighborhood and its 60% road and 40% pavement with no trail.

Thanks!

jefnvk

General consensus seems to be that shocks on a bike at that price point are pretty useless. Disc brakes evoke a lot of heated argument, but if it were up to me a better fitting bike v disc brakes, I'd go better fitting without question.

Then again, I ride steel rims in the rain which most people consider to be a death wish, so take my braking advice FWIW!

MRT2

suspension forks on inexpensive bikes suck. Stay away from them. Sometimes when it comes to bikes, less is more.

that said, I cannot in good conscience recommend a Nishiki. They are lower quality bikes

rs23

Is diamondback a good brand to get from Dick's?

hyhuu

OP - If you to ride then get a good bike (not necessary expensive), else just stick with your running and lifting since it seems to be working well for you. Riding will consume a huge chunk of time, cost you quite a bit and won't give you additional fitness benefits.

rs23

I just went for a lunch time ride and found a few things

1) I was able to raise the seat a little and felt comfortable
2) When i am on a steep hill and pedal standing (sorry i dont know the term for it) i feel the bike is small
3) overall i feel like the bike is little small for me.

I would be happy to take it back to dicks and get a better one. maximum $500. Little confused.

regardless excellent workout

MRT2

This is why I suggested avoiding big box stores like Dicks in the first place. They sell a lot of junky bikes an a few decent ones, and the staff ranges from competent to clueless. They should not have let you go out the door on a bike that is too small to begin with, though I suppose, if the bike only comes in one size, what else can they do.

My advice would be to return it and go to a local bike shop where hopefully, they can get you on something decent that also fits.

MRT2

They market some decent bikes under their name, and market a lot of big box junk under their name. If you can't tell the difference, maybe best to steer clear of them.

rs23

Trek 7.0 fx, trek verve and giant escape 3. These are the three that fit my budget. Are they worth checking out? I spoke to another LBS

GerryinHouston

I have the Trek Verve 2. It has a front fork, Claris 7 speed and a Dork Disk. Everything people over here exorcise because... oh well you can't be mistaken for a pro...

Honest bike for an honest price. I started with it last August and put in a thousand miles by March. Went from nearly 270# to near 250 #. I like the bike.

However, due to a posture generated problem (too many hours spent in front of the computer), I needed a drop bar bike to eliminate pins and needles in my hands. Now the Verve is my rain bike and guest bike.

Honest bike for an honest price.

Maelochs

The Giant and the Trek 7.0 fx--IN THE RIGHT SIZE---would be excellent bikes. Personally I would steer clear of the Trek Verve---cheap shocks, cheap suspension seat post, just more things to go wrong and cost money without providing any benefit.

MRT2

I would look at trek 7.2 Fx, Escape 2, and Jamis Coda Sport.

sjanzeir

I don't know about the Giant, but my top vote definitely goes to the FX 7.0 I had one for 12 days last month, traded it for a 1.2, and somewhat grew to regret it. I just took delivery of a new 7.3 this evening. If it weren't possible for me to get an FX 7.x for any reason, a Verve 2 or 3 probably would've been my next best pick between my 1.2 and Shift 2, even in a ladies' frame. Gerry put it best: an honest bike for an honest price. Just make sure you pick the right size and don't look back.

rekmeyata

Diamondback bikes are better than any other big box store bike brand, and this DiamondBack: Diamondback Adult Haanjo Metro Road Bike | DICK'S Sporting Goods that I mentioned before in this post was highly reviewed to be the best bike in that price range. This bike can't be too bad because Competitive Cyclist sells it, but read this: Best Hybrid Bike ? Hybrid Bike Ratings and Reviews | Bestcovery scan down to find the DiamondBack under the heading of Best Commuter Hybrid. Of course you can find a better bike but you'll have to spend more cash.

rs23

Thanks a lot guys!!! Just reading all the new comments and suggestions

rs23

What are some fitness tools you guys use while riding? I had a Garmin fenix 3 hr from a friend for couple of weeks and loved it! The $600 price tag means I need to save up to get one. Do you use heart rate straps, fitbit or anything else?

sjanzeir

My fingers, to measure just how much tighter or looser my 34"-waist pants have become since the last time I checked.

Retro Grouch 

The main purpose of your first bike is to help you decide what you want in your next bike.

Get yourself a bike, ANY bike, and ride it around your 5 mile loop for a week or so. There's other places to ride near where you live. Give some of them a try. Every time that you ride, make a list of the things that you like about your bike and what you hate. Hate the seat, write it down. Don't like the way that it looks, write it down. Like that it was cheap, write it down. Feels too slow, write it down.

Now you are ready to start shopping. Look for a bike that maximizes the things that you liked about your first bike and minimizes the things that you hated.

sjanzeir

Awesome piece of advice. I've met too many people who believe - wrongly - that they should buy one bike that's right for them and keep it for a lifetime. It just doesn't work that way.

Just like your car and your TV set, your bike - whether in the short or long runs - is disposable: there will come a time when is just seizes to be useful for your (and/or its) intended purpose. Case in point: my earlier post about my experience with the Trek Pure.

In late winter 1995, when I was an impoverished, helpless, hopeless college student supported by a single mother, I decided that it would be a good idea to start cycling to save money. But I had absolutely no clue what cycling - the activity, the process, the true purpose - was all about. Like most noobs, though, my line of thought at the time was along these lines: "It's just a bike! Metal tubes and a couple of tires! How hard can this be?"

So, just like that, with that line of thinking, I walked into the oldest, smallest, most well-known bike shop in Irbid, Jordan and walked out with some Indian-made, no-brand mountain bike. At the time, I've never even heard of things like frame sizing or cadence, but the crackled green paint and knobby tires sure as hell looked cool! The girls in my college will be impressed! (Hint: Turned out they didn't t give a phuq )

A few months later, having gone through the excruciating pain resulting from riding the wrong bike the wrong way (and having stumbled upon Thom Leib's amazing book in the college library, which greatly helped me figure a few things out - we didn't have the Internet in 1995, much less awesome forums like this one,) I knew exactly what I was doing when I took what little savings I had (with some help from my mom and friends,) walked into the Raleigh dealer's shop in Amman, and walked out with a Raleigh Flyer that fit me like a glove and served me brilliantly for years.

Fast forward to August 2015: I had no freaking idea what the hell I was doing when I walked into the Trek shop in Jeddah and walked out with the Pure. All I know was that it looked cool, it felt comfy, wasn't too complex, and it was on sale. I thought that what I had known in the 1990s still applied today (and it kind of did, but not in the ways I expected or thought were important.) The deal is done.

Eight months later, when I walked into Trek's brand new, second shop in town, I knew exactly what I was doing when I pulled out the Shift 2: It had everything that I loved about the Pure (reasonably priced, comfy, semi-balloon tires, looks cool, upright posture with ideal handlebar reach) and none of what I hated (feet-forward geometry, long reach to handlebars, slow gearing [as I got more fit over the weeks and months, I could barely crack 24km/h with the 42-14 top gear with a slight tail wind and 80+ rpm cadence; I cracked 32km/h on the Shift with the 48-14 top gear and a slight head wind at 60-80 rpm cadence.])

Now, mind you, I had seen a Shift 2 or 3 (can't remember exactly) in their stock at the time, looked it over and said, "naaaaa! three chain rings? A suspension fork? A suspension seat post? Too complicated! Who needs that, anyway? I'm old-school! Seven speeds are more than enough." Now, had I know what I know now, I definitely would've taken the Shift home instead of the Pure, but I wouldn't have learned that the Shift is what I needed had it not been for my experience with the Pure.