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Alright have it at. My riding position video.

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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Alright have it at. My riding position video.

Old 01-30-16, 03:50 PM
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Alright have it at. My riding position video.

Alright the wife just happened to pass me on the way home today and got a few seconds of action. I'm curious to see what you all think about my riding position. I didn't last 45 minutes today before my low back started tightening up on me. I know these kinds of videos are tough to critique but maybe there's something there I'm not seeing cuz it looks alright to me. It feels good too, until I start pushing higher watts.

https://youtu.be/kbJsj_tFLI0
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Old 01-30-16, 03:55 PM
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Did you cut the part where she yells "nice ass Lance" and then throws a Miller Lite empty at you?
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Old 01-30-16, 03:55 PM
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How tall are you and what is your cycle inseam, what size is the bike? Just looking at it you seem fine nothing in the drops but you seem to be on the hoods easy. I am not expert but I think it is fine.
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Old 01-30-16, 04:47 PM
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Originally Posted by deacon mark
How tall are you and what is your cycle inseam, what size is the bike? Just looking at it you seem fine nothing in the drops but you seem to be on the hoods easy. I am not expert but I think it is fine.
Don't know my inseam. I'm 6' on a 56cm, I've done the pro fitting thing.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:19 PM
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Could be due to your back, but you are way too upright, arms are too straight. It doesn't look like you are reaching forward (in a good way) to the bars at all. Looks like you are being pushed backwards to stay on the hoods. You need to bend your arms, get lower if you can. I think the frame is at least one size too small for you. Your back pain could be from too much weight on your butt and not enough on your hands.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:24 PM
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Originally Posted by rpenmanparker
Could be due to your back, but you are way too upright, arms are too straight. It doesn't look like you are reaching forward (in a good way) to the bars at all. Looks like you are being pushed backwards to stay on the hoods. You need to bend your arms, get lower if you can. I think the frame is at least one size too small for you. Your back pain could be from too much weight on your butt and not enough on your hands.
It's a 56. I'll look into what you've said thanks.

This is a 90mm stem. With a 100mm my arms get really straight and that compresses a nerve and makes my left hand go to sleep. My hand never goes to sleep with this 90mm stem.
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Last edited by shoota; 01-30-16 at 05:27 PM.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:25 PM
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Originally Posted by thinktubes
Did you cut the part where she yells "nice ass Lance" and then throws a Miller Lite empty at you?
OMG that's funny!

But yeah, position looks totally fine to me, though I think you could go with a deeper drop bar or lower your bars altogether if you wanted.

More concerning are the knee warmers on a sunny day in Florida. What's it...like 70º there? Brrrr, huh?
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Old 01-30-16, 05:27 PM
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To me all I notice is a slight bounce when you increase your cadence.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:51 PM
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You seem to have short arms and the bike seems to have been set up to account for this. Position looks fine, not very aggressive but not particularly upright either. However, you definitely bounce around a lot; whether that's due to bike fit or technique, I can't tell, but it might have something to do with your lower back problems.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:53 PM
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Originally Posted by Fiery
You seem to have short arms and the bike seems to have been set up to account for this. Position looks fine, not very aggressive but not particularly upright either. However, you definitely bounce around a lot; whether that's due to bike fit or technique, I can't tell, but it might have something to do with your lower back problems.
He may have been bouncing for his wife.
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Old 01-30-16, 05:53 PM
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Hey, I recognize the kit - CPC. I've done a few of their rides - good group.

I think your position looks fine. I agree with others about more elbow bend and smoothing out your pedal stroke to reduce the bounce. You might be in a good position in the drops. Since the video doesn't show it, there's no way to tell if your saddle height is correct. It looks like you could go to a longer stem, but you've already tried that with no success. I also agree with lowering the bars. Easy to take out a spacer, ride for a week and see how it feels.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:03 PM
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Just my opinion ( I am by no means an expert - not even close) - but the bike looks small for you. It seems your legs don't extend quite enough.
I know it's generally preferred to go with smaller rather than larger, but in your case it seems to me that you could go a little bigger...or maybe move the seat back a little?
...maybe get your palms on the hoods to stretch you out a little more?
Just throwin' it out there. Have you had a good fitting done?
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Old 01-30-16, 06:18 PM
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Bouncing is often due to a low saddle. High saddle causes side-to-side motion.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:23 PM
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I'm 6' and ride a 58cm frame and 110mm stem. Bike fit is an elusive thing.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:24 PM
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That it is. I'm getting so tired of trying stuff to no avail.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:31 PM
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Originally Posted by shoota
That it is. I'm getting so tired of trying stuff to no avail.
What to watch for is the ease at which you spin. When you get it right the legs just go and go. Have it wrong and you labor. You have tried 90 and 100mm stems. Buy or, better yet, borrow a 110 and a 120, and maybe even a 130.

PS If you have to buy, buy cheap stems. Then, when you figure it out, get a nice stem in the length that you know is correct. The right dimension is what you're seeking. Lightness and looks are remotely secondary.

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Old 01-30-16, 06:34 PM
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Originally Posted by GeoKrpan
What to watch for is the ease at which you spin. When you get it right the legs just go and go. Have it wrong and you labor. You have tried 90 and 100mm stems. Buy or, better yet, borrow a 110 and a 120, and maybe even a 130.
130?!? I feel like I can barely reach a 100. I have short arms, like a T-Rex. I have a 110, I guess I could try that, got nothing to lose.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:41 PM
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The shortness of your arms is exacerbated by your upright position. How long is your torso? It is possible a large frame or endurance frame would be helpful by bringing the bars up closer to you. If your torso is long, then a larger frame for the longer top tube. If your torso is short, then an endurance frame for the shorter top tube. Either way you would get a taller head tube.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:43 PM
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Should have got a 58.
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Old 01-30-16, 06:46 PM
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Originally Posted by shoota
130?!? I feel like I can barely reach a 100. I have short arms, like a T-Rex. I have a 110, I guess I could try that, got nothing to lose.
I have to admit that my reach is longer than average. The thing is, bike fit can be counter-intuitive. Trial and error is the sure fire method.
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Old 01-30-16, 07:05 PM
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Looks exactly like the picture on the left.

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Old 01-30-16, 07:48 PM
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You don't need to buy a bigger bike. You have already added a tower of steerer tube spacers, so you probably already overlap the dimensions of the larger frame.

I agree with Lazyass on you rounding your back. I don't think it is as bad as the guy in the pic, but you are also riding with almost locked elbows. Bend your arms, straighten your back, and roll your hips. The angle your wrists enter the bars may change, and you may need to short term roll your bars higher for comfort.
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Old 01-30-16, 08:18 PM
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Originally Posted by RollCNY
You don't need to buy a bigger bike. You have already added a tower of steerer tube spacers, so you probably already overlap the dimensions of the larger frame.

I agree with Lazyass on you rounding your back. I don't think it is as bad as the guy in the pic, but you are also riding with almost locked elbows. Bend your arms, straighten your back, and roll your hips. The angle your wrists enter the bars may change, and you may need to short term roll your bars higher for comfort.
I can certainly feel a little relief when I put my hands on the tops which props my upper half up more and effectively flattens my low back a little. The problem is that in any other position, and especially when riding hard, I have to concentrate hard and force my back flat by rolling my hips forward. I just can't remember to do that all the time and on the rare occasion I do manage to roll them forward it quickly tires out my low back extensors from the flexing. That's no good either. So anyway, I just tilted my saddle nose down a hair. Again. The last few times I've tried this it pitches me forward enough to put more pressure on my hands which is no fun either. And my low back would still hurt. So yeah I'm beginning to think this isn't a fit issue and is a physiological issue. Maybe I'm just one of those unlucky people that isn't meant to ride a bike?
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Old 01-30-16, 08:58 PM
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are you uncomfortable? It doesn't look like you are... I'd say everything looks fine... U maybe could get a longer stem to get more aero or raise your bars to give your arms a lil' flexion and take pressure off your hands, but overall your position looks pretty good...

If you can ride for 6+ hours w/o pain or discomfort that should tell you what you need to know... if you're looking for something specific like more power output or ease of power output I'd say look at your gearing before your position... honestly it just doesn't strike me as being that bad, or rather not bad at all, but pretty good. I actually have a really similar position and like you I have arms that are a bit on the shorter side because my shoulders are massive... I run 110 and 100 mm stems on my bikes, trust me, it helps if you feel a lil' too stretched... I was running 130 and 120mm stems and putting strain on my back a lil' too much... I ride a much smaller frame than you do I'm thinking, but I stand about 5'11"... so make of that what you will....

I did notice like others that you bounced a lil' bit in the saddle... as far as that goes... uhhm, yeah, just don't bounce around man... sit that butt down in the saddle... lol
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Old 01-30-16, 09:09 PM
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What you are describing is something all cyclists deal with. Rolling your hips forward puts more pressure on the perineal area and can cause discomfort. This can be alleviated by a proper fitting saddle, usually meaning a larger cutout and for some, a slight change in tilt angle. Rolling your hips forward requires more core strength, which can cause you to revert back to an upright lower back posture when you get tired (or subconsciously), as depicted in the photo on the left above. This reduces the need for core strength by putting the pressure in your lower back spinal region, but causes pain as you've seen. Any posture that puts you in a more aggressive position with a flatter back puts more pressure on your hands, this is inevitable. It also can cause neck discomfort.

So your options are basically to work on core strength to allow for a flatter back (hips rolled forward) and deal with the increased weight on your hands and possible neck discomfort, or fit your bike to be more upright (with more spacers, higher rise in your stem or an endurance frame), allowing your pelvis and lower back to be in a straighter angle, but deal with the aerodynamic disadvantage. So you're going to want to weigh what is important in your riding and adjust from there. Also from your listed bikes, your three most recent bikes are more aggressive bikes, have you tried an endurance frame? No point to a race geometry bike or to "look pro" if you aren't comfortable for even 45 minutes.
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