Brooky

Hi Guys,

I'm going on a cycle tour in around a month and I am a week into training having done around 120 miles. I have a Specialized Allez which I bought online from Cycle Surgery in the UK. I went on a cycle tour around ten years ago on a Dawes Galaxy that was far too big for me and I suffered incredibly sore and numb shoulders.

I did a lot of research and ordered a bike which suits my size better but the dreaded shoulder pain is coming back. It seems to be the top of my trapezius muscle that is the issue.

So my question. How do I go about getting a professional to check my bike setup and riding posture? I have to correct this before I do any more damage. I wonder if it is because I can't sit with my legs out in front of me with back up straight meaning that I can't get the right position. I don't feel I can take the bike to a decent local shop I didn't buy it from.

ultraman6970

wonder if you are trolling but anyhow...

My english is bad so i have to ask... what in the world you want to say with this?? " I wonder if it is because I can't sit with my legs out in front of me with back up straight meaning..."

If you have pain in the neck and shoulders after like 30 mins is because you have too much weight in the front of the bike, the weight is not well distributed, weight shifted to the front... not the same that having sore pains because of the stiffness of the bike after 3 hours, like the ones with AL bikes gets ok?

You have to post a picture of your bike and if possible one picture of you over the bike to figure it out what can be wrong, but so far can b a core problem, saddle in the wrong place problem, handlebar too low problem, saddle needs to be moved to the back problem... and many others, but w/o seeing the bike is hard to tell.

If you have the money just go to the fitter guy.

Campag4life

OP,
As a cyclist who has fought neck pain for several years and managed it after a lot of trial and error...a bike fitter won't cure your issue. You need to find the best fit yourself.
I have experimented with every permutation of saddle setback, handlebar horizontal and vertical position. As good as the Allez is,
if your goal is long distance riding how I ride, then the Roubaix is a better bike for the simple reason it promotes a higher handlebar.
The biggest change you can make to lessen arm pressure and reduce your neck angle is raise the handlebar. If you don't have a riser
stem on your bike, get one. Horizontal reach is important as well. Too cramped a cockpit is no good either as the compression goes up your arms and into your traps and neck. The formula for me...is ample saddle setback, ample horizontal reach and a higher handlebar. Neck stress is generally a function of too great a neck angle (also influenced by posture) and too low a position...more vertical weight component due to gravity.
Btw, neck pain is no.1 for road biking and the leading reason why road bikes are the minority of bicycles sold throughout the world.
If you want a balance of comfort and speed, a Roubaix or Roubaix type bike is your best solution if you have a sensitivity to neck pain in particular.

antimonysarah

You can take a bike for a fitting at a shop you didn't buy it from. People move, people have bad experiences at bike stores and switch stores, whatever. Do expect to pay for it, though -- getting a freebie fit will only happen if you bought the bike there. In the US I'd expect to pay around $100 for that -- don't know how much it runs in the UK. And if they recommend some replacement parts (new handlebars, stem, etc), don't go buy them on the internet cheaper, buy them there. I.e. start building a relationship with the store now.

thinktubes 

Agree that fit comes from trial and error, plus years of riding experience.

I recently was able to allieviate neck and shoulder pain by lowering my stem a bit. I realized that I was hunching my shoulders, which was tensing everything up. Lowering the stem allowed my shoulders to relax and helped quite a bit with the pain.