I have a size Medium (50) bike. I am short, but i have long legs for my height. I have fairly short arms and a short torso. I am new to cycling this season and this is my first bike. I rode a Small in the same bike and felt like a giant. We had to hike the seat way up and my knees were still bent to much at the bottom of my pedal stroke.

I feel great on this bike for the first 10 miles or so. Then, my core starts to get a bit tired and I find I'm leaning too much on my hands and my left elbow starts to ache. I feel like I am not strong enough in the core to reach out to my hoods or drops and hold myself up off my hands. I am most comfortable in my drops at the start of a ride and then move to about 1/2-1" closer to my body than my hoods- if that makes sense. So, I'm thinking a shorter stem will give me a more comfortable reach. Does that sound reasonable?