Originally Posted by
milesofsmiles
The pain is mainly on the top of the knee (not the knee cap) and a little on the sides. It's not so much the knee itself but all around it, an aching leg that the pain kind of shifts around on, if you know what I mean. I have standard flat pedals, no straps or clips, and wear tennis shoes when I ride. I ride mainly on paved trails and one unpaved trail. I'm waiting to hit the hilly unpaved trails for a while.
The seat clamp is a quick release. I have tightened up the nut so when I close the QR it is tighter on the seat pole.
Fitted to me? I am 5' 10", the bike has 26" tires and an 18" frame, I guess that's fitted.
A question I had about riding on hills, should I stand up and pedal on hills instead of sitting to keep my legs straighter?
Okay, the pain above the kneecap is not unusual when starting out and pushing a harder gear than needed. Shift to an easier gear on all your riding for the present. sreten has some good advice on setting your seat height, but be prepared to move the seat up and down an eighth of an inch or so until you feel comfortable. Get out a spirit level, check the floor to make sure
that is level, then lay the tool across the top of the saddle front to back, and adjust to make sure that is level, too.
When we refer to bike fit, it can be quite simple, such as something like adjusting the seat height, to being complex such as a change to stem length. But for what you want right now, just concentrate on getting the seat height about right.
Pain at the outside of the knee is a little more serious, and has to do with the iliotibial band. This can be strained by putting too much load on the knee, as in mashing or slow pedalling in too high a gear. Again, use a lower gear and try to cultivate a higher pedalling speed. This will be important, too, when you get into the hills.
When counting the pedalling speed, just count for 15 seconds on, say, your right pedal, then multiply by four.
There is a technique to standing that is related to your aerobic capacity and changing gears... for the moment, just stick with staying seated, but select a low gear that enables you to keep spinning comfortably.
This also is presuming that the bike is reasonably modern and not out of the 1980s. You had better let us know what it is.