Originally Posted by
trunolimit
What am I supposed to feel like when on a properly fitted bike? As it is now my tip toes barely touch the ground when upright. My legs don't hyper extend when pedaling, they keep a nice bend. The only problem I have now is when I do a lot of tough climbing I feel it in my lower back and the spokes keep coming loose. Other than that I love this bike. But you are experts so I am looking for a smaller bike. I found this one actually
52cm frame. I'd get a freewheel single speed because i don't exactly know how the heck you go downhills using a fixie.
You'd need to add brakes as well. On a fixed gear bike, you slow the bike down by applying back pressure to the pedals. With a freewheel you don't get that option.
If you're already getting back pain from hills on your present bike, the last thing you want is a bike that gives you only one gear. A lot of people just ride in one gear all the time and grind very slowly on hills. The gear combinations are there for a reason, shift down to make it easier on yourself.
Don't worry about where your feet are relative to the ground when you're in the saddle. It's irrelevant. Go onto the Fitting Your Bike forum to get ideas.
You want your back to be at about 45-50 degrees to horizontal, your upper arms about 90 degrees to your torso and slightly bent. That's a rough starting point. You also want the ball of your foot, not the arch, to be over the pedal spindle. When the cranks are parallel to the ground, your knee should be directly over the pedal spindle.