Quick fit check
 

Hi all...just looking for a quick fit assessment based on the photo below (courtesy of Alex Chiu). All feedback is appreciated. The fit feels ok. I do get some occasional pain (front of knee or lower back), but nothing too serious.

Thanks in advance.

http://acaurora.smugmug.com/Events/2...IMG_3856-L.jpg

Hi,

Seat height looks right. Nothing else looks wrong. Hard to say.
Probably a quirk of the photo but your cranks look a little off.

rgds, sreten.

Thanks much. I figured one photo wouldn't be ideal for a full assessment. But, if something was glaringly off, I assumed it'd be visible.

Thanks,

Chris

Seat height is nice. We need a photo with horizontal pedals to check that your front knee is directly above the pedal axle in this position.

Close to horizontal...of course the knee of interest is on the other side:

http://acaurora.smugmug.com/Events/2...IMG_3734-L.jpg

Looks good to me, as far as a "fit by photo" can go.

Good stuff. Thanks much!

If the bike feels good, that trumps how it looks to us. :thumb:

Pain in the front of knee can indicate the saddle being too low or the gear too high, and lower back can be from having too much bend there (or not enough core strength.)

+1

Looks pretty good

Not sure if your cleats shouldn't be moved forward 1cm on your shoes. Is the axle under the ball of your foot?

Hi,

FWIW I'm having difficulty imagining your feet are in the best position over the pedals.

I like riding with the front of my feet over the pedals taking it easy, basically ball
and toe, the push off area for running over the pedal, but move to ball over pedal
as soon as it get serious, but never further back, it doesn't feel right / effective.

I'm pretty sure I'd have my cleats further forwards if I used them,
but I don't. I'd have them set on neutral, yours look too far back.

rgds, sreten.

Note : It was something bugging me from the first post and is not an add on
to JR's post which I didn't read before posting, just looking at the pictures.

Thanks, i'll tinker and see how it feels.

1. Feet may be too far forward on the pedals, but hard to tell. Ball of the foot should be slightly forward of the pedal axle, though, especially for someone who has a flatter (rather than pointed down) foot position. No, folks that is not a typo - I did say ball of the foot forward of pedal axle.

2. Google KOPS (knee over pedal axle). It's a starting point only, nothing magical, let alone biomechanical about it.

3. It took me a while to figure out what made you look cramped in and your back a bit beyond what I consider acceptable/comfortable curvature but it appears to me you have too large a drop to the bars and too little forward extension. Again very hard to evaluate from a static photo, but a longer stem with a slight rise may allow better pull on the bars.

Note that even minor fit changes should be followed by a good amount of miles of sub-max cycling before pushing the limit, to allow accommodation to the new position by the body, as well as to properly judge the effect.

The reason he looks cramped is because he has long legs. Hid body angles are perfect. Not too much drop and not too little reach. Just the right amount of both. Although if he were to reduce the drop he would need more reach.

Lower back pain can result from tight hamstrings and especially tight glutes. Stretch them regularly. Front of knee pain can result from too low a saddle (not a problem according to the pictures) or the saddle being too forward. This something where the whole kops mumbo jumbo can really hurt you. If you need to have your knee a few cm behind the pedal axle then that's what needs to be done.

Well, we'll just have to disagree - which is easy to do as neither of us has anything but pics to go by. One thing I've always wondered about is what aspect of one's anatomy results in some riders (like me) who can ride with only a small curve to the back and others have a pronounced bend, even a hump. That's evident in the pics on the Chiu site.

Hi,

The type of footwear and attached may effect things, I don't really know. My ball
feels over the pedal but BTH don't know where it is exactly. I think my foot is
slightly further forward with the stiffer instep shoes I use with toeclips than
the other shoes I use with plain pedals. YMMV, go with what feels right.

rgds, sreten.

I can "jam" my feet into the toeclips, which makes them tighter, but
whatever advantage that has, is negated by my feet feeling too forward.

All great feedback and very much appreciated. One thing that is key that I've noted from this assessment of fit (granted by limited visual aids) is that the fit process is quite dynamic and there are several schools of thought. At the end of the day, I suppose it comes down to what fit feels most comfortable and doesn't hinder power.