Pressure on hands
 

Hi all, I ride a 2013 Trek Madone size 56. I got a professional bike fit. Everything looks good on video, she set me up KOP and it all looks perfect. However, I am getting quite a bit of pressure on my hands and upper body. My fitter insists the bike fits perfectly but I am not comfortable. I feel the bike may be too big for me, I am 5'9 and a half inch tall with a 32 and a half inch inseam. Any suggestions on correcting this? Does it seem I am on the right sized bike?

Two people with the same body dimensions may need a different setup because of differences in riding technique or physical ability. Upper body/arm/hand pain is often a symptom of poor core strength. Were you honest with your fitter about your physical fitness?

I would suspect conditioning. Often you have to break your body into a new bike. First try lowering your seat about 1/2" and raising your bars about 3/4" of an inch. Latter on you can go back to your original setup...

Could be conditioning. I didn't really do any riding over the winter and I gained about 8 lbs. I'll keep things as they are and try to get back in shape.

So 56cm madone sounds about right for my size?

I'm not sure how your fit can be perfect and it's uncomfortable.

I'd look at the paid bike fit as the set point and there is going to be experimental changes that happen around that set point. I also had a professional fit and I eventually raised the stem a bit and did a lot with Q factor and pedal cleat positioning to resolve some other problems. There is no one fit for everyone.

J.

Try doing some core strength exercises, like planks.

Make sure you are keeping your elbows loose. Locked arms will allow your wrists and shoulders to get beat up over the course of your rides.

fore-aft saddle position and stem length can change the weight balance between your butt and your hands. I went to a shorter stem and had a lot of hand problems. Moved my seat forward a little and went back to the longer stem, and everything got better.

I don't think its posture or locking elbows or anything like that on the bike, it's gravity. If I sit on the bike in a riding position without my hands on the bars I get pulled down. I thought about tilting the seat a tad or sliding it back an inch to see if its better, I might even try some aerobars.

I'm the exact same height and after all my measurements I was told 55cm would be perfect so I could go with 56 or 54. I went with a 54cm because it gave me a little more options for adjustments per the fitter.

I'm a new rider and fairly out of shape. I had the same problem, but like you the fitter said it was fit perfectly and my core was weak. He had me do the same test where I get in ride position and try and take my hands off the bars. I couldn't for more than a second, but he could hold the position as needed. Bottom line is my core was too weak so I'm essentially using my hands to keep me up and it's like doing 1 long push up. I've been doing some yoga and up downs and after riding the new fit for almost a month my hands aren't as sore as that used to be.

I would say the fitter is right and you should leave it as is.

Well road bikes are designed for performance first, and comfort a distant second so truly being comfortable on a road bike is a tall order. Being a little out of shape doesn't help. Moving the saddle backwards on the rails will help take the weight off your hands quite a bit although this may not help performance. Also try raising the bars a little until you are fitter.

Anthony

May be you need to strengthen the muscles in your trunk , abs and Back. and practice some more Push Ups .. :o