Madoner

I'm new to the forums and would have searched for this but since the search function is disabled here goes...

I recently got a Madone 5.2 and have been working on saddle/handlebar adjustment. When I ride farther than 10 miles, I always get pain at the base of my neck. It is more of a discomfort than pain, but it is very annoying. I haven't ridden road very long so could it be that I still have to toughen up my neck muscles for the different position? I have tried different saddle postitions and handlebar positions but none have seemed to help.

S_DOG34

I think this is usually a result of having too much weight on your hands and not enough on your rump. Your neck muscles are likely taking alot of the weight that your upper body is supporting and, as a result, are sore. Since you are new to road cycling though, it could be a case of working muscles that aren't used to the stress. Are you riding in the drops alot? Do you switch hand postitions often? How big is the drop between your saddle and handlebars? Are your elbows locked or flexed?

Answering these questions will help us help you.

Madoner

Thanks for the reply. I have not been in the drops very much at all, mabey once or twice on a 30 mile ride. My saddle is aproximately 3-4 inches above my handle bars, and that is measuring from the top of the saddle to the top of the bars. I actually have the saddle on the highest postition it will go on the seatpost but wouldn't mind a higher saddle (I have really long legs). And when I ride, the majority of the time my elbows are locked, but i bend them sometimes like when I'm hammering up a hill. Hopefully I answered in enough detail.

How much weight should be on my hands??

DannoXYZ 

relax your shoulders and arms. You should be able to wiggle all your fingers and your thumb when riding. This ensures that your weight is evenly centered over teh bars and don't require any muscles to hold you on.

Then don't ride with your face vertical; it requires muscles in teh back of your neck & shoulders to hold in that position. Instead, keep your head inline with the back's angle so that your spine is straight. Your face should actually be aimed at a spot about 10-15ft in front of the tyre. Then use your eyeballs to aim up and see where you're going. Even then, you don't want to be looking more than 50-75ft ahead anyway. This is to see where obstacles and stuff they'll give you flat. Use your peripheral vision to keep track of teh horizon.

mleess

Some neck pain initially is normal because it is a new position and it is a little unnatural, i.e., bent forward but having to keep your head up to look ahead. It does cause some neck strain. It sounds like you may be craning your neck up too much. You need to be able to look ahead, but you don't have to angle your neck way up to do it; use your eyes more than tilting your entire head. I would also recommend some neck/shoulder/upper back stretches which you can get in any magazine or online article about stretching.

moscafj

I've noticed my neck pain to be associated with a pain on my chin. That is where I place my hand when sitting at my desk reading this addicting forum. Here are some tips. Be sure your monitor is slightly lower than eye level. Keep both feet on the floor. Oh, don't keep you hand on your chin. Relax the arms. Also be sure to shift your position every so often. Get a little work done in another location before returning to the forum. Relax the shoulders! It should dissapate after a few days.


Oh, sorry...you were talking about neck pain while riding!

Madoner

thanks a bunch! I will definately keep these things in mind when riding.

Naidu

I've had pain very similar to what you describe: At the bottom of the neck (around the spine) where it joins the shoulders. And another thing that might be common between us: Legs disproportionally longer compared to the torso. After some measuring, the LBS recommended the I would need a bike with shorter than usual top-tubes for given a frame size.

Since I did not immediately have plans to get a new bike frame, they recommended couple of compromises: Use stem spacers to reduce the saddle-to-handle drop; use a shorter stem to bring the bars closer; and use a handle bar with a shorter reach (shallower bend).

I made the first 2 changes by putting in a 117-deg riser stem. This raised the bars about 3 cm and shortened the reach by 3 cm. This really made a difference for me. The handling dynamics of the bike changed some, especially when pedalling out of the saddle, but the neck pain is a faint shadow of what it was. The other major change is that I now conciously remember to relax my shoulders and bend/drop my elbows when riding.

Hope this helps.

H20.1

Neck pain comes from having your bars too low. If you are having to crane your neck up to see ahead, you put undue strain on your muscles and it becomes uncomfortable. This "discomfort" will turn to pain when you start riding 30+ miles.