I have a question about my knee pain that I have been having. I have made a few adjustments to my seatpost (up & down) and have moved my seat front & back trying to find the best pedaling postion. But in doing so, I think I have found a good pedaling postion, but know my knee has started to hurt. Any ideas on what might be causing this (seat too high or too far forward)? Thanks
Sounds like your seat may be too low but I'm hardly an expert on bike fitting. Take a look at this link:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/kops.html Hopefully this will get you started if you've been following the KOPS standard. C
You can get alot of knee pain from having the cleats too far forward/back. Try setting them in the middle and seeing if the pain goes.
You can also get knee pain from lots of riding, no matter what your seating position is. What does the pain feel like? Is is general over the whole knee or more in one area? It's normal to occasionally get some basic inflamation (tendonitis) from riding a lot, or having pushed your knee a bit to hard at some recent point. Taking it easy for a bit and/or icing your knee after a ride will help a lot. If it keeps up, though, you might have something going on.
I've also had good luck with taking glucosamine supplements. If I'm getting knee pain from riding a lot I'll take the supplements for about a month and it goes away. After a few months of riding the pain comes back and I'm back on the supplements again. I should take it all the time I guess. I'm talking about very mild pain. Anything more and I'd see a doctor to make sure there's no damage. C
The pain is very mild and not always noticable. Sometimes I feel it sometimes I don't. I almost feel like it haqs happend since I readjusted my seat postion and changed to my new Crank Brothers Mallet C clip in pedals. They are currently in the further to the front mounting position. I may try to move them back a bit and see if that helps.
Knee pain can be due to several things: seat height, seat angle, forward/back position, cleats.... For any tweaks I usually check the Form and Fitness page at cyclingnews first and go from there. There's plenty of Q&A on knee pain. http://www.cyclingnews.com/fitness/#qa
What kind of shoes do you wear? (Soft bottom, traditional hard-bottom?) I wear Specialized shoes for XC...they are designed so that your knee becomes centered and not bowed out to the side. Just a thought......
I'd say it is two things: 1. The obvious, you have your seat incorrectly adjusted. 2. You have upped your mileage too quickly and have a mild case of tendonitis which will subside with rest and icing. Recommendation: Get yourself a "pro fit" by whatever bike shop can give you one. If you are gonna ride a lot, then consider it imperative to get one. I got 2 bikes fit for $200. They feel great. I feel great. The way I look at it is if I don't pay to get a fit, then I'll end up paying a physical therapy bill because of my ineptitude at fitting my own bike. glty paz afuera
Pappy, who would you recommend for a mtb fitting. Almost everyone I deal with does road bike fits, but don't do well with mtb.
I've heard from a couple sources your mtn bike fit should be similiar to your road fit. I know you'll sit upride more on a mountain bike, but maybe seat height and saddle position is similiar. Anyone confirm that? BTW, I was fitted on my new road bike at Rock N Road Mission Viejo. This is my first road bike so I was expecting some issues at first. I already have a bunch of miles on the bike and have NO issues with pain or comfort. Defintely worth checking out Rock N Road for atleast a rode fit, I don't see why they can't do a mountain bike fit.
As someone who is still recovering from knee surgery, I can not urge you strongly enough to immediately have your bike professionally fit. Please, please, please, do no "ride though" your knee pain. The $200 or so you spend on a fitting may save you MONTHS off the bike, a large surgeon's bill, a ton of time off work, many boring hours of physical therapy, and a huge amount pain.
Me and practically the entire westside would recommend Nate Loyal. Call the SM Helen's shop and they'll give you his info. I recently bought a new road bike, had received a new mtn bike, and was on the mend from my broken leg. To minimize ANY problems, got fit and I feel great. Both bikes feel very similar. I am very happy with fit. O and my ortho(avid cyclist) recommended him as well. glty paz afuera
I hear that Switchback cyclery is the place to get fit. I believe that the wife is or was a physical therapist and is really good. I would call and double check but I am pretty dure I read tht on a page here at some point...
