Fiona Outdoors logo My independent guide to the best of Scotland outdoors

Buying a bike that fits. Part 1

Written by Fiona May 06 2013

When I first got into road cycling riding I bought a second-hand bike from a pal who is about my height. I jumped on and rode off into a very happy place. But as the months went by I began to suffer aches and pains in all kinds of places. Longer distance bike rides gave me sore shoulders and neck, an aching lower back, a sore under carriage and twinges in my hamstrings.

A bike stretch too far

A bike stretch too far

I took advice from cycling pals and bought a shorter handlebar stem, moved the seat forward and generally tinkered with the set up. Things improved a bit but I never felt ultra comfy on rides of more than 40 miles.

First carbon bike

Then I bought my first carbon road bike. I measured my first bike, took a couple of cms off, called a couple of bike shops, told them my height and leg length and settled on a well-priced medium Giant Advanced TCR. At first it felt so, so much better to ride than my second hand Pinarello and so I imagined I’d ride off into the distance happy and comfortable.

But it turns out that this bike was too long for me. A long top tube saw me over-reaching and so the pain across my neck and shoulders became excruciating after about 40 or 50 miles. I swapped to a shorter handlebar stem, which helped a bit but made the front end of the bike quite twitchy. Then, one day, during a hard and hilly bike race I pushed too hard while stretched out too far and knackered my glute/hamstring. That was almost eight months ago and while I haven’t been back on the Giant, I still have the niggling leg injury.

Smaller for winter bike

The next bike to be bought would be smaller. I’d learned that much. I wanted a bike that would get me through miles of triathlon training in the Scottish winter. A friend suggested Canyon and this retailer helpfully has a sizing mechanism that takes all your body sizes (such as inside leg, torso length and arm reach) and tells you whether you’re a small, medium, large etc. This time I bought a small Canyon road bike. It immediately felt so much better to ride and over the winter I enjoyed shorter, harder training sessions as I built up to the World Age Group Triathlon qualifiers.

Sadly, as the spring came around and I began to head out for longer bike rides my old niggles – shoulder pain and tight hip flexors – started to give me discomfort again. This time I decided to take some expert advice. Rather than mess with the bike myself I headed to a bike shop that offers qualified bike fit. I never knew there could be so much to consider. Find out more about my Criterium Cycles Bike Fit in this blog.

More Like This

Adventure

Six exciting outdoor activities to experience while teaching abroad

Adventure

5 fantastic reasons to vIsit Guatemala – and 4 things to do there 

Adventure

How cold water swimming can help with managing depression

Adventure

Corbett bagging: Morven, near Ballater

Adventure

Free beginner’s guide to navigation by Ramblers Scotland

Adventure

Corbett bagging: Meall Dubh, Glen Moriston