Proper bike seat height—along with overall bike fit —is paramount. And that’s true whether you’re gunning for the yellow jersey at the Tour de France or bragging rights at your local Tour de Coffee Shop. The fact is, an ill-fitting bike is an invitation to pain, injuries, frustration, and poor performance.
- Remember: Your ideal riding position results from adjusting your bike to fit your body, not the other way around.
- Saddle-height adjustment has always been a bit of a dark art, but in general it is the amount of distance between the center of the bottom bracket and top/center of your bike saddle,
- Your local bike shop can determine your bike seat height scientifically, but here’s a quick and simple way to estimate it.
Once you are dialed into your fit, you’ll become more comfortable (and maybe even faster) on your bike. Position your stem so that the top of your handlebar is about an inch below the top of your saddle. Aspiring racers may want a slightly lower position for aerodynamics, while touring cyclists may opt for a more upright posture to take some pressure off the lower back.
As always, listen to your body and adjust your bike accordingly. There are various formulas for determining bike saddle height, but you needn’t be a mathematician to achieve the correct height. Your knees should be slightly bent at the bottom of the pedal stroke, and when pedaling, your hips should not rock on the saddle (when viewed from behind).
To determine this, we recommend mounting your bike in a trainer or leaning it against a wall (as shown in the video above). If your saddle height is correct, your heel should just graze the pedal at the bottom of the pedal stroke (in the 6 o’clock position).
If you are using clipless pedals, you can also use a mathematical formula. Here’s how: Stand barefoot on a hard floor, back to a wall, with a book snugged up between your legs, spine facing away. Measure from the floor to the top of the book spine. Multiply that number by 0.883, and subtract 4mm (1/8th inch). The result is your proper bike seat height, measured from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seat, along the seat tube.
To determine fore/aft saddle position, sit comfortably in the center of the saddle with the crankarms horizontal. Drop a plumb line from the front of your forward kneecap. It should touch the end of the crankarm. This is the neutral position, and you should be able to achieve it by loosening the seatpost clamp and sliding the saddle fore or aft.
Should a bike seat be higher than handles?
Stem – Set your handlebar at the right height by adjusting the stem The stem connects the handlebar to the steerer tube at the top of the fork. Stems come in a variety of lengths and angles, so you can have the handlebar just where you want it. Changing the stem length affects the steering a bit – with a longer stem your hands will move through a larger arc than with a short stem, so you’ll have to move your hands further.
This will make the steering feel ‘slower’. But it’s not that big a deal and within the limits of a bike that’s your size to begin with it’s nothing you can’t get used to. Getting the contact points in the right place for you is more important. As a general rule of thumb, you want the top of the handlebar about as high (or higher than) the saddle, unless you’re a sporty rider looking to ride fast.
Try touching your elbow to the nose of the saddle and reaching forward towards the handlebar with your hand. On a bike that fits, the horizontal distance from your fingertips to the stem’s handlebar clamp will likely be between two and four fingers’ width.
- You can change the height of the handlebar by moving the stem up or down the steerer tube.
- If you have a stem that clamps to the outside of the steerer tube – a threadless stem – then there will be spacer washers below and/or above the stem itself.
- The stem can sit anywhere between, on top of or under these washers.
If you’re leaning over too much, put the stem at the top of the stack, and vice versa. To change the stem position, undo and remove the top cap. Loosen the bolt or bolts that clamp the stem to the steerer and lift it and any washers off. Slot them back on in your preferred order – the stem or top washer should overtop the steerer tube – but only do up the stem bolts loosely.
- Refit and tighten the top cap.
- Make sure the stem is in line with the front wheel and tighten its bolt(s) fully.
- To change the height further with this kind of stem, you can flip it the other way up when you re-fit it (in which case, you will also have to refit the handlebar).
- Or you can buy a new stem with a steeper or shallower angle.
It’s also possible to buy a ‘stem riser’ – a bolt-on extra bit of steerer tube. Some bikes have a stem that clamps the steerer tube internally with a wedge bolt. Such stems look a bit like a number seven and are called quill stems. There’s usually a greater range of height adjustment than with threadless stems.
Is it better to have a bigger or smaller bike frame?
Q) This could be very abstract sounding, but is it preferable for a rider between sizes to select the smaller size with a longer stem, or a larger size frame with a shorter stem? Is power lost in the smaller frame that is otherwise better distributed or better applied in the larger frame? – Christopher A) Hi Christopher, Your question is very common because it is one that many riders have felt they must face.
I think your question is common for two primary reasons. First, compact frame geometries and sloping top tubes have laterally stiffened frames over their non-sloping, traditional predecessors. In a nutshell, all else being equal, a smaller frame with “tighter triangles” and shorter tubes are actually stiffer than a bigger frame and thus can transfer power more directly.
Second, and probably most significant, not all bicycle dealers promote a fit first philosophy and the sizing of a bike becomes more abstract and less data-driven when there is not a proven protocol that corresponds to the selection process. Without a rider first fit philosophy, the bike’s needs will often be dictating your power and comfort instead of your needs determining how the bike can help you achieve your potential.
Without a proven process to determine riding position first, left to choose on non-fit related variables, smaller often “sounds” better to many performance oriented riders. This all being said, there is no reason to guess on this. A “fit first” approach to frame sizing yields greater accuracy in position and also will help clarify what frame size makes the most sense by showing how the rider’s position relates to the frame geometry before you buy.
For example, I’ve seen some riders who swear by sizing down a frame and running really long stems, 130mm and greater, always assuming that sizing down is the right approach. However, sizing down can have some significant compromises for some riders. On a X / Y plane, the horizontal X coordinate is often achieved at the expense of the Y coordinate: sizing bigger or smaller not only changes effective top tube length (a factor of X) but it also changes headtube height (a factor of Y).
- In this scenario, unless you make the decision to run an excess of spacers under your stem (potentially compromising handling and stability in the process), the smaller bike may yield a lower than ideal position in order to properly adjust your Y coordinate.
- A properly fit frame will be as close to the your ideal X and Y coordinates as possible while still being well within the normal set-up parameters the engineer who designed the frame was considering.
A proper bike fit eliminates the guesswork in this regard. A qualified bike fitter has at their disposal the tools and data (geometry templates, motion capture, power data, physiology, kinesiology, interpersonal skills, etc.) to find that X / Y and commensurately and locate the best alchemical compromise between power and positioning.
How high should bike seat and handlebars be?
Setting the handlebar height – Setting the right height for the handlebars is probably the one adjustment that relies more on what’s comfortable than any specific technique or formula. It should also be noted that while a good number of hybrids come with adjustable stems for changing the height of the handlebars, many bikes do not.
If your bike has a fixed (non-adjustable) stem, you may have to buy one with a different rise to set the handlebars at the desired height. When shopping for a new bike, ask about swapping the standard stem for something more to your liking. (Note that fixed stems are far more solid than the adjustable type.) The general rule for adjusting handlebars is that they should be set above the height of the seat for a more upright and comfortable riding position, and below the height of the seat for a more forwarding-leaning, performance oriented position.
How much will depend on your preference and what you are comfortable with. Road racing pros sometimes have their handlebars set 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 cm) below the height of their seats, while people who want a totally upright riding position may have the handlebars set 2 to 3 inches higher than their seats.
What is the best bike riding position?
What is a Good Neutral Position on a Road Bike? – A good neutral riding position starts with the head and goes all the way to your feet. On long rides, check in occasionally with your body position to make sure you haven’t drifted back into bad habits.
Relax your shoulders and bring them down, away from your ears. If you have been pushing hard on a climb, you may notice those shoulders stiffen and start to creep up again.Lowering your shoulders away from your ears will free up your head, making it easier to turn and look for traffic and actually helps you stay more alert! Bend your elbows ! Just like on a mountain bike, riding with relaxed, bent elbows allows your arms to act like suspension. If you hit a pot hole or bump in the road, your arms can help you absorb impact. Unlike mountain bike body position, your elbows should be tucked into your sides instead of out wide like wings. Keeping your elbows bent will also reduce strain in your shoulders and allow you to ride with less pressure in your hands.There should not, however, be a bend in your wrists. Maintain a straight line from your elbow through your fingers on the brakes. If this is hard, it might be a bike setup issue you should discuss brake lever and hood position with your professional bike fitter. Maintain a neutral spine, What does that mean? Well, it’s kind of like yoga. If you are familiar with the Cat and Cow positions in yoga, either of those positions while in the saddle could cause pain down below and inefficiency on the bike. Your back should be relaxed, keeping a fairly straight line between your hips and your shoulders. The best way to check this position while you are riding is to ask yourself: Is my core engaged ? If your abdominal muscles are taking a break while cycling, it could result in a slouched riding position that could put pressure on your hands, shoulders or parts of your crotch (eek)!Make sure your knee is tracking over the ball of your foot/pedal, If your knees are bowing out to the side when you ride, it may look a little funny and it will definitely cause inefficiency and pain.
What happens if your saddle height is too high?
How to tell if your bike saddle height is too high – A saddle that is too high will cause the hips to rock back and forth. Not only does this detract from pedalling efficiency, but it can also be extremely uncomfortable. Discomfort can show up in your lower back or as knee pain (especially in the back of the knee).
Have someone watch you ride from behind, whether out on the road or on a stationary trainer. The hip wobble should be easy for them to see, and you’ll want to bring your seat down a little. Or, if you bring your foot to the bottom of the pedal stroke, your heel should barely be able to touch at the bottom when your leg is fully extended (see photo above).
If you can’t touch the pedal at all, then lower the seat.
Does cycling cause tight calves?
Calves – Tight calves can be caused from overusing the muscles and from not warming up before you hop on your bike. They can be exacerbated if your bike saddle and handlebars are not in alignment with your height too. When we cycle our calves work together with the hamstrings and quadriceps to allow your foot to peddle. Tight calves and Achilles tendons can prevent the full motion of the foot and ankle joints, this can impair your cycling performance because good ankle mobility is necessary to push and pull the peddles. It can force cyclists to practice a toe-down peddle that produces less force than a flatter foot would.
- Calf stretch: calf stretch against the wall Stand facing the wall with the toes pointing forwards.
- Bring the palms of your hands to rest shoulder height on the wall.
- Step back with the right foot, around half a metre.
- Make sure your toes are still facing the wall and both feet are completely flat on the ground.
Slowly lean over your front leg towards the wall, keeping your back knee straight (and both feet firmly planted!). You should feel this stretch in the gastrocnemius (the large calf muscle) and, if you bend your back knee slightly, you will feel the stretch in your soleus (smaller calf muscle).