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if you're elbows are locked, could the bike be too big for you? if you can, try a shorter stem. if you're locking your elbows so that you're more upright (for sake of your back), try a stem with a higher rise.
are you doing C2C in one day or couple of days? you might need to do a lot more fine tuning on the bike positioning and couple of long rides to test it out to prevent/minimise the pain. pain in the arse is ok....pain in elbow is unusual.
IMO locking elbow is not a good idea. keep them bent for a bit of 'suspension' to the upper body. no jarring and bit more control
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Shorter stem should sort out the elbow pains and saddle positioning should sort out arse pains.
There's no guarantee this will disappear all together, but some more riding time should sort out your arse.
No one should really suffer prolonged elbow pain if the stem length / reach are correct.
At least you don't have lower back pain. Thats a bitch... -
I'm recently back on a bike and I'm aching too. My arse was absolutely killing me to the point where I would have to get off the bike. It's getting used to it now and is not so much of an issue but my neck is killing me from leaning over and looking up all the time. Maybe my neck muscles just need to strengthen.
It makes sense if you're locking your elbows that they hurt. With no suspension on the front the bumps on the road are being transferred from the wheel to the hub to the fork to the bars and finally focussing in your elbows and jarring them.
But meh, pure speculation on my part. HTFU.
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arse-wise, its funny, cos its painful for the first few minutes with me and then my arse seems to forget about it. i reckon that one will go away with time.
Saddle and leg extension wise, it seems perfect, but you guys might be right about the stem. I do feel like I might be needing to stretch to the handle bars more than id like, which explains why i lock my elbows. having my hands on top of the breaks, with my arms bent isnt that easy to do/comfortable so ill look into getting a shorter stem.
Thanks.
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+1
Shorter stem.
Sorry to hijack ya thread CushT but slightly on topic
My neck is killing me from leaning over and looking up. Should I get a longer stem so I'm sitting further upright or do my neck muscles just need to adapt?
I never got this pain riding my MTB but I was sitting much more upright.
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shorter stem to have you sitting upright, longer stem = lower body.
Ohhh. So a longer stem means it sticks out further from the bike horizontally. I though a longer stem meant higher.
Maybe I just need to adjust mine higher or something. Or HTFU. Looking at images of track racers, they lean right over and look up so I must just have to get used to it.
It's comfortable for me to ride for the first 20 mins but after that I need to look down every so often to stretch my neck out. Hmmm.
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Ohhh. So a longer stem means it sticks out further from the bike horizontally. I though a longer stem meant higher.
The length is called 'reach' (expressed in millimeters)
The height is called 'rise' (expressed in degrees)
Maybe I just need to adjust mine higher or something. Or HTFU. Looking at images of track racers, they lean right over and look up so I must just have to get used to it.
Not only are they used to this position, but they are only on the bike (in that position) for a small amount of time.
It's comfortable for me to ride for the first 20 mins but after that I need to look down every so often to stretch my neck out. Hmmm.
Get a stem with more rise and less reach.
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If you're stem is ahead, and you have a few spacers on top, just put them below - otherwise you could just flip the stem (need to remove the bars) and this brings the bars higher and closer.
If it's a quill stem, you'll just need to try raising it (but not beyond the maximum extension mark which is etched into the metal).
Definitely sounds like a stem height issue - even track riders who do longer events tend to have shallow drops set a bit higher.
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A rough guide here.
http://davesbikeblog.blogspot.com/2006/07/what-does-length-of-your-forearm-and.html
Hmm interesting.
Just grabbed my bike and did that measurement thingy, my fingers are about 0.5cm longer than the bars. Which should suggest my stem length is about right. Maybe it's too low but I have no idea how to adjust it so I'll wait until the next drinks and maybe one of you lads can check out my riding position (ooer).
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Might be worth pushing your saddle back then, if there's enough rail left to do it. Apart from extending the reach (which sounds too short), it will pivot your weight further back over the bottom bracket, and therefore take some weight off your arms. This works especially well if you've got a long body/arms relative to the length of your legs.
If you don't believe me, leave things as they are, ride around a bit, then shuffle back an inch in the saddle and see if you can feel any difference in your arms/hands...
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To add to all of the good technical advices above, always check that your shoulders, neck and arms are relaxed and use your core strength it will help your back and upper body instead of using the wrong muscles. Also learn efficient breathing. And if you are into yoga it is amazing to rebalance your muscles and will make you a more efficient cyclist.
http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/196 -
To add to all of the good technical advices above, always check that your shoulders, neck and arms are relaxed and use your core strength it will help your back and upper body instead of using the wrong muscles. Also learn efficient breathing. And if you are into yoga it is amazing to rebalance your muscles and will make you a more efficient cyclist.
http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/196racist.
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Noob aches and pains... elbows and arse...
Posted by
Hey,
A few weeks back I got my first bike in years off a nice guy from this forum and I've really been enjoying riding again.
After going on a longer bike ride on Monday, when I woke up on Tuesday I had some pain extending my elbow. After googling, it seems this is as a result of locking my elbows as I ride. Since Ive been aware of this, I have tried to bend my elbows at times as i ride, and the pain has subsided somewhat despite my continuing to ride everyday. But, it is more comfortable to lock them at times!
Now, I'm doing the C2C in the lake district in 10 days, so I'm more than happy to have these aches/pains now if they are things that all new riders need to go through for your body to become accustomed to riding.
But, my question is, are these aches/pains normal to go through? Or should I be looking into the fit of the frame/bike and my riding technique? Is it not ok for you to lock your elbows?
thanks
Dave