What is a Bike Fit? - Coach Tip Tuesday

Everyone who rides a bicycle should be comfortable while riding said bicycle.  Yes, EVERYONE who rides a bicycle should be comfortable.  This means that whether you’re riding a beach cruiser, a hybrid  bike with your kids, a time trial bike in a triathlon, or a mountain bike on the trails, you should be comfortable. 

You may be surprised to read this.  In my 18+ years in the endurance sports industry, I’ve heard so many people say that they didn’t realize that they shouldn’t be feeling uncomfortable during or after their rides.  I actually didn’t know this myself when I first started riding a bike more seriously!  But nope, your butt shouldn’t be chafed, your hands shouldn't be aching, your back shouldn’t be seizing up, and your feet shouldn’t be numb.

So how does one get comfortable on a bike?  By getting a Bike Fit from a trained and knowledgeable bike fitter.

What Makes a Good Bike Fit?

I became a certified bike fitter in 2017, and I currently provide Bike Fits for riders at Mello Velo Bicycle Shop in Syracuse.  I was trained by Master Fitter Adam Sczech, who has completed over 8,000 bike fits in his 20+ year bike fitting career and who developed the Veritas Fit System.  I chose to learn from Master Fitter Adam not only because he was the smartest Bike Fitter I had ever interacted with, but because his bike fitting philosophy focused on knowledge, rather than gimmicks or “tangibles”.  The main cornerstone of his fitting philosophy is Epicurean in nature and focuses on “Ride the bike, don’t fight the bike.”

A lot of bike shops and bike fitters focus on the system that they are using to complete a Bike Fit.  Often, these systems are marketed to athletes claiming that they can save a certain number of watts over a certain distance or that they can make the rider a certain percentage more aerodynamic.  They often look fancy and complex.  While I won’t say that these systems are completely ineffective (because they’re not), I will say that complexity is what sells, and companies know this.  Foundational principles are not as sexy or glamourous, yet these “boring”, simple things are the things that (time and time again) actually do work.

The numbers make the system sound fancy and like it must “work” as a result of that fanciness or complexity.  However, after being in this industry so long and after conducting Bike Fits on so many different athletes each year, I can tell you that bike fitting is much more about the fitter’s knowledge of the human body, observational skills when working with a rider, factoring in how the person is riding the bike, communication skills, and using all of that knowledge collectively to make the rider comfortable.  

Most importantly: A bike fitter should cultivate an environment where the rider feels safe and where they feel comfortable discussing all aspects of their riding style and fit position with their fitter. While it’s entirely appropriate and necessary to have detailed discussions about the three areas where you have contact with a bicycle (your hands, pelvis, and feet), the bike fitter should be explaining everything they are asking and doing, and they should also be explaining why it’s important and necessary in the context of the Bike Fit. In other words: the bike fitter should be discussing these topics and areas in a professional, respectful way. If they need to touch you at any point during the fit process (such as to confirm a measurement), they should be explaining why they need to touch you in that area and they should be asking your permission before touching you each and every time they need to do so.

The Pillars of Bike Fit

Comfort is King.  Not only is it important to not be in pain, but comfort will lead to greater efficiency and speed gains over time than any algorithm, laser, funny-looking dots, or cameras can.  The fastest and most aerodynamic position on a bicycle is the position that you can sustain for the highest percentage of the time you are on said bicycle.  If you keep needing to break and/or adjust your position while riding, you will never maximize your power, speed, or aerodynamics.

There are three places where the human body makes contact with a bicycle:

1. The hands (or arms, depending on the style of bike)
2. The butt
3. The feet

Alter any one of these three areas (i.e. raising or lowering the saddle), and you have effectively altered at least 33% of your bike fit.  That is a lot.  Each of these contact points plays into the other contact points, so altering one (even if it seems like a “small” change at face value) can actually effectively be altering your bike fit by more than 33% if it impacts your contact point(s) elsewhere.  

Many, many issues that riders experience while riding a bicycle are actually saddle issues.  As Dr. Andy Pruitt (who is effectively the Father of Bike Fitting) says, “The saddle is the center of the Bike Fit Universe.”  As crazy as it might seem, foot pain, hand numbness, back discomfort, and more can all be signs that your saddle shape, size, and/or position is incorrect and needs attention.

A trained and knowledgeable bike fitter is going to know which changes to make and in what sequence to make them.  (Yes, there actually is a sequence to making changes in a Bike Fit!)  It is important to get this right.  They will also have a wealth of knowledge accumulated from their experience of working with a variety of different riders, and it’s this knowledge and experience that makes working with a bike fitter especially valuable.

What is the Bike Fit Process Like?

A Bike Fit starts out with the fitter getting information from the rider about their riding history, what they’re currently doing as far as riding goes, and a movement assessment (which usually includes a flexibility assessment).  While a Bike Fit can be conducted indoors or outdoors, they are often conducted indoors on a stationary bike trainer.  Using an indoor bike trainer makes it a bit easier for the fitter to make changes to the bike itself and to get real-time feedback from the rider throughout the fitting process.

While the fitter can/will certainly make changes to the bicycle to help make a rider comfortable, they should also recommend exercises and mobility work that help the rider sustain their bike fit position.  There are two parts of a Bike Fit:

1. The person riding the bicycle (meaning the rider’s unique physiology, to include strength and flexibility)
2. Adjusting the bicycle so that the rider naturally falls into a comfortable position.

BOTH of these things must be accounted for if the rider is going to be able to be comfortable on the bike.  Setting up the bike by numbers alone without accounting for the athlete themselves is a recipe for discomfort, pain, and fear.  The bicycle should be set up to look like and resemble its rider; a rider should not be contorting themselves to try to resemble their bicycle.

If you go for a Bike Fit, be sure to bring EVERYTHING that you would normally use or wear when riding your bicycle.  (If you’re in doubt about something, bring it anyway.  It’s better to have it and not need it than it is to need it and not have it.)  Being able to observe exactly what you do and what you wear and use when you ride your bicycle helps the fitter make the best recommendations and adjustments for you to help get you comfortable.  Some of these recommendations may include different parts for the bicycle (such as a new saddle, stem, handlebars, riser bars, pedal extensions, pedal styles, and more!).

When your Bike Fit session is complete, your fitter should provide you with several deliverables:

1. The contact point products that are most comfortable for you.  In other words, you should know what handlebars will work for you, (if applicable) what aerobars will be appropriate for you, what stem length and angle makes generates the most comfortable riding position, that there is a saddle out there that you can be comfortable on, and what pedals/shoes will work well for you.
2. Your fit coordinates (numbers) so that you can replicate your fit position on your own if you ever need to take your bike apart (such as for travel) and so that you have an idea of what bicycle geometries work for you if you ever go to purchase a different bicycle.
3. A video of what you look like while riding (ideally, two different videos of what you looked like at the beginning of your fit session and what you look like at the end of it).

The Bike Fitting Session is Just the Beginning

In total, an initial Bike Fit often takes at least 90-120 minutes to complete.  It’s a thorough and complete process!  This being said, it’s impossible to get a fit exactly right on the first visit to a bike fitter.  Read that again: IMPOSSIBLE.  When you leave your initial fit, it’s important to view the fit as a work in progress and that version of your bike fit as your starting point.  When you make changes to your fit, your body is going to “notice” those changes, and you’ll feel the difference.  But it takes time to ascertain if what you’re feeling is just different or if it’s positive or negative.  

As a result, it is necessary to get out and ride the bike and test the position for at least ten total hours (preferably acquired over the course of several rides over a period of a few days or a few weeks).  Ideally, you’d be testing your fit by riding in real-world circumstances that specifically replicate any training scenarios for goals you’ve set (aka outside), but sometimes weather or the time of year make this impossible, so you have to ride ten total hours on the trainer.  After riding a total of ten hours in your new fit position, checking back in with the bike fitter is useful, as additional adjustments can be made to help make you even more comfortable over time.  It is for this reason that six months of Fit Checks are included with every Bike Fit that I complete.

One’s bike fit is dynamic - just like you are when you ride your bicycle.  This means that your fit will (and should!) change over time.  If you ride a lot, it’s a good idea to get a Bike Fit at least every 1-2 years to make sure you’re optimizing your comfort and efficiency.  Changes in body composition, fitness level, style of riding, and/or changes in your bicycle’s equipment (such as adding aerobars or switching to a clipless pedal system) necessitate a new Bike Fit for maximum comfort.  One of the most important things to bear in mind is that a body weight change of +/- 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms) warrants a new Bike Fit.  (This is the most common reason I see for changes in comfort on a bicycle; if you are uncomfortable in a bike fit position that was previously comfortable for you, this may very well be the reason you are currently experiencing that discomfort.)

Bike Fit as Part of the Bike Purchasing Process

While most riders I do Bike Fits for come to me after they already own a bicycle, it’s actually possible (and good!) to go through a fit process before you purchase a bike.  A Pre-Purchase Bike Fit is a process where a fitter can take measurements, assess your mobility and riding style, and use that information to recommend bicycle geometries that will work well for you, your unique physiology, and your goals.  There’s nothing worse than getting a new bike and then realizing that it’s not the appropriate size for you.  Getting the appropriate bike and size for you will help ensure that your Bike Fit can and will be as comfortable as possible once New Bike Day does come.

The Bottom Line

No matter how or what you ride, you deserve to be comfortable on a bicycle.  A Bike Fit is NOT just for people who are participating in races or riding extremely long distances.  Feel free to connect with me if you’d like to learn more about how to keep your body comfortable and happy as you pedal along to wherever the road or trail takes you!