Bad Back

[Stripes]

Heh Guys, hoping you can all help once again
My wife and myself have been cycling now for over 6 months now and my wife is now getting a bit of a sore back which after speaking to a few people and looking at what changes we could make to the bike (again to which we have been advised is not possible ), we are now looking at maybe purchasing a different bike which may help her posture when cycling....
Does anyone please have any advice on this issue ?
Thanks

 

[steve50]

Is your wife riding drops or flat bar?
If she is riding a drop handlebar road bike it might not suit her, best bet is to go to a reputable cycle shop and have a bike fit done to try and alleviate the problem.

 

[Stripes]

Is your wife riding drops or flat bar?
If she is riding a drop handlebar road bike it might not suit her, best bet is to go to a reputable cycle shop and have a bike fit done to try and alleviate the problem.

Hi Steve thanks for the reply
Not sure what a Drop/Flat handlebar means, sorry....If we were to go to say Halfords does it cost to get a bike fit? Thanks mate

 

[steve50]

Road bike, drop handlebars that curl downwards, http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/...stsnuV4UFH-nMf-u84NDoaAt2G8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

Flat handlebars as per hybrid bikes, http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/hybrid-bikes/carrera-crossfire-1-mens-hybrid-bike?cm_mmc=Google+PLABikesHybrid+Bikes221165&_$ja=tsid:60494|cgn:GoogleShopping|kw:221165&istCompanyId=b8708c57-7a02-4cf6-b2c0-dc36b54a327e&istItemId=xxpttrlxip&istBid=tzit&_$ja=tsid:35522|cid:344520484|agid:24344217364|tidla-261064562097|crid:83789280484|nw:g|rnd:11314641956214952593|dvc:c|adp:1o1&gclid=Cj0KEQiAiMHEBRC034nx2ImB1J0BEiQA-r7ctk8QlG3pnttaNQAySPQ5izJDdx9x2G4sKd5VTU3fVUQaAkmC8P8HAQ

I'm not sure that Halfords do proper bike fits, its more likely you are going to get some teenager telling you how to sit on the bike whilst trying their best to sell you the bike.
I do believe there are some mobile outfits that do bike fitting. http://www.visualbikefit.com/contact/

 

[Stripes]

Brilliant thanks mate, unlike myself my wife googled after I replied to you
Yeah it's a hybrid she has but she is more of a leisure cyclist so is looking at possibly a higher raised handlebar with thicker tyres and hopefully it will help because we love cycling
Thanks for your advice
Very appreciated

 

[Spiderweb]

Can you post a pic of the bike as she has it now. You may be able to raise the handlebars or shorten the stem.

 

[Stripes]

Thanks for any help you can give me.
The handlebars are extended as high as they possibly can be at the moment but hopefully this picture may give you an idea as to what may or may not help
Thanks

 

[steve50]

From that picture it looks like the bike has a long stem fitted which means it will be a long way to reach the handlebars from sitting on the saddle.
It will depend on how tall your good lady is and what sort of reach she has when sitting upright. You say the handlebars and stem are already extended to the max, this could well indicate the bike is too small for your wife. (Do I recall you saying both you and your wife are 6'+) if that is the case you would be looking at a large frame (54cm?) depending on leg length and reach.

 

[screenman]

I would get back ache on a bike riding that upright, I would go with the advice of finding a good old fashioned local bike shop and stay away from that big name when looking for advise.

 

[Stripes]

From that picture it looks like the bike has a long stem fitted which means it will be a long way to reach the handlebars from sitting on the saddle.
It will depend on how tall your good lady is and what sort of reach she has when sitting upright. You say the handlebars and stem are already extended to the max, this could well indicate the bike is too small for your wife. (Do I recall you saying both you and your wife are 6'+) if that is the case you would be looking at a large frame (54cm?) depending on leg length and reach.

 

[Stripes]

Lol no my wife is about 5;8"
She has long legs though and even though I have extended stem as far as I can she still seems to be very bent over when riding the bike.
We both cycle over 15 miles a day though again more at a leisurely pace.
Maybe it's a case of the bike being too small for her

 

[screenman]

Lol no my wife is about 5;8"
She has long legs though and even though I have extended stem as far as I can she still seems to be very bent over when riding the bike.
We both cycle over 15 miles a day though again more at a leisurely pace.
Maybe it's a case of the bike being too small for her

It would be great if we could see a picture of her sitting on the bike.

 

[Stripes]

[QUOTE 4661618, member: 9609"]unless your wife is spending many many hours on the bike or the riding position is obviously wrong. I would suggest seeing someone who specialises in physiotherapy / spinal problems / pilates etc and make sure that there is nothing wrong with posture / muscle balance etc, may be the problem could be addressed from that angle.[/QUOTE]
May be the case, think we will look into it
Thanks to all who have me advice
Very appreciated.

 

[ColinJ]

If your wife is very bent over and you buy a bigger bike then she is going to end up EVEN MORE bent over!

My ex is pretty tall (~5' 10") and long-legged, but that implies a relatively shorter upper body (otherwise she would be extremely tall). I gave her my old bike (which was a bit small for me) but it is too big for her. There is no problem getting the saddle to a comfortable position but she struggles to reach the bars, even with a shorter stem on the bike. Ideally she would ride a smaller bike. Your wife may be the same.

Get someone who knows what they are talking about to take a look at your wife on the bike and see what they have to say.

 

[MichaelW2]

It is impossible to give even the most general advice on fit if you cant see the rider positioned on the bike .