Knee problem

[eddiemee]

Hi all,

To accomodate a saddle bag I recently raised my saddle ~3 inches. This didn't seem to cause any problems initially. I noticed a slight ache in my thighs and calves for a few days which I assume was just my muscles getting used to the new position. This week though, I noticed a slight weakness in my knees. It was first apparent playing squash. When I'd plant my foot the knee would buckle very slightly. There was no pain, it just seemed like the joint lacked strength. The same thing happened again yesterday, again with no pain, but about 4 hours later I had a slight burning sensation in both knees which has gone this morning.

So my question to you is this: if I've adjusted my saddle too high, could I be overextending something (tendons?) in my knees, and is this something I will adjust to in time? I've dropped the saddle back down an inch just in case and it seemed more comfortable on the way home, but may consider rearranging my mudguards/lights/saddle bag if I need to drop it back down to its original position.

Thanks in advance.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

if your body is used to a certain position, even a saddle position that is too low then it is a good idea to only make changes to that position, imo, in small and gradual increments over a period of time. A change of a couple of inches is a big ask in one go.

I think it is key to get your saddle to the right height for your legs, and then make everything else fit that. This can be tricky if or not depending on how ideal your frame size is to start off with.

 

[Bill Gates]

Hi all,

To accomodate a saddle bag I recently raised my saddle ~3 inches.

There are a number of different formulae that can be used to calculate your optimum saddle height. Bearing in mind that you can now ride with low profile pedals with cleats, then taking a straight forward measurement taken from the middle of the pedal spindle, to the top of the saddle along the line of the seat tube should take this into account.

My inseam measurement is 899mm whereas for my height the statistical inseam is 881mm. i.e. I have very long legs for my height and my optimum saddle height using the formula 109% of inseam(standing crotch to floor - no shoes on) is 96.4cm(centre of pedal spindle) +1.62cm(low profile pedals) = 98.1cm.

This is too high for me and I ride with a saddle height of 95.3cm instead of 96.4cm, and I came to that from not using a measure at all. Instead I sat on the saddle and with one crank vertical adjusted the saddle just so that my leg was ramrod straight wearing my cycling shoes with my heal just brushing the top of the pedal.

Why all of this?

Adjusting your saddle height to accomodate whatever will inevitably lead to problems with leg/knee strains or inefficiencies if it strays too far from what is reasonable in respect to the above. So yes in answer to your question. If you find that that the saddle height is far out then ideally only make small adjustments maybe 1cm at a time.

P.S. See my avatar with crank vertical there is knee bend at the bottom of the stroke with the ankle slighty higher than the toes.

 

[youngoldbloke]

3" !!!! +1 above. Very small increments, and not to accomodate a saddle bag, whatever.. Try a search - saddle height or bicycle fit. eg.http://www.bikefitting.com/English/Theory/SaddleHeight.aspx
- most will more or less echo Bill's advice above.

 

[Rob3rt]

From my understanding, if the seat is too low you will be pedalling from your knees more than you should be making pedalling hard, if its too high from your upper thigh etc more than you should be, pedalling might be easier feeling but you will be over extending (please correct me if my understanding is wrong here). The saddle height and forwards/backwards possition should be adjusted to get the right balance. I was set up by a 3rd party person using a turbo and the method of a 30% bend in the knee when crank verticle, knee joint to centre of pedal aligned by plumbob methods. Then fine tuned the settings for feel and confort. Then I matched my other bike to this for a base set-up with some small adjustments for feel.

Personally, I wouldnt alter the riding possition to accomodate a saddle bag. Since I set up my bike I wont touch its set up unless its to improve the way it feels. You could use a different type of bag on the bike, knee's and pedalling efficiency > a nice bag

 

[eddiemee]

Thanks all. You speak sense, it was silly of me to adjust the height that had been perfectly OK for several years. Haven't got the motivation to get out the tape measure tonight but I'll do the calculations over the weekend. I kept a close eye on my legs and I wasn't reaching anything like a 30 degree bend at my knee, probably more like 10-15 degrees.

Dropped the saddle back another 1/2" on the way to work this morning (so it's now ~1 1/2" above its starting position) and it certainly feels that I'm getting a bit more power out of my strokes which suggests that I was definitely too high. Still not a lot of bend in my knee though so I'll drop it back to its original position and try to fit the bag elsewhere.

Appreciate your advice.