Saddle Height.

[Bassman]

The following worked for me and got rid of the knee pain I'd been experiencing after having the saddle too low:

from pedal at it's lowest point to the top of the saddle should be 109% of the inside leg measurement.

I actually went to 110% after getting used to the 109% measurement and found it even better.

 

[purplemoon]

I've slowly been raising my seat bit by bit to the point where my leg is now straight from seat to pedal but it means I can only just touch the floor with tip-toes whilst sat on it. This feels more comfortable for riding but it means I sometimes struggle to get off the bike, especially after a longish ride if my hip seizes and I can't get my leg over

Also, earlier this evening I had to do an emergency stop when a hedgepig ran across my path and I couldn't get my feet down and bum out of saddle quick enough so toppled over into the hedge

Maybe I should start cycling in 4" heels so I can reach the floor easier

 

[a_n_t]

from pedal at it's lowest point to the top of the saddle should be 109% of the inside leg measurement.

thats what works for me.

 

[Globalti]

If you can't reach the ground you can always stop alongside the kerb.

 

[Lazy-Commuter]

Experiences of the past year, as another newbie ..

If you aren't confident then you shouldn't put it right up, however try putting it up a few millimeters so your feet aren't completely flat, no more than 0.5 cm and see how that goes for a bit. When that feels OK put it up a little more. I'm assuming you are not doing great distances.

.. that's exactly what I did. Just 5-6mm (approx 1/4") each week or so, as I got used to each new height. I think I'm about right now: last week I used thicker soled shoes and found I needed the seat up a bit more. Then I went back to the thinner ones and found I was uncomfortably having to stretch at the bottom of the pedal stroke .. the hip rocking thing.

I found that each time I moved the seat up a bit I suddenly got quite a bit quicker on my ride to work. You get used to not being able to touch the ground too well ..

Am I the only one that moves off the saddle then when I come to rest at lights etc. I can't touch the floor when on the saddle, so simply move off it when not moving. Thought this was standard practise - to be astride the top tube rather than on the saddle...

.. I'm with you, and scoosh on this. Mrs L-C needed to move my bike the other day (her seat height is set for easy ground reaching, though I keep trying to move it up a bit at a time - she complains her knees ache sometimes!) and hated it at first, but she admitted it was easier to pedal.

Even when I had my near miss the other day and had to emergency stop on the roundabout (had the back wheel slithering about) I didn't have a problem with hopping off the seat and getting my feet down: I tend to brace on the pedals with my feet and lift my bum off the back of the seat anyway when braking hard, so I was ready to move my weight forward and stand down astride the frame when I actually stopped.

Thinking about it, is moving back like that the correct thing to do? It feels natural to me to get some weight over the back wheel and I feel more in control of the bike. But is there a recommended technique?

 

[Cycling Naturalist]

When I had my bike delivered I set it up myself.

Mistake number 1

Over a few hundred miles I developed right anterior knee pain and lumbar back pain.


Not until the wife's uncle ( long time serious cyclist and physio) fitted me correctly and pain free since.

Do not under estimate the correct saddle height, angle etc. It can and does make a huge difference.

Apart from that I can't help sorry.

This is quite correct. My seat post gradually slipped and caused knee pain. I had to raise it by nearly two inches to get it right. To put it bluntly - if you find it easy getting on and off the bike, the saddle is too low.

 

[JtB]

In a previous thread on this subject, someone provided the following very useful link: http://sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html#adjustment