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Is my bike too small??

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  • June 11, 2009 at 1:56 pm #11766
    andrewfurlow

    Earlier this year I bought a brand new (but 2006-frame) Condor Leggero and in many ways it’s a brilliant bike. But I’ve had back problems with it ever since. My lower back hurts – sometimes more, sometimes less – after about 20 miles or so and it’s really made me a worse cyclist. I’m much more comfortable on my old Langster which is a real shame as the Condor cost a hell of a lot of money.

    I’m about 5’9″ and it’s a 52cm frame. I’ve tried making every adjustment possible but none seems to make much difference. The Langster is 54cm.

    Has anyone else had a similar experience? Is my bike too small or is there something I can do to be able to cycle proper distances again?? Anyone had lower back pain that they’ve got over (without getting a new bike)?

    cheers
    Andy

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  • March 28, 2012 at 2:22 pm #629093
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    TheBigMong

    I can’t comment on the bike
    I can’t comment on the bike sizing, but I can relate to the low back issues.

    I’ve been battling low back pain for about a year now. My doc is kinda dismissive about most gripes, and when I asked him why all the sudden my back was hurting more and more, he said, “you’re out of shape… work on your muscle tone.” That was a little insulting considering I had been training my arse off for the previous 3 months and I was performing very well on the bike, but I digress.

    After some more discussion (mostly me pleading my case about my fitness) he acknowledged that it wasn’t that I was weak overall, but rather that I was imbalanced. He told me to get to a chiropractor who works with athletes, do some serious work on core strength, and get a professional bike fitment.

    The chiropractic care has helped. Not just the manipulations, but my chiro insists that proper stretching and core strength exercises can mitigate most of my pains. He’s adamant about it. I was skeptical at first, but after a few weeks of blind faith I really started to see improvement. I got lax about the stretching and core strength stuff as my pain subsided and sure enough the pain crept right back in. Got back on the routine and sure enough things got better. I’m convinced.

    In particular, I find that a few sets of hip bridges and a solid 5 minutes of psoas muscle stretches after a ride (or an unfortunate day of sitting alot) leaves me feeling a lot better the next day. I also have a set of core strength exercises that help balance me out and keep my cycling (and sitting) from distorting my spine as easily.

    June 15, 2009 at 9:15 am #629091
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    andrewfurlow

    Rode 30 miles on Saturday and
    Rode 30 miles on Saturday and 50 yesterday and sadly adjusting the seat may improve things a little but after 20 or so miles I was pretty uncomfortable and hard-pushed to say I was enjoying riding. Some pilates is probably next on the to-try list…

    June 12, 2009 at 11:25 am #629089
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    dave atkinson

    let us know how you get
    let us know how you get on…

    June 12, 2009 at 11:14 am #629087
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    andrewfurlow

    Having adjusted my seat a
    Having adjusted my seat a little last night following dave_atkinson’s sage advice, I can feel that that might well help. A long ride at the weekend will tell and I’ll be adjusting my bars too so that I’m nearer a 45 degree angle.

    Thanks again

    June 12, 2009 at 1:13 am #629085
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    Jon Burrage

    Everyone is different in
    Everyone is different in geometry and comfort but as a guide I use a 51/52cm bike (depending on manufacturer) for time trial/tri riding when down on the aero bars but when riding a normal road bike I have a 56cm. Seems to fit me fine and Im 5ft 9″

    June 11, 2009 at 9:13 pm #629083
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    dave atkinson

    Quote:I was wondering why the

    I was wondering why the saddle was at a funny angle on your picture of the Kinesis test bike.

    heh. guilty 🙂 i was fine on it for 65 miles on it though when I took it out for a spin before it went off for proper testing, despite the fact that if I was buying a KR510 I’d go a size bigger.

    cat1commuter and DaSy are right – the drop to the bars is one of the most likely things to be a problem, and it’s fairly easy to play about with that. Specialized do an excellent stem, the Comp Road, which uses three shims to allow a variety of different angles, both up and down. It might be worth investing in something like that (maybe get one that’s a size longer than the one you’re running now, too) and trying a few positions.

    June 11, 2009 at 5:02 pm #629081
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    cat1commuter

    dave_atkinson wrote:I suffer

    dave_atkinson wrote:
    I suffer from lower back pain on test bikes all the time: ones that are just the right size, ones that are on the small side and ones that are too big (though they’re rare!). I can get rid of it every time though, just by tilting the saddle very slightly down at the nose. I ride all my bikes with this setup now, certainly works for me.

    I was wondering why the saddle was at a funny angle on your [url=http://road.cc/content/news/4770-just-kinesis-kr510-spf]picture of the Kinesis test bike[/url].

    It is difficult to give advice about lower back pain, because everyone is different. Some people have spines which are too convex in the small of the back, which sounds like Dave. For others, like me, they are too concave. For me cycling helped cure the lower back pain I was suffering from sitting at a desk all day, and a horizontal saddle is comfortable. One of my colleagues has his saddle tilted so far down that I don’t understand how he doesn’t slide off the nose.

    Andy, I would guess that the drop to your bars is too big. You see the pros riding with horizontal backs when on the drops, but I’ve heard that very long distance cyclists recommend having you back at 45 degrees.

    How about getting someone to photograph you from the side when you’re riding your Condor and your Langster, and comparing?

    June 11, 2009 at 3:43 pm #629079
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    Anonymous

    The most likely problem with
    The most likely problem with a small frame causing back problems tends to be the saddle to bar drop.

    Usually, as the heatube is shorter, to scale the frame down for the samller rider, this can create quite a big drop, as you have to have the saddle at the correct height for your leg length.

    Assuming the steerer tube has already been cut, you could correct, or improve this by getting a positive rise stem (often just flipping your current stem over will help)to reduce the drop and therefore reduce the amount you have to bend your lower back to reach the bars.

    June 11, 2009 at 3:20 pm #629077
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    andrewfurlow

    Thanks both, that’s really
    Thanks both, that’s really helpful

    June 11, 2009 at 3:07 pm #629075
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    Anonymous

    Another way of getting a
    Another way of getting a rough idea of the right size is as a proportion of your inside leg measurement.

    This article by Dave Moulton is quite informative regarding how he measures people for a bike, may help give an idea of the correct size for you.

    [url=http://www.prodigalchild.net/Bicycle6.htm]Dave Moulton Bike Fit[/url]

    June 11, 2009 at 2:37 pm #629073
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    dave atkinson

    First off: 52cm does sound a
    First off: 52cm does sound a bit small if you’re 5’9″. The simplest test is to measure the reach of the bike with your forearm: resting your elbow against the nose of your saddle with your arm and hand stretched out along the top tube, then place your other hand at a right angle flat across those outretched fingers, the rule of thumb is that the outside edge of your fingers should be about paralel with the middle of the fork steerer. If the bike is too short (or too long) it can be a cause of back pain. Obviously there’s not much you can do to the frame, but you can fit a longer stem and/or push the saddle back on the rails a centimetre or so to get a bit more cockpit room. Small differences can have a surprising effect.

    I suffer from lower back pain on test bikes all the time: ones that are just the right size, ones that are on the small side and ones that are too big (though they’re rare!). I can get rid of it every time though, just by tilting the saddle very slightly down at the nose. I ride all my bikes with this setup now, certainly works for me. I’ve also heard people sing the praises of yoga/core strength work to improve flexibility and strength in the midriff as a way to beat the back pain.

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