Finding the correct bike seat height for you To start, you need to determine your inseam (the distance from your crotch to the bottom of your leg). Then it's time to do a bit of math as it recommends that your bike seat height should be 109 percent of your inseam.
Typically your feet should not be able to touch the ground flat when you're on the seat - it is a sign that your seat is too low (you may be able to touch the ground with your toes depending on your shoe size - I wear US 13 and this is possible for me).
Wobbly hips and lower back fatigue
There's a fine line between fatigue and pain, but if your lower back feels it, and your hips are rocking side to side, it's probably because your seat is too high. Lower the saddle 3 millimetres at a time and cycle a flat circuit for about 10 minutes.
Another tell tale sign that your saddle is too low is you may feel a little cramped on your bike. You may not realise that this cramped feeling is your saddle height, but if you feel the need to stretch out your legs while pedalling, then it could be a sign the saddle is too low.
If your saddle height is correct, your heel should just graze the pedal at the bottom of the pedal stroke (in the 6 o'clock position). When riding, if you encounter pain at the front of your knee, raise the saddle slightly. If you have pain in the back of the knee, drop the saddle.
Proper position: With your foot at the bottom of the pedal stroke, you should see a slight bend in the leg, reaching about 80-90 percent of full leg extension.
A saddle that is only slightly too tall is substantially more problematic than a saddle that is even a great deal too low. And the research bears this out. Even with a saddle height that is overwhelmingly low, performance does not degrade a great deal.
Having the saddle too far back can result in a feeling of over-reaching at the bottom of the pedal stroke creating a dead spot through bottom dead centre and a resultant loss of power. Furthermore, this over-reaching can promote a toe-down pedalling style, decreasing foot and ankle stability.
One of the most common bike fit issues we see is incorrect saddle height. A saddle that is too high will rob you of power, create discomfort, and could cause injury.
Racing cyclists crouch down low on their bikes to reduce the air resistance on them. This helps them to cycle faster. They also wear streamlined helmets. These have special, smooth shapes that allow the air to flow over the cyclist more easily.
Put your hands on the driver's shoulders for balance if needed. Place your other foot on the other foot-peg and sit straight up. Place your hands around the driver's midsection, or on their hips. Tell your driver you're ready to go.
Of all the bike fit adjustments, saddle height is considered the most important. Optimal seat height allows you to maximize every spin of the pedals while keeping your knees healthy. You will make over 7,200 pedal revolutions in just a leisurely 2-hour bike ride.
As a general rule of thumb, you want the top of the handlebar about as high (or higher than) the saddle, unless you're a sporty rider looking to ride fast. Try touching your elbow to the nose of the saddle and reaching forward towards the handlebar with your hand.
However, when the saddle height is extremely low, often the shortening of the hamstring muscles can result, and in turn cause a tight lumbar spine. Hamstring tightness can result from overuse of the hamstrings in a manner where they do not extend optimally.
1) The higher the seat for a given seat setback and cleat position, the more the quadriceps are recruited to drive the cycling stroke due, in large part, to their greater level of mechanical advantage across the knee joint at higher extension angles in comparison to the hamstrings.
Butt pain in cycling may also be called a saddle sore, though a “saddle sore” sometimes refers to an actual sore around the perineum. Perineum pain occurs for many different reasons, but the root cause is typically prolonged pressure on the saddle region.
It's normal for your butt to feel slightly sore after a ride, because when you sit on a bike seat, most of your weight gets distributed on two very small bones on the bottom of your pelvis. That can lead to soreness, especially if you're on a long ride, explains Maddy Ciccone, a SoulCycle instructor in Boston.
Cycling works your legs and glutes, especially when you're climbing, but it doesn't stretch enough or provide enough resistance to build big muscles. In general, cardiovascular activity like cycling will burn fat around your glutes better than making your butt bigger.
Knees out pedaling is not good for the knee as it can adversely affect cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. The knee cap or patella has a groove it tracks in and by pedaling in such a way that promotes mis-alignment you may develop an overuse injury or patellofemoral syndrome.
Research has found that a knee angle between 140 and 150 degrees at maximum knee extension (MKE) is optimal. For a typical rider this translates to about a saddle height within a 3/4” (2 cm) range to achieve this optimal knee angle.
Seat Height
Set the saddle so it's at about the level of your hip bone when you stand next to it. With the bike in the trainer, or someone else supporting it, sit on the saddle making sure your hips are level.