Leg length changing through the day?

willhub

Or perhaps something on the bike?

Basically, to check if saddle height is too high, some people say put the crank to the bottom, the put your heal onto the pedal, if it does not reach, or is too easy to reach, then it's either too high or too low.

Now when I did it last night on my main road bike, my right leg reached, but my left was around 1-2cm away from the pedal, yet I tried it on my commuter bike this morning, my right leg reached and my left leg reached, so I'm confused to say the least.

Is it actually possibly for my left leg to regain that 1-2cm in the morning? Is it a sign that ligaments or tendons are too tight or something which "shorten" the leg through the day as the tighten?

I'm going to ask a physio about it tonight but until then wondering what it could be.

I actually lowered my saddle by 1cm last night so that both my legs just about touched the pedals (right more than left still), because before my left leg was like 3cm away and right 1cm-2cm away, and hwen I started pedalling the bike did seem to just take off applying the same effort as before and I pb'd this "segment" on strava by over 1mph through a city center for the same effort and same conditions. Weather or not it was psychological or not I don't know, because the saddle 1cm lower sure did feel weird!

Tom Dean

willhub wrote:

Or perhaps something on the bike?

Could be your crank length expanding/contracting??????

Ask your LBS to have a look

graeme_s-2

The heel on the pedal thing is just a very, very rough guide to use when you first start riding a bike. I like Sheldon Brown's advice, which is to keep raising the saddle by a small amount until it feels too high, then drop it back slightly.

http://sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html#height

I've found I'm incredibly sensitive to saddle height. At the end of last year my Fizik Arionne cracked. My new one was delivered at work, and I fitted the new saddle before cycling home. As soon as I started riding the bike it felt like my saddle was far too high (presumably due to lack of sag, and lack of wear in the padding on the new saddle). I dropped my seat post maybe a cm, and immediately felt like my knees were up in my chin and had to stop and raise it slightly twice more before it felt like it was back to the right height.

Zoomer37

Friend of mine had this problem. In the afternoons his right leg would shrink about 2cm and everytime he'd try to walk he'd just go round in circles.

keef66

Your leg length isn't going to vary by 2-3 cm during the day unless you're closely related to an octopus.

j_marvin

My guess is that your saddle is set to high, and you're subconsciously compensating by leaning one way or the other. You can diagnose this by riding in front of a pal - If they can notice that your hips are rocking, then there's your problem. Alternatively, if you're pedalling with an exaggerated "toe dip" style, this might be another signal that your seat is too high.
Having your seat set too high can give you all kinds of discomfort on the bike, too.

One way I check my saddle height is to sit on the bike, clip in and keep myself upright (on the trainer, or by a wall). With the pedal at the 12 o'clock position, you should have a slight bend in your leg. One important thing to note is that you may, depending on your normal pedalling style, have to make a conscious effort to flatten out your foot - if you are a "toe dipper", then when you put your pedal at 12 o'clock you might naturally be lifting your heel, which will skew the process slightly.

If you DO change your seat height, you'll notice that it feels weird. Give it a couple of weeks of moderate riding and it will start to feel more natural.

Murr X

Post of the year!!!!

In all seriousness though I wouldn't worry about it and can't offer any advice.

Murr X