Saddle soreness

mathematics
mathematics Posts: 453
edited December 2013 in Road beginners
Are they any miracle cures or do I just have to man the f*&k up?!

Been wearing ok bibs (endura) but still finding some soreness over the next couple of days, only riding between 1hr - 1hr45mins.

Any tips to help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Chris

Comments

  • sniper68
    sniper68 Posts: 2,910
    Ride more :)
    Seriously your arse will get used to it over time.Good shorts with a decent Chamois/Chamois creme are a start but there's no substitute for time in the saddle.
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    Depends on what the cause is. To begin with when you ride for an hour or more it is normal to be a bit uncomfortable while your body adjusts. This should last at most a few weeks. Any longer and start looking at your saddle tilt and fowards/ aft position. As well measure yourself up for a saddle to see if it is the right size and also be aware of where the pain is e.g. Front, back, tops of legs etc.

    This will help you.
  • Also, go commando if you aren't already-bibs are designed to go next to skin and any layers underneath can rub
    "It never gets easier, you just go faster"
  • getprg
    getprg Posts: 245
    Saddle soreness problems?

    Read this first http://sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html
  • Peddle Up!
    Peddle Up! Posts: 2,040
    When I asked the guys at the LBS about feeling a bit sore after 100 miles or so, they said, "What do you expect!? You've just cycled 100 miles." :D
    Purveyor of "up" :)
  • navrig
    navrig Posts: 1,352
    Peddle Up! wrote:
    When I asked the guys at the LBS about feeling a bit sore after 100 miles or so, they said, "What do you expect!? You've just cycled 100 miles." :D

    Totally agree but the OP wont be doing that in an hour and 45 mins.

    Decent bibs - check
    Chamois cream - try if you don't use already,
    Saddle positioned correctly - is it?
    Lots of rides to toughen up - that's the MTFU bit
    Intimate massage after each ride - married? - tough tittly, girlfriend? - find out how keen she is, single - don't do it in public :wink:
  • Peddle Up!
    Peddle Up! Posts: 2,040
    Navrig wrote:

    Totally agree but the OP wont be doing that in an hour and 45 mins.

    Decent bibs - check
    Chamois cream - try if you don't use already,
    Saddle positioned correctly - is it?
    Lots of rides to toughen up - that's the MTFU bit
    Intimate massage after each ride - married? - tough tittly, girlfriend? - find out how keen she is, single - don't do it in public :wink:

    Fair point about the distance and agree with most of the above. But "intimate massage"? I count myself lucky if I get a cup of tea. Then again, I am married. :D
    Purveyor of "up" :)
  • milleman
    milleman Posts: 181
    Good quality bibs and use a chamois creme, these will help a lot. Plus I try and vary my position a bit, saying that eventually you do get a bit sore.....
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    Peddle Up! wrote:
    Navrig wrote:

    Totally agree but the OP wont be doing that in an hour and 45 mins.

    Decent bibs - check
    Chamois cream - try if you don't use already,
    Saddle positioned correctly - is it?
    Lots of rides to toughen up - that's the MTFU bit
    Intimate massage after each ride - married? - tough tittly, girlfriend? - find out how keen she is, single - don't do it in public :wink:

    Fair point about the distance and agree with most of the above. But "intimate massage"? I count myself lucky if I get a cup of tea. Then again, I am married. :D

    I don't even get a cup of tea :(
  • Damp and cold... its the time of year for them sadly.
  • pilot_pete
    pilot_pete Posts: 2,120
    You need a number of things;

    1. A saddle that suits your bum.
    2. A good bike fit which includes saddle height, fore and aft positioning and tilt.
    3. Patience and a lot of luck with regards point 1!

    You can only MTFU so much and the toughening up bit doesn't take long. Any soreness after this is usually a problem related to saddle type and position and consequent pressure/ rubbing.

    PP
  • wytco0
    wytco0 Posts: 79
    For me the answer was to get a seat that was the right size. I was originally riding with the seat that came with the bike but later when I went to have the bike properly fitted to me (yes after I bought it) I found that the seat was too narrow, I now have a 155mm one.

    The change was amazing, when riding I don't think about my sore bum at all, with the original one I was uncomfortable after about 20 minutes.

    I also highly recommend a proper fitting which completely resolved several long standing problems (sore bum, numb right hand, numb right foot). It cost fair bit but worth every penny.
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    I did the same and bought a proper fitting wider saddle. Now I go out for three hours or more with no pain, before after about an hour it was very uncomfortable.
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    Do you actually have saddle sores or are you simply sore from being in the saddle?
  • ctc
    ctc Posts: 232
    After a number of saddles, and lots of fiddling with seat heights etc I still had saddle sores down my right side for about 18 months.
    I ended buying a Brooks and now they've gone.
    I also had a bike fit for my newly ordered custom frame that showed I'm lopsided in a number of ways. The problem is most hard shelled seats are built for symmetrical people. The Brooks molds to my shape...
    Downside is it's heavier, but I haven't noticed and bloody glad I don't have sores all the time
  • alidaf
    alidaf Posts: 147
    Saddle soreness could also be due to a non-optimal bike adjustment (saddle height, fore-aft position, angle, and even cleat position). I know it sounds counter intuitive but some tweaks here and there could make a big difference.

    Another one that is probably even more counter intuitive is to go for a slimmer saddle. It's horses for courses really. What suits someone else may not suit you.

    It costs nothing to play around with your adjustments though!
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    Possibly some improvement can be made by positioning here and there, but largely it's the saddle itself imo.
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    giant man wrote:
    Possibly some improvement can be made by positioning here and there, but largely it's the saddle itself imo.

    From my experience you are right. Positioning better did help but nowhere close to having the correct size saddle.
  • Definitely need to check whether your saddle is wide enough for you.

    You need to measure the width between your sitting bones. There are ways and means... :P

    There is talk on the grapevine of taking a sheet of tin foil, putting it on top of some cardboard, placing the whole shebang on a step on the stairs and then sitting on it - buck naked. The result should be that you would leave two indentations on the tin foil, left by your ischial tuberosities (i.e. sitting bones).

    The important bit is that you have to approximate your riding position when you sit on the tinfoil, because your ischial tuberosities are at an angle, and subsequently the angle of the pelvis as you sit on the surface will affect the width of the contacting points.

    After your have your indentations, measure the width of the ischial tuberosities, from centre to centre. You'll get a value, of around 150mm, 160mm, or obviously any other value. You then need to get yourself a saddle that supports the ischial tuberosites properly. For example, people that have 150, 160mm ischial tuberosities tend to do well on the Brooks B17 saddles, which are 175mm wide, if memory serves. That way there's about 7mm between the sitting bone and the very edge of the seat, obviously a saddle that is exactly the same width as your contacting points will not do - you need to add a little bit of supporting room (but not too much).

    Hope that makes sense :)

    btw, yes - B17 and other brooks saddles which are the same width, such as the brooks flyer suit me very well. Obviously there are other options out there.

    I recently reviewed a really cool saddle, the Rido R2, which from what I can tell - can accommodate varying widths between sitting bones due to their Y shaped back. You can check out the review here: http://www.stylishlondonliving.co.uk/review-rido-bicycle-saddle/

    p.s. obviously you can jack all this kerfuffle in and go to your LBS, who would hopefully have some kind of gel doo-dah to sit on, which does almost the same job, and they will then, rather conveniently, give you the correct saddle to buy.
  • Bobbinogs
    Bobbinogs Posts: 4,841
    ...You need to measure the width between your sitting bones. There are ways and means...

    Yepp, and one of the easiest ways is to go to a shop selling Specialized saddles and get them to measure your bones for you. One just sits on some memory foam that Spesh provide and then the indent gets measured. Sorted.