New to Road - twisted peddling

tuxpoo

Hi all, New to Road riding , so go easy on me.

I've had a Road bike for a week now and being an keen MTB enduance rider, I had no trouble hitting 120k on my first ride out this weekend pretty pain free, so I assume the bike fit must be not to far out.
What I do notices is looking at my peddling on the road bike I can see my right knee comes Far closer to the bike in the upstroke. To the point where sometimes glances the cross bar.

I don't see this on my MTB bikes at all.

Same shoes and cleat position. Its almost like the saddle is twisted and I'm sitting at an angle..but its not.

Any ideas

Cheers, Tux

imposter2.0

An osteopath might see an imbalance somewhere, but the reality is that if it is not bothering you physically, then it probably doesn't matter. 'Pedalling' by the way - not 'peddling'.

bahzob

I had the same issue. Contrary to the above it does matter. Apart from being a pain it means you are wasting effort. Basic physics means that for maximum efficiency you want to be directing force in the direction you want to be pushing i.e. knee over the pedal especially during the down stroke.

It got sorted via a bike fit where they fitted some wedges to the base of my soles. Now left leg is pretty much near vertical, right still cants to the left a bit (its just the way my knee bends) but never hits the cross bar any more.

That said another reason may be setting saddle too low. This is a common problem that is especially noticeable when you follow riders up long climbs. Their saddles are so low that their knees have to move out just to allow them to pedal. A bike saddle is not for sitting on like a chair. It should be as high as possible while still allowing your hips to remain stable. Again a bike fit will sort this out.

A good bike fit will cost around £100+ but if you plan on doing long rides its the best money you will spend in terms of avoiding discomfort and saving money on bikes/bits that are not right for you.

ollie51

Sounds like classic varus forefoot collapse. Go and see a bike fitter.

MarkAshton

Sounds like you have a twisted pelvis. Probably facing to the left. Do you sit square on the saddle?

MTB might have "hidden" it a bit more because the saddle was lower.

mr.b-campag

I have a similar issue. Did a bike fit a few years back at a reputable shop and they seemed unconcerned by it - saying it wasn't enough to be worth putting any wedges in. I'm interested in how I might go about assessing/measuring whether I have a twisted pelvis. Anyone any ideas (besides go to another bike fitter!)?

tuxpoo

Thanks for all the comments.

However I now found the reason.
To say this doesn't happen on mtb bike was wrong. I took out the mtb bike and immediately notice the same thing.
Quite baffled where this had suddenly happened, i checked the right cleat and can clearly see it had twisted.
Being a new road bike with new pedals I had tighten the spds as far as I could, much more than the mtb bike and it must have twisted the cleat when unclipping.
Straitening the cleat resolved the problem.

I'm still going to get a bike fit asap as I plan on lots of epic rides and what to keep things as pain free and efficient as possible.

Thanks all

styxd

If your cleat has twisted, then it's not tightened sufficiently!

Yuo say you feel like you're sitting twisted; you probably are. Make sure you're sitting straight.

Sit on the saddle but dont clip in, just let your legs dangle; you should be able to feel what "stragiht is"

Once you clip in and pedal, you'll probably end up twisting.

get some Efit insoles with thwe adjustable arch supports. They should help. If your still feeling twisted, you'll probably need some wedges.

Also, how're your cleats positioned?

styxd

Also, I'd be careful going for a bikefit. Yuo may just end up giving someone who doesnt have a clue a coupel of hundred quid.

A physio/chrio might be a better bet since it'll be cheaper and they'll be able to tell you what's wrong with you.

Is your saddle high enough? A good starting point is your crotch to floor measurement minus 10cm.

styxd

Look at your arch on your right foot, and your right ankle. Is your arch flat? Are you "over pronated"? If so, you'll probably want a decent amount of arch support and maybe a wedge for your heel aswell.