Shorter stem due to neck & shoulder pain

def_defyr

yellowv2 said:

A slightly different take on your problem but have you tried any exercises to mitigate the problem?
I practice Yoga daily and have found myself being able to ride with a lower position at 60 than I could years ago. Also cyclists are notoriously weak in the upper back shoulder area, it comes with the position. So strengthening is also a good idea.

As I got older a low position started to give me neck/back pain after 2/3 hours. Three things helped: Shorter stem, just a little, from 110 to 100; scooting seat forward a about 10 mm (total of 20 mm closer cockpit, yes it made a difference); and neck stretches/shoulder exercises. And if I start getting tight between the shoulder blades, I'll stop and stretch again. Once that pain starts there's no stopping it!

I would also consider tweaking the lever/shifter position on the bar, if you ride on the hoods a lot. Another way to go is just to raise the bars with spacers but if you've already cut the tube to length then that's out.

The reason I didn't want to go to a radically shorter stem is that I like the handling the way it is and didn't want to be too far back; likewise with seat position.

I suspect as I age (52 now) I'll probably get a multiposition stem, vanity be damned...

yellowv2

Not sure why you have posted after quoting this, I can’t see the relation?

N0bodyOfTheGoat

You can plug figures into http://yojimg.net/bike/web_tools/stem.php to see how stems affect the position of the bars.

neilophenia

Flipping the stem helped a lot but the stem is imo still a little long. The old “can’t see the front hub” trick suggests that 2 cm would do the job.
I’ve had the bike 10 years and it was set up by a former pro. I’ll be 50 in 2 years so maybe I’m past the pro setup days.
Thanks to everyone for their input.

Ben6899

Are your bars the right width and reach?

Ben6899

And when I say "right", I mean the same as on your second bike which doesn't cause discomfort.

flasher

Looking at your pictures, you're quite upright, i'd say yoga would help more.

Cargobike

Flip your stem, but more importantly do some core exercises/stretching to gain extra suppleness when reaching for the bars and the additional strenghth to hold a lower riding position.
Not everything is fixed by buying ever more gear.