Annoying feeling during cycling

[YannickRottiers]

Hey,I'm new to these forums.
This post is actually the reason I signed up here,usually I just read

I recently started cycling on the road with my friends,but I've run into some problems after only a week of cycling.
One problem was severe pain in my knee,I felt this even when I walked up stairs,so I quit cycling for about a month.It was gone,and I didn't have any trouble with it anymore.

Another problem I had since my third ride,is this annoying feeling in the back of my legs.It comes from my upper leg all the way down to my calves,and feels like it has something to do with the thing that connects both muscles,it's especially sensitive at the backside of my knee,and my calves.
It generally starts after about 5 mins of cycling,and sometimes it does away,sometimes it doesn't.I have also noticed that the day after,I can feel that it's tensed up in comparison to my left leg (I only have this problem on the right side).
I get the feeling when I ride my bike that my right leg isn't quite in the right position,like my leg is always tensed up even when I'm not pedaling..
I think it has something to do with my pedals or positioning.
I really hope someone knows this problem and has a solution for it,because I can't cycle like this.

Thanks in advance,

Rottiers Yannick

 

[JayKosta]

It might that the seat position is not good.
The seat should not be so high that you need to 'reach down' with your foot to pedal. Your hips should remain level while pedaling, they should not rock up and down.
A good test is that you should be able to place the heal of your foot on the pedal at the lowest position while keeping your hips level.

The seat should feel level (but it might appear to be tilted). you should feel steady while sitting, and not as if you are sliding forward or rearward.

Also one of your legs might be slightly different length than the other and that can cause and imbalance while pedaling.

I suggest that you walk at a normal pace on a smooth and flat surface such as an indoor shoping area. Observe and feel how your feet meet and leave the floor. Do they both feel and look the same? If not then perhaps some type of shoe sole insert would help. Maybe even an inexpensive thin foam pad in one of the shoes.

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

 

[YannickRottiers]

Thanks you for your response.

I can't go out and cycle right now as it's been snowing,but I put on my cycling shoes and sat on my bike as it is now.
When I click in my pedals and stretch my leg down,my leg is not fully stretched,but not far from it.Altough when you say put your heels on your pedals,I don't see how that is possible when your are clicked in?Unless you mean without clicking in.
I tried it that way and my legs are about the same,maybe slightly more stretched.
Can't say I notice anything when I try walking,but then again maybe that's cause I'm focused on walking when I'm observing.

I'll try to get on my bike as soon as possible and see if I am slipping of my saddle or anything like that.

 

[coapman]

Hey,I'm new to these forums.
This post is actually the reason I signed up here,usually I just read

I recently started cycling on the road with my friends,but I've run into some problems after only a week of cycling.
One problem was severe pain in my knee,I felt this even when I walked up stairs,so I quit cycling for about a month.It was gone,and I didn't have any trouble with it anymore.

Another problem I had since my third ride,is this annoying feeling in the back of my legs.It comes from my upper leg all the way down to my calves,and feels like it has something to do with the thing that connects both muscles,it's especially sensitive at the backside of my knee,and my calves.
It generally starts after about 5 mins of cycling,and sometimes it does away,sometimes it doesn't.I have also noticed that the day after,I can feel that it's tensed up in comparison to my left leg (I only have this problem on the right side).
I get the feeling when I ride my bike that my right leg isn't quite in the right position,like my leg is always tensed up even when I'm not pedaling..
I think it has something to do with my pedals or positioning.
I really hope someone knows this problem and has a solution for it,because I can't cycle like this.

Thanks in advance,

Rottiers Yannick

Have you checked your pedal float ?

 

[Fearless Greg Lemond]

Sounds like a beginning hernia.

 

[YannickRottiers]

Have you checked your pedal float ?

How exactly should I check it?Do you mean I need more pedal float?
I have noticed when I ride regular bicycles,that my pedal is more at the center of my foot.
And It's the feeling of "standing on my tips" that I get and makes my right leg tense up.

 

[Oldman]

You should just get a qualified bike fit to answer all of your questions. You could have saddle height and position adjustments as well as cleat position all working against you. If these are collectively wrong you'll feel discomfort everywhere.

 

[YannickRottiers]

I googled bike fitting and ended up with this vid http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAl_5e7bIHk&gl=BE.

I'll just follow those guidelines and hopefully,that will solve my problem.

Edit:The reason I'm still looking for answers online is because I don't have the money to go to people who measure it all for me,I only just recently got myself a decent helmet and speedometer ><

Thanks for all the responses

 

[YannickRottiers]

I went to the doctor,who concluded that my legs have different length.
Because of this,my right foot is angled inward.This causes me to use my right side more then my left during the pulling motion.Which causes it to work to much and thus overloads.

Now I'm going to the chiropractor for recovery,however there is no solution that they could give.So I googled my problem and discovered that I should angle the plates on the shoes so that my foot is pointing inward.
The problem:My foot is angled inward 20 %,and the plates won't allow such a a percentage if I want to use all three screws...Unless I make a new hole or something?
But I'm not too sure,I've adjusted it to 20 % using 2 screws to attach it to my shoe.If this is not good (which I actually presume),could someone tell me what the alternative is?

I will report back when I've ridden some more using this setup,to see if it resolves the issue.I hope that other people with the same problems can get something out of this

Greetings,

Yannick

 

[mherm79]

Look up cleat wedges and buy yourself a set. These come with longer screws.

http://www.bikefit.com/c-1-cleat-wedges.aspx

These will allow you to do two things;

1. Add spacers on the shorter side (right side by your description?) to make up the difference. Ask your Chiro to tell you how much shorter your leg is and add appropriate number of wedges.
2. tilt your foot the to any angle.

Good luck

 

[hiero2]

It is really unfortunate that you can't afford a bike-fitting session. Who did you buy your bike from? If it was a local shop, go to them and ask them what they can throw in for free - tell them straight out you can't afford a bike fit. I wouldn't suggest this if you didn't buy from the store.

Your problem could be the result of a number of adjustments on your bike, or your personal physiology. Going to youtube or online to research bike-fitting will help you.

Fit factors: saddle height, cleat fore-aft placement, cleat toe-in/out placement, handlebar height, handlebar reach, saddle fore/aft position.

Shoe manufacturer and style can have impacts on your soft tissue and muscle comfort and strain levels, although this would be less common.

Leg length - you say you have a difference, but differences of up to 1/2" are extremely common, and probably do not need a shim or adjustment. I used to ride, and race, and I have a leg 1.5" shorter through accident. My lift is 1" - and it is quite sufficient. I do not think a difference of 1/2" or less should get you concerned. To get a 1" lift, when I used toe-straps, I bolted aluminum plates to the pedal. With quick release type pedal systems, I use a wooden lift plate between the cleat and the shoe. I had to form the wooden lifts myself - not so easy. They had to fit the shoe curve and parallel it 1", and then be drilled properly so the bolts would go through from the cleat to the shoe. This loses a small amount of adjustability, but I haven't found it to be a problem.

Physiology - your pains could be usage problems - or acclimatization. Example: while upping my mileage some years ago, after a few years of less activity, I began experiencing back pain. I upped my abdominal exercise routines to strengthen the back support, and the problem not only got worse, it became severe. It turned out that I had missed sufficiently stretching a set of muscles in the upper glutes, and my development was uneven. When I added a good lower back stretching routine - the problems went away.

To avoid physiology-caused knee pain, make sure you spin lightly. Work into high cadences by practicing high cadences. Do an old school routine in the spring - spend a month doing nothing but spinning high cadences - the pros used to use fixed gear for a month. Don't put in any heavy effort, the idea is to smooth out your high cadence pedaling - so you can easily go over 120 or even 140 at the end. I like the concept of trying to lift your knees into the handlebar, rather than a focus on how you are moving your feet in the circle. Let the feet do their own thing, you focus on your knees.

A note about knees and bike fitting - the objective of the original FitKit (registered trademark, I'm sure), when fitting pedals, was to get the knee moving straight up and down. If you look at another rider while behind them, you may well see their knee moving in a figure 8 pattern. This pattern is more likely to lead to injury. A properly fitted fixed cleat had your knee moving straight up and down. Now, cleats have changed since that FitKit pedal system was designed - float was introduced. However, I think float has been more commonly used to disguise a bad-fitting solution then to create a good fit. I would fit to a fixed cleat first, and then move to incorporate float. If the FitKit designers say different today, I would be interested in knowing. So, if you research this topic and turn up something, post it here.

In short, recap, do everything possible to not only get your bike fitted, but to get a pro to help with the fitting. After that, be aware that you may need to adjust your exercise routines as you get into better condition. Aches and pains come both from overuse, from unbalanced development, AND from insufficient stretching.

 

[Haynzie]

Hi Yannick

Have a read of this:

http://www.cptips.com/knee.htm

Very comprehensive and accurate guide to diagnosing bike fit issues from the location of the pain.

 

[alitogata]

I went to the doctor,who concluded that my legs have different length.
Because of this,my right foot is angled inward.This causes me to use my right side more then my left during the pulling motion.Which causes it to work to much and thus overloads.

Now I'm going to the chiropractor for recovery,however there is no solution that they could give.So I googled my problem and discovered that I should angle the plates on the shoes so that my foot is pointing inward.
The problem:My foot is angled inward 20 %,and the plates won't allow such a a percentage if I want to use all three screws...Unless I make a new hole or something?
But I'm not too sure,I've adjusted it to 20 % using 2 screws to attach it to my shoe.If this is not good (which I actually presume),could someone tell me what the alternative is?

I will report back when I've ridden some more using this setup,to see if it resolves the issue.I hope that other people with the same problems can get something out of this

Greetings,

Yannick

What about using flat pedals with good quality rubber soles shoes? I don't think that it is safe to attach the plates on your shoes if there are no proper holes for the screws on the soles of your shoes, don't mention that it will be not so easy to clip out properly with such an adjustment. In your case is not a matter of performance but rather a matter or enjoying your rides safely without hurting and risk of an accident.