Biking – Knee pain and possible extended problems…

I have been riding my bike for about 3 years, and suffered some knee pain as a result of not understanding the importance of correct saddle height… After fixing the height in year #2, I rode the entire season w/out injury or discomfort. This year (year #3) I bought a new bike, and was careful to position the saddle height as before… When I recently upgraded my saddle, I neglected to go back and measure the saddle height (after all, how much could my riding height actually change???) My first ride, after changing the saddle, was 85-miles, with about 5,000 ft. of climbing… When I reached the 60-mile point of the ride I noticed stiffness and pain in the back of my knee – at the completion of my ride, I was hurting. I re-adjusted my saddle, and began riding again at the correct height, but the knee pain remained (but only when I walked). Earlier this week, I pushed off of my right foot vigorously to avoid being hit by a car, and ruputured my plantaris muscle (ouch!). I believe this was a direct result of previous injury on my bike, and I urge all you bikers and spinners to make sure your bike saddle is set correctly. If you need help, you can google for the informaion, or email me and I will help you find the method for determining saddle height.

Typically, if you have pain to the back of the knee your saddle is too high, if you have pain to the front, it is too low. You should move your saddle up, or down, only a few centimeters at a time.

Good luck, and good cycling!

– Rick