Saddle "Discomfort" - Plough On or Change

[Psamathe]

When I took-up cycling (age nearly 60) again last Nov it took some time for my body to get used to saddle. Nothing too painful but it took some time.

Now, as I build-up my mileage, I'm regularly finding after 30 miles I am "suffering". Nothing horrendous and as soon as I get home/off the bike the discomfort goes away. Around the 30'ish miles (maybe starts a bit before that) I find myself standing on the pedals or relief very regularly. Not numbness just aches starting on sit bones.

I've never felt "I love my saddle" and always had a nagging feeling that I don't get on well with it. But I'm reserved about launching into changing things if I should be just building distance and allowing my body to continue to acclimatise (maybe trying different saddles later).

I do touring round local country lanes - which are generally in poor condition. Current saddle is the one that came with the bike, has a central and is probably 12 cm wide (a Madison Prime http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/components/saddles/product/review-madison-prime-saddle-12-37485/) - which others find comfortable. I do wear proper gel padded shorts. I am moderately confidant my saddle is positioned right height and level. Weather is main limiting factor at the moment so some days I will ride several days in a row, then a break. Averaging 10+ miles per day, typical ride length 25+ miles.

So should I plough on for the moment and accept that a nearly 60 year old body takes time to acclimatise to saddles ?

Many thanks
Ian

[531colin]

If it was Nov. 2013, give it more time before you splash the cash.
Nov. 2012, you need to think about trying something different....but its hard to say what. You want your weight on your bum bones, which it clearly is if you get aches over your bum bones. You don't want a different saddle that puts your weight somewhere else, so whats to do?
If you are sitting very upright for 30 miles, that can make your bum ache if its taking too big a proportion of your weight, so the answer may be to get your hands further forward to get a bit of weight onto your hands....paradoxically you then need the saddle back a bit to balance it up. Then you will be able to vary the distribution of your body weight between hands, feet, and bum as you ride over bumps......let the bike make like a rocking-horse underneath you, while you float serenely over it all. See if you can catch some cross-country mountain biking on the telly, for an exaggerated version of this.

[horizon]

It's not the mileage but the time in the saddle. At your age, being a newish cyclist and bumpy roads, that 30 miles may involve sitting in the saddle a long time. An experienced cyclist would be pushing hard on the pedals (i.e. relieving weight on his bum)and getting it done quicker. As your legs get tired towards the end of your ride then more weight falls on your bum. Not so for the stronger cyclist who in any case gets that 30 miles done quickly. So there's no comparison. I would suggest taking short breaks (e.g. walking up the steeper hills), riding regularly but not increasing the mileage too fast and just accepting that it will hurt for a while as both your bum gets back used to it and your legs get stronger. I would also say buy a Brooks as that will give you the all day comfort, but it's not the critical thing just yet. You might find already that a quick ten miler gives you no problems at all.

[jezer]

As a regular cyclist since the 50's I still get pain sometimes from the nether regions. If you watch the pros they frequently rise from the saddle to relieve tension. If you see a rough patch of road coming up take the strain on the thighs rather than the bum. After a good deal of experience the choice of saddle will help. I have a Brooks Swift titanium that suits me, but it's an individual thing. Don't be tempted to spend loads of dosh until you have persevered a bit more. Good luck, it will be worth it in the end

[FarOeuf]

did you have a plastic saddle when you last cycled ?

EDIT: I mean synthetic...

[jezer]

Ah yes, that can cause problems. Likewise cheap shorts with seams in the wrong place. There'd are many poor ones on the market and you need to find ones that fit you properly. I've had some shockers over the years, and I have yet to find the best fit

[Valbrona]

When anyone reports saddle discomfort it is very often 'position on the bike' that is the problem, and not the saddle in itself. Simple as that.

I suggest you do a bit of internet research on bike positioning, in particular 'saddle position'.

[tim-b]

Hi
The perennial problem, or for some people the perineal problem (someone had to say it )

The breakthrough for me was having my sitting bones measured at my LBS (free of charge, two minutes, just sit down).
Your weight distribution between saddle and bars can influence the saddle shape, some people with a more upright position prefer a flatter-shaped saddle. Try to sort out your body position first because it affects how you sit to have your sitting bones measured.

Bontrager and Specialized (and others no doubt) do a 30-day guarantee period to allow you to trial their saddles (t and c on their websites). That's it.

I won't enter the leather v synthetic debate and I won't include my personal choice because it's just that, personal.

Regards
tim-b

[Mark1978]

Saddles are really really difficult because you're right in that it takes a good amount of time to get used to them.

My Trek hybrid the saddle was just painful immediately, so I swapped it out for another, and it was much better.

But then I got my road bike and while the saddle wasn't painful, it did give me quite a lot of discomfort after about 20-30 miles, indeed my rides would be limited in duration because of that. However after about 3-4 months that was no longer an issue and I can ride with that same saddle all day. Decent padded shorts help, of course.

[mjr]

I'd try to get a saddle similar to one you used in the past and liked. I persevered with the too-wide too-bouncy saddle that came with my new bike for too long before replacing it with a saddle similar in width and material to the ones I used to have on the racer. I also put it not-quite-tight on the bike and tilted and moved it until it suited my riding position and only then locked it down: the result is something that horrifies a lot of riders (a long way back with a bit of forward tilt) but it works for me. I'm not looking for the most efficient riding position but one that offers comfort.

The other thing is that 30 miles is about where I switch to padded undershorts. The roads just aren't smooth enough today for me to withstand the vibrations for much more than 20 miles.

[mercalia]

maybe your seat is too high? maybe your legs are not supporting your weight enough. I don't think seat height is just about pedaling efficiency. try lower your seat a bit

[yostumpy]

some days ARE different. one day I can do 100k with no discomfort at all, then another day 30k will seem like i'm sitting on a rock. (Spa Nidd , brooks B17 clone) on the latter days I find that when I come to an incline, 'out of the saddle' for maybe 10 pedal strokes, and when I return to my seat,,,,,fresh bum. ( so to speak )

[thirdcrank]

It's only stating the obvious but before you can stop the discomfort, you need to identify the cause.

New or returning riders often experience excruciating pain which they blame on the saddle which results in trying out gell-cushioned types etc., when the cause is that the big muscles in their buttocks aren't used to the exercise combined with being plonked on a bike saddle. A softer saddle isn't the cure for this, which is exercise through riding, but It sounds as though you should be well-past that stage.

There's good advice above about riding position and a saddle that's too high can only make things worse for your backside.

Man-made saddles don't mould themselves to suit like a nice (ie not rock hard) supple leather one would, and I'll suggest it's no good hoping your behind will mould itself to make up for that. The only problem then is, what sort to buy? A lot of the quality stuff is aimed at the racing end of the market, which isn't what you need. The more upright your position (but note what 531colin says about not being too upright) the broader your saddle needs to be. I'd recommend avoiding anything with wodges of cushioning and go for a something with a conventional shape and as broad as you can find - within reason - at the quality end of the market. There's the dilemma of not knowing if it will be OK or if it's money down the pan, but even a short sit on one in a bike shop should give some clues. If you know others who have comfy saddles, but not Brooks Pro's they've had for decades, ask them for a try.

[NUKe]

As you get older particulalry if you have not exercised for a while the muscles will waste and being one of the glutes being one of the bigger masses tend to whither most, getting thinner, so its slightly less comfortable, cyclingin time will help to reverse to a degree this process.

I agree with what everyone has said regarding bike fit and shorts. But saddles are the one thing that can make or break a bike the problem is there is no one size fits all. You need to try a few and find your shape. Our local bike shop has a fizik set-up which has a load of orange saddles with test emblazoned on them you can borrow them for a deposit. they mainly cover racing bike saddles so this might not help. Specialized dealer measure sits bones with pad but unless you have the behind of a racing cyclists it shows the peak of the muscle and fat not the sit bone positioning, but can produce a guide as to how you are sitting on the saddle.

there are many threads on here regarding saddle types and we all swear by our own .Leather saddles can be exceeding comfortable once broken in providing you care for them.

[mjr]

Man-made saddles don't mould themselves to suit like a nice (ie not rock hard) supple leather one would, and I'll suggest it's no good hoping your behind will mould itself to make up for that.

Meanwhile, I'm on the synthetic side of the divide and think that IF you find one that fits you well enough (and that's a big if) then a good synthetic saddle will be comfortable from day one without all the breaking in. If a synthetic isn't comfortable, it's unlikely to improve much. I think it's some function of sit bone geometry and saddle geometry but I don't really know what. I've measured one that works for me and as they wear out, I'll keep buying similar-shaped saddles for as long as they're around, until they don't work for me any more.

If you can't find a comfortable synthetic saddle, breaking in some cow hide may be worth a try, but otherwise, I don't see the point in the expensive leather.