According to the pros, this pooch-toting cyclist might want to raise his seat just a touch (Kye R. Lee/Staff Photo)
I heard avid cyclist Craig Miller of The Ticket mention this one day, and I thought (or perhaps said out loud): YES!! WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THAT?!”
The “that” in question? People who look like jockeys when they ride their bikes. Not because of any height issue, but because their knees are so bent. What is with that, anyway? And aside from looking weird, how good for your posture/back/self esteem can that be?
We put the question to Dr. Richard D. Guyer, spine surgeon and founding partner at Texas Back Institute:
“When you ride a bike in a jockey-like position, you can be putting stress on your back because of your bad posture. Bad posture occurs when there may be a poor fit between the rider and the bike. The seat height and/or the handlebars are too low or too high, the seat is too far forward, the foot is too far forward on the pedal, etc.”
For tips on how to make sure your bike seat (that’s “saddle” in cycling lingo) is the right height, we asked avid and longtime cyclist and coach Bikin Mike, a.k.a. Mike Keel. Here’s what he had to say:
When a saddle height is correct, you are TALLER sitting on the bike than standing up
When a saddle height is correct, you have a 10 degree bend in your knee at the BOTTOM of the pedal stroke (with a flat foot)
When the saddle height is correct, the heel of your straight leg should barely touch the pedal when the pedal is down.