Bike shorts padding and style preferences

[scott43]

My right side is my problematic side, hip, lower back, plantar faciitis, LLD.
I was having minor numbing in my toes on that side and changed where my foot is on the pedal, which took care of the problem.
This was soemthing brought up in a conversation wtih @Ron. If I didn't thank you for that, Thanks Ron!

Ron has similar issues to me and we've commiserated on our...condition...syndrome? Wear and tear...

 

[Tricia]

This was super helpful!

Neuroplasticity, Habituation and the CPG. | NEILL'S BIKEFIT

Bootsrap based theme

neillsbikefit.com.au

 

[cantunamunch]

Absolutely. Hockey is nearly crippling sometimes. Mostly it affects hip-flexed knee-out position. It has affected my mobility to one side and unfortunately my opponents know this!

@Tricia already mentioned lower back - that was going to be my next question. I suspect you're actually telegraphing the pain to your opponents.

 

[Tricia]

@Tricia already mentioned lower back - that was going to be my next question. I suspect you're actually telegraphing the pain to your opponents.

When I had plantar faciitis I was also having lower back pain. When I addressed the lower back pain, the PF went away.
Its all connected.

 

[Rudi Riet]

Can you elaborate a bit on this? I don't find my bib shorts (Castelli Free Aero Race, I think) to be more comfortable than my non-bib shorts (Assos and Pearl Izumi) and I certainly have not experienced any shifting of padding on any of them.

@cantunamunch mentioned the primary problems with regular shorts.

I'm a skinny Tinkertoy set with long legs. Few, if any, shorts were ever overly comfortable. I'd need to secure the waist fairly tight to keep them from migrating down and thus moving the padding away from my sit bones. The padding in bike shorts is supposed to stay put to act as a "blister rub zone" and prevent chafing and saddle sores. The fact that bibs have shoulder straps to keep them in place from above without causing constriction around the waist is simply sublime. No shorts match this level of comfort for me.

I'm appreciative of tall cut bibs, which eliminates a good many brands from consideration for me. Velocio fits me well but oof, their prices are too rich for my blood. Hincapie fits me well but they're devilishly hard to find these days other than factory direct, and they're still pricey. The Black Bibs may not have the "sexiest" padding but the pad works well, they offer a tall cut in the Plus and Ultimate levels, and their build quality is quite lovely.

Note that I go on rides ranging from less than an hour to upward of 6 or 7 hours, so having a pad that sits well and doesn't shift is super important.

The basic rule with bike comfort is to address the three contact points with the bike as well as possible:

- Butt (padding setup and saddle)
- Feet (socks, shoes, insoles/orthotics, pedals, crank length)
- Hands (gloves, bars, bar tape/grips)

Regarding saddles: I prefer flat, thin, and narrow setups. My road bikes have either an Ergon SR or a Fizik Antares R3, my gravel bike has a Brooks Cambium C15. The latter has a bit more give which is nice on rougher surfaces. All three play well with my various bib shorts in use. Anything with a pad that doesn't hit right has been retired.

And those bib shorts where the lycra has become a bit threadbare? Those are my liner shorts for times when I need to wear more "normal" clothing at the end of the ride and can't simply change clothes.

 

[scott43]

@Tricia already mentioned lower back - that was going to be my next question. I suspect you're actually telegraphing the pain to your opponents.

Yeah the imbalance also causes lower back pain. It's a mess quite frankly. It's gotten better over the last few years..more focused workout routine, trying to balance through stretching. I've had good lower back for a few years...it was nearly debilitating previously. There are times where I'll just collapse because I've pinched the nerve. Amuses the boys so good that way.

 

[scott43]

When I had plantar faciitis I was also having lower back pain. When I addressed the lower back pain, the PF went away.
Its all connected.

You compensate and change your gait and bam. It's totally all connected. And I have to balance the "don't do it if it hurts" with "don't compensate". So far, not compensating is working better frankly. But it hurts more.

 

[scott43]

I'm with Rudi..surprised nobody commented on my awesome Bushwhackers.. But yeah..bibs rock..I can't think of any good reason NOT to wear them other than the unfortunate nature break business..but I'm ok with that..

 

[Tricia]

This is from Terry Cycle's site. Quite informative.
The Slite is the type of padding in the Fixie.

 

[cantunamunch]

Oh, hey, lookitthat. Never mind graphene, @Tom K. can have carbonium with carbon threading!

 

[Tricia]

Oh, hey, lookitthat. Never mind graphene, @Tom K. can have carbonium with carbon threading!

That particular description actually inspired me to look it up.

Carbonium ion - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[cantunamunch]

Carbonium ion - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Yes, not much practical use on their own. As part of some other molecule, they're pretty well known reactive groups. Like those used to bind dyes to polymers and fibers. Particularly nitrile and acrylic. About as exotic as a 1970s track suit, 00s ink jet ink, or 2021 fun-colored nitrile gloves.

 

[Tricia]

Interesting observation based on saddle and bike short padding.
I rode wtih my friend with the Selle saddle upgrade and we bumpbed into her friend who started talking about her new saddle.
Meanwhile, I'm riding on the stock saddle and minimal padding and I just don't feel what they are describing.

I'm a beliver that this is a personal preference and sensitivity.

 

[scott43]

When I was in the business people would ask me what the best saddle was and I'd say, I dunno, I don't have your ass. Take that as you will...

Saddles are one of the most important things to test-ride..but...it's a saddle..sooo....

 

[Rudi Riet]

Saddles are one of the most important things to test-ride..but...it's a saddle..sooo....

The best bike shops will allow for auditioning of saddles to find the best one. They'll measure the distance between sit bones, they'll look at range of motion and flexibility of the hip joint and back, and they'll also ask what kind of riding the customer will do. They'll then come up with a short list of saddles to try and let the rider try them out.

This is part of any good bike fitting: dial in the contact points and find the right saddle. And for most people the stock saddle is not ideal for their situation. Stock saddles can be good, and for some they are great, but for many they aren't ideal. A stock saddle on 90+ percent of bikes is meant to be cushy and comfortable for test rides and for the first little while of bike ownership, but that's about it.

Saddle manufacturers often provide higher-end shops with test models. Classic examples of these are the magenta-and-yellow Fizik test saddles, or the Brooks Cambium models in buff with the brand motto emblazoned on the middle of the saddle. And some shops will buy a few test models of popular brands they don't typically stock just to have every option at the ready (e.g. Giant shops having a few Specialized or Selle SMP saddles in the fit studio).

As mentioned a few times in this thread: a saddle is an extremely personal piece of fit between a rider and their bike. So take the time to find the best one. To wit: sometimes you may feel that the saddle you have is ideal but there's possibly a better option out there.

Once you get your fit numbers dialed in and saddle chosen it's aces. And yes, bike fit changes with age, fitness, flexibility, and other external factors (e.g. injury or life changes). I get my bike fit checked every other year, as well as if there are massive changes in my physical fitness situation. And trust me, I've had a few of those over the past 8 years....

 

[scott43]

It's really THE most important bit of kit. If it takes $300 to be comfortable..just do it.

 

[Primoz]

@scott43 it really doesn't take $300 to be comfortable. I'm using Specialized Phenom for years now, and with Specialized (and most of others) they have few models of exactly same saddle. Difference is weight and bragging right with some fancy materials and technologies. So if I stick with this Phenom I'm using it, it has (or at least it had, as now there's few more) 3 different saddles that they felt pretty much exactly same. Price range was from under 100eur for cheapest version to 300+eur for Sworks version. When I was trying, cheapest version felt exactly same as Sworks (I still picked Expert version not Comp though). So if you want comfortable saddle, you can easily go with cheapest version, but if you want to save 20g and brag with carbon nanotubes and I don't know what else, then you can have same saddle for 3 or 4 times the price. But comfort or fit or whatever is right word for this, is inside of certain line and doesn't depends so much of model and rails material.

 

[cantunamunch]

So ... no one else in this thread does treasure dives into shops' boxes of takeoff saddles, just to see if there's something they might want to try?

 

[scott43]

@scott43 it really doesn't take $300 to be comfortable. I'm using Specialized Phenom for years now, and with Specialized (and most of others) they have few models of exactly same saddle. Difference is weight and bragging right with some fancy materials and technologies. So if I stick with this Phenom I'm using it, it has (or at least it had, as now there's few more) 3 different saddles that they felt pretty much exactly same. Price range was from under 100eur for cheapest version to 300+eur for Sworks version. When I was trying, cheapest version felt exactly same as Sworks (I still picked Expert version not Comp though). So if you want comfortable saddle, you can easily go with cheapest version, but if you want to save 20g and brag with carbon nanotubes and I don't know what else, then you can have same saddle for 3 or 4 times the price. But comfort or fit or whatever is right word for this, is inside of certain line and doesn't depends so much of model and rails material.

Absolutely. What I meant was if you have to buy six different saddles to try them all out or pay for a pro fitting and advice, it's better spent there than on titanium bolts! I ride my stock saddle on my MTB and it's just fine for me. I suspect others would not like...

 

[scott43]

So ... no one else in this thread does treasure dives into shops' boxes of takeoff saddles, just to see if there's something they might want to try?

That was one great thing about being a tech. We rode every bike we fixed so you get to try a lot of different stuff.