Tailbone pain after stationary bike
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Thank you all for the great feedback!
So the handlebars etc are not adjustable. Only the seat height, which I adjusted based on this article from LiveStrong - checking the pedals by my heels with the leg extended, then pedalling with the ball of my foot so it's not fully extended.
That article also says to sit upright, which is why I thought it was the correct form.
I do not seem to be "bouncing" but I do feel sometimes as though my right leg is dominating the conversation, so to speak. Maybe it is slightly longer or something, or just the stronger leg.
The resistance is given as a number of "incline" and I usually use the levels between 10-15. I have picked it because at that point my legs aren't spinning, but are also able to move. At 15 it becomes hard to push and I can only pedal there for a short while. 10 feels easy, 12 still okay, 13-15 is to challenge myself. I don't know what the rpm is, because this "resistance number" is completely different from ones I've seen on other bikes, where I've been a "level 4" so I genuinely don't really know what the numbers translate to. "Distance" is also given in a number that isn't clarified by a unit, which is frustrating when I want to quantify things.
This seems to be the cycle that my gym has.I wouldn't expect tailbone to be a sore point to be honest, makes me suspect you either have a pre-existing condition or your set up is badly wrong.
"Maybe that’s why it’s hard to stay upright correctly." Upright isn't really a good cycling position - wonder if that's what is causing the issue?
(Can you get someone to take a picture from the side with your near leg at bottom of the pedal stroke and then post it in this thread?)
First check your fit on the bike - I see some horrendous riding positions in the gym by non-cyclists.
Here's a guide to set up which is probably a bit more technical than you need but at least do the saddle height and saddle fore/aft position, seat level and then set your handlebars for comfort (level with the saddle is a good start point), you should have some weight on your hands.
https://support.wattbike.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000644445-How-to-set-up-your-Wattbike-Pro-Trainer
Second - is your pedalling resistance set properly? Nice cadence (in range 80 - 100 rpm generally recommended) and no bouncing or squirming on the saddle?
Third - invest in cycling shorts.
Fourth - some exercise bike saddles are simply awful. As I do a lot of indoor cycling in the winter I fit my own saddle rather than use the "designed by a man hater" standard saddle.
Yeah having weight on my hands is completely different from what I read ^ which said that I should be barely touching the handlebars, if at all. The bike (I posted a link to an image above) does have a second, further set of handlebars where I'm basically leaning my upper body onto it - should those be the ones to use?
From the video, that bike has many more adjustable parts than the one at my gym, unless I'm missing something. Though it does seem that might help if it did (or if it does and I'm just not seeing it). I think things are maybe more designed to be easily set up for someone with longer limbs and another foot taller.
The Livestrong article is saying don't grip the bars - which is good advice but not the same as don't put any weight through your arms/hands which you can do with no grip at all.
Cycling bolt upright is the problem as it's putting all your weight through the wrong area.
Yes my Wattbike is a very different piece of kit and multi adjustable so riders can replicate their outdoor cycling ergonomics. Your LifeFitness bike is pretty nasty I'm afraid and despite doing a lot of hours cycling it would hurt me in no time at all. I would have to rest my forearms on the bars to get any kind of reasonable position on it.
The bars are too high, there's no fore/aft adjustment for the saddle. As a "rather short person" there's a good chance it simply doesn't fit you.
I've tried a similar one (very briefly) at one of my gyms and it was dreadful, too upright, feet too far out in front.
Thank you for your help!!!
Next time I guess I'll try to lean forwards during my ride and see if that helps at all. I hadn't really been doing that because I thought upright was more correct, just based off of what I saw people doing around me, haha.
There are a couple reclining bikes at the gym, something like this, but like 40 of the upright ones so I'm guaranteed a spot on them. Do you think that the reclining bikes would be a better option? I've never used one yet, but I could give it a shot if one is open.
I'm not keen on recumbent bikes I'm afraid - but I'm a firm believer in "try everything", some people love them.
Should be more comfortable at least.
Thank you. I meant about the tailbone thing, not just in general, but why don't you like them? I don't really know the differences.
You can't get your weight over the pedals so power and core/body engagement is limited.
Not really an issue for a casual fitness user but I'm training for outdoor events rather than general fitness.
Pretty much.
I’ll use a recumbent if I’m aiming for nothing more than mindless peddling to get blood flow in the day after squats or deads, whilst reading something.
However, when I’m actually on a bike for the purpose of building aerobic capacity and transferable cycling capabilities, the recumbent just doesn’t cut it.2 -
Thank you all for the great feedback!
So the handlebars etc are not adjustable. Only the seat height, which I adjusted based on this article from LiveStrong - checking the pedals by my heels with the leg extended, then pedalling with the ball of my foot so it's not fully extended.
That article also says to sit upright, which is why I thought it was the correct form.
I do not seem to be "bouncing" but I do feel sometimes as though my right leg is dominating the conversation, so to speak. Maybe it is slightly longer or something, or just the stronger leg.
The resistance is given as a number of "incline" and I usually use the levels between 10-15. I have picked it because at that point my legs aren't spinning, but are also able to move. At 15 it becomes hard to push and I can only pedal there for a short while. 10 feels easy, 12 still okay, 13-15 is to challenge myself. I don't know what the rpm is, because this "resistance number" is completely different from ones I've seen on other bikes, where I've been a "level 4" so I genuinely don't really know what the numbers translate to. "Distance" is also given in a number that isn't clarified by a unit, which is frustrating when I want to quantify things.
This seems to be the cycle that my gym has.I wouldn't expect tailbone to be a sore point to be honest, makes me suspect you either have a pre-existing condition or your set up is badly wrong.
"Maybe that’s why it’s hard to stay upright correctly." Upright isn't really a good cycling position - wonder if that's what is causing the issue?
(Can you get someone to take a picture from the side with your near leg at bottom of the pedal stroke and then post it in this thread?)
First check your fit on the bike - I see some horrendous riding positions in the gym by non-cyclists.
Here's a guide to set up which is probably a bit more technical than you need but at least do the saddle height and saddle fore/aft position, seat level and then set your handlebars for comfort (level with the saddle is a good start point), you should have some weight on your hands.
https://support.wattbike.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000644445-How-to-set-up-your-Wattbike-Pro-Trainer
Second - is your pedalling resistance set properly? Nice cadence (in range 80 - 100 rpm generally recommended) and no bouncing or squirming on the saddle?
Third - invest in cycling shorts.
Fourth - some exercise bike saddles are simply awful. As I do a lot of indoor cycling in the winter I fit my own saddle rather than use the "designed by a man hater" standard saddle.
Yeah having weight on my hands is completely different from what I read ^ which said that I should be barely touching the handlebars, if at all. The bike (I posted a link to an image above) does have a second, further set of handlebars where I'm basically leaning my upper body onto it - should those be the ones to use?
From the video, that bike has many more adjustable parts than the one at my gym, unless I'm missing something. Though it does seem that might help if it did (or if it does and I'm just not seeing it). I think things are maybe more designed to be easily set up for someone with longer limbs and another foot taller.
The Livestrong article is saying don't grip the bars - which is good advice but not the same as don't put any weight through your arms/hands which you can do with no grip at all.
Cycling bolt upright is the problem as it's putting all your weight through the wrong area.
Yes my Wattbike is a very different piece of kit and multi adjustable so riders can replicate their outdoor cycling ergonomics. Your LifeFitness bike is pretty nasty I'm afraid and despite doing a lot of hours cycling it would hurt me in no time at all. I would have to rest my forearms on the bars to get any kind of reasonable position on it.
The bars are too high, there's no fore/aft adjustment for the saddle. As a "rather short person" there's a good chance it simply doesn't fit you.
I've tried a similar one (very briefly) at one of my gyms and it was dreadful, too upright, feet too far out in front.
Thank you for your help!!!
Next time I guess I'll try to lean forwards during my ride and see if that helps at all. I hadn't really been doing that because I thought upright was more correct, just based off of what I saw people doing around me, haha.
There are a couple reclining bikes at the gym, something like this, but like 40 of the upright ones so I'm guaranteed a spot on them. Do you think that the reclining bikes would be a better option? I've never used one yet, but I could give it a shot if one is open.
I'm not keen on recumbent bikes I'm afraid - but I'm a firm believer in "try everything", some people love them.
Should be more comfortable at least.
Thank you. I meant about the tailbone thing, not just in general, but why don't you like them? I don't really know the differences.
You can't get your weight over the pedals so power and core/body engagement is limited.
Not really an issue for a casual fitness user but I'm training for outdoor events rather than general fitness.
Thank you! I uh can't actually ride a Real Bike where balance is necessary, so maybe it's not an issue for me. Although core/body engagement sounds valuable. I know my core is terrible. I'll probably still give it a go because....tailbone pain is just....really unpleasant. And maybe, like another person said, if in the future my weight is much lower it might not be an issue. And also maybe I'll have access to a different sort of stationary bike. Not sure I'd be able to learn to ride a real one, but perhaps haha.0 -
Thank you all for the great feedback!
So the handlebars etc are not adjustable. Only the seat height, which I adjusted based on this article from LiveStrong - checking the pedals by my heels with the leg extended, then pedalling with the ball of my foot so it's not fully extended.
That article also says to sit upright, which is why I thought it was the correct form.
I do not seem to be "bouncing" but I do feel sometimes as though my right leg is dominating the conversation, so to speak. Maybe it is slightly longer or something, or just the stronger leg.
The resistance is given as a number of "incline" and I usually use the levels between 10-15. I have picked it because at that point my legs aren't spinning, but are also able to move. At 15 it becomes hard to push and I can only pedal there for a short while. 10 feels easy, 12 still okay, 13-15 is to challenge myself. I don't know what the rpm is, because this "resistance number" is completely different from ones I've seen on other bikes, where I've been a "level 4" so I genuinely don't really know what the numbers translate to. "Distance" is also given in a number that isn't clarified by a unit, which is frustrating when I want to quantify things.
This seems to be the cycle that my gym has.I wouldn't expect tailbone to be a sore point to be honest, makes me suspect you either have a pre-existing condition or your set up is badly wrong.
"Maybe that’s why it’s hard to stay upright correctly." Upright isn't really a good cycling position - wonder if that's what is causing the issue?
(Can you get someone to take a picture from the side with your near leg at bottom of the pedal stroke and then post it in this thread?)
First check your fit on the bike - I see some horrendous riding positions in the gym by non-cyclists.
Here's a guide to set up which is probably a bit more technical than you need but at least do the saddle height and saddle fore/aft position, seat level and then set your handlebars for comfort (level with the saddle is a good start point), you should have some weight on your hands.
https://support.wattbike.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000644445-How-to-set-up-your-Wattbike-Pro-Trainer
Second - is your pedalling resistance set properly? Nice cadence (in range 80 - 100 rpm generally recommended) and no bouncing or squirming on the saddle?
Third - invest in cycling shorts.
Fourth - some exercise bike saddles are simply awful. As I do a lot of indoor cycling in the winter I fit my own saddle rather than use the "designed by a man hater" standard saddle.
Yeah having weight on my hands is completely different from what I read ^ which said that I should be barely touching the handlebars, if at all. The bike (I posted a link to an image above) does have a second, further set of handlebars where I'm basically leaning my upper body onto it - should those be the ones to use?
From the video, that bike has many more adjustable parts than the one at my gym, unless I'm missing something. Though it does seem that might help if it did (or if it does and I'm just not seeing it). I think things are maybe more designed to be easily set up for someone with longer limbs and another foot taller.
The Livestrong article is saying don't grip the bars - which is good advice but not the same as don't put any weight through your arms/hands which you can do with no grip at all.
Cycling bolt upright is the problem as it's putting all your weight through the wrong area.
Yes my Wattbike is a very different piece of kit and multi adjustable so riders can replicate their outdoor cycling ergonomics. Your LifeFitness bike is pretty nasty I'm afraid and despite doing a lot of hours cycling it would hurt me in no time at all. I would have to rest my forearms on the bars to get any kind of reasonable position on it.
The bars are too high, there's no fore/aft adjustment for the saddle. As a "rather short person" there's a good chance it simply doesn't fit you.
I've tried a similar one (very briefly) at one of my gyms and it was dreadful, too upright, feet too far out in front.
Thank you for your help!!!
Next time I guess I'll try to lean forwards during my ride and see if that helps at all. I hadn't really been doing that because I thought upright was more correct, just based off of what I saw people doing around me, haha.
There are a couple reclining bikes at the gym, something like this, but like 40 of the upright ones so I'm guaranteed a spot on them. Do you think that the reclining bikes would be a better option? I've never used one yet, but I could give it a shot if one is open.
Yes, lean forward as best you can. I know those gym bikes are awful when it comes to setup. But set the saddle height up properly (sounds like you've got it or are pretty close), and then lean forward as well as you can with the poor handlebar height.
Personally, I wouldn't use the reclining bikes ... they just don't appeal to me.
Personally, I go for the spin bikes (as opposed to stationary bikes) whenever possible in the gym.1
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