I'm currently looking for a gravel bike. After a pretty quick pre-fit, I was told my target stack/reach would be 610/385. Since that fitting felt a bit rushed, I went to a second fitter. She didn't have a fit rig, though – she just took my body measurements and then recommended one of three frames I'd shortlisted. So after two "fits," I'm still not really sure where I stand. Maybe you guys can help!

My measurements:

• Height: 183 cm
• Floor to sternal notch: 150.5 cm
• Inseam: 89.4 cm
• Arm length: 66 cm (holding a pen), 54 cm (to the wrist)
• Lower leg: 44.5 cm

The bikes I gave the second fitter were the Look G85 Cezal (L), the Avona Calis (L) and the 3T Extrema (XL). Her take is that the Look should fit best, since I'd be in a more aggressive position on the 3T. She based that on the seat tube angles – but the Look actually has a slightly longer reach. Overall, the differences between those two frames (3T and Look) seem pretty marginal – but is there still one that's a better fit for me purely in terms of geometry?

Hey, I'm fairly new to cycling and now that I've built enough of a base to comfortably survive century distances in either km/mi. I'm starting to do the longer rides with more pace or challenging routes.

Someone pointed out that I have that Ben Healy tilted head style that only comes around during an hard effort and deep into the ride. It doesn't cause any pain/discomfort but I just can't help it.

I've done some light research but, does anyone on here have the same quirk and dove deeper or told a proper bike fitter about it?

A while back I asked for feedback on FitInspector, the app that checks your bike fit from a phone video. Here's what's new:

• Knee angle is measured on every pedal stroke. Filming twice now gives almost the same number (within 2°, instead of 4–14°).
• It no longer mixes up your near and far leg.
• Shoulder and elbow are measured across the whole video, not one frame.
• Bad frames are thrown out. If it can't see you clearly, it asks you to re-film instead of making up a number.
• Switching from hoods to drops mid-video is handled.
• Recommendations are clearer, so it's easier to know what to actually change.

I'd be glad to hear your criticism.

Hello. I posted this on bike commuting and someone commented on the fit of my bike. I bought this bike from fb marketplace just to try out a road bike. I didn’t know much about bike fitting other than choosing a frame size based on height. I am 5 foot 2 and this is an XS Women’s Liv Avail 3. I typically use the interrupter breaks and am up on the bars when I go up hills (pictured). I go on the drops sometimes but it’s not my first instinct. Based on these pictures are there any red flags about my bike size?

Thank you

Hi everyone, I'm looking for feedback on my riding position on a Canyon Grizl 7.

I ran the video through Pedalyze, which suggested:

• My saddle may be too low.
• My knee is ahead of the pedal spindle, and the saddle might need to move back.
• My reach or handlebar position might need adjustment.
• My torso angle looks reasonable in the more upright position.

I'm not sure how much to trust these recommendations without a second opinion, so I'd appreciate feedback from people with bike-fitting experience.

A few questions:

1. Does my saddle height look noticeably low, or would you leave it alone for now?
2. Would you change the saddle setback based on the knee-over-pedal-spindle measurement alone?
3. Does my reach and upper-body position look appropriate for comfortable endurance riding?
4. For the aero-bar position, does the reach and elbow bend look sustainable for longer rides?

X posted in r/gravelcycling

This is my second post in this channel but hopefully this angle gives a better view. First road bike, 6ft tall on a Trek Domane AL 5, size 58. Some lower back pain on rides. Looking for any advice!

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Hey everyone! I wanted to get your thoughts on my bike fit. I don’t really feel any discomfort, except on long descents where my neck gets a bit stiff, but that’s about it. Do you think the frame size looks right for me? I’m 1m70 (5'7") with an 82cm (32.3") inseam, and the bike is a size Small with a 372mm reach and 556mm stack. Any feedback or advice would be awesome. Cheers!

Hey guys, I’m looking at buying a used 2020 Specialized Venge Pro in size 54. I’m 175 cm tall and relatively new to cycling.
My eventual goal is a full Ironman. I know the Venge isn’t a TT bike, but I love the bike and plan on using it for most of my training and potentially racing it.
I’m currently riding my dad’s bike, which isn’t fitted to me and gives me some wrist discomfort, so I want to make sure I get the sizing right this time.
Would a 54 Venge be a good starting point for my height? What other measurements would you need from me to get a better idea?
Thanks!

I'm an amateur triathlete exploring an idea, and I’d like to hear from people who travel for cycling holidays, training camps or races.

When you rent a road, gravel or mountain bike, how do you get it set up to feel comfortable and familiar? Do you send measurements beforehand, bring a bike-fit report, adjust things at pickup, or just ride whatever the shop provides?

The idea I’m exploring is a free “bike fit passport.” You’d create it using guided photos of your current bike, a few details about its components, and the manufacturer’s geometry information to help work out your existing setup. If you already have a professional bike-fit report, that could also provide the starting measurements.

You could then share the passport when booking a rental. It would translate your usual riding position into setup instructions for the specific bike you’re renting—even a different brand, model or frame size—so the shop knows what to adjust before you arrive and where the rental bike’s limits might prevent a close match.

A few things I’d love to understand:

• Thinking about your last rental: how did you handle the setup, and how did it feel on longer rides?
• Has uncertainty about fit ever made you bring your own bike instead—or skip renting altogether?
• What do you already use to record and share your setup, if anything?
• Would you use something like this for a future trip? What would you need to trust it?

Please mention what kind of riding you do and roughly how often you rent. Experiences where everything worked perfectly are useful too!

Received a lot of great critique on my bike fit a couple weeks ago and I’m coming back to ask for more help ;-)

Moved my saddle forward a bit. Also lowered it a tad. Replaced my 120mm -17 stem with 100mm -17 (and a bit more stack)

In the coming days, I plan on moving my faux hoods further up the handlebar, as I think that will help me get closer to the arm angle I would like while also reducing my effective reach a tiny bit.

Would love to hear any other suggestions!

Video context:
First video is with saddle at flat/0deg and the second with a couple degrees upwards (saddle shape is odd…as seen in photo at end of video)

I do feel like I might need a shorter stem, but so after my last ride. I just did a 26 mile ride with 1900 ft of climbing and I felt great on the bike and very comfortable on the boots. Didn't feel like I was stretching so much this time.

I'm 5'10" 65 years old with lots of injuries.

Both ACL replaced, both shoulders with multiple surgeries. Dislocated hip, and misc other injuries.

I haven't ridden much but my new bike is so much more comfortable, the last ride was very promising to get back into longer rides.

Thanks everyone for your feedback

Hello party people!

Just purchased a new saddle with a perineum gap as the previous one didn't have and had a lot of pain after an hour ride.

So I would love your input on saddle height, distance, and overall fit. Hands usually start bothering at the 30 min mark, but never hurt a lot.

Thanks in advance for the help!

I am 187 cm and weigh 80 kg. My caad 8 is a 58. Most of the time when I begin my training I feel a little pain on the right side of my lower back. That always goes away after 30 minutes. Any suggestions on what I could change? Thank you in advance.

Any tips for my bike fit would be greatly appreciated!

Situation is as follows: a month ago I got shin splints (MTSS) Since then I have been having pain in my left leg during cycling, but irregularly. Sometimes I can cycle for hours with no pain, sometimes after just 15-30 minutes.

I had my bike fitted about a year ago (before the injury) and he gave me the current set-up. I have ridden it for 6+ hours without a lot of pain but there are few things that I would appreciate some feedback on.

1. He recommended I go down to 165's. I didn't have the time or money to make the upgrade then but now I can. Would you recommend 165? I want to get a PM anyway so it's a good moment.
2. To me also the reach feels quite far, bending my elbows puts me in a really aggressive position I can only hold for a short amount of time. This is why I ride like this most of the time, but my arms are very stretched out.
3. I sometimes have trouble getting the chamois to sit right under my sit bones and on the bike. It doesn't hurt but you can see in the video how it kind of sticks out at the back.

I've had my trusty Triban for going on 2 years and looking to upgrade.

Looking at my options, I've noticed that a Tarmac SL8 in Size 54 is remarkably close in geometry to a size S Triban RC120, only being very slightly longer and lower, which is totally contrary to what you hear on the internet.

Am I missing something or are they seriously that close?

Hallo zusammen,

ich hätte gerne gewusst, wo ich noch optimieren kann.
Habe Hüftarthrose und deshalb 160er Kurbeln montiert.
Bin ansonsten eher gerne entspannt unterwegs, kein Racer.

I’ve been experiencing lower back pain during cycling, especially on longer, harder, or hillier rides, and I’m trying to figure out what’s causing it.

The pain is mostly centralized in my lower back, although it seems slightly worse toward the right side. I’ve also noticed that the upper-middle outside portion of my right thigh starts feeling tight or sore, and my lower back often starts aching around the same time.

I’ve had my bike professionally fitted and recently went back for adjustments. My fitter lowered my saddle further, which noticeably improved the back pain, but it hasn’t completely gone away.
Today, I completed a hilly ride and had to pull over about three times to stretch my back. Stretching seems to help temporarily, but the discomfort eventually returns.

A few things I’ve noticed:
1. The pain only happens when cycling. I don’t experience it while walking or doing normal daily activities.
2. It seems worse during harder efforts, especially climbing.
3. My back sometimes feels better when I’m riding in the drops with a slightly rounded back or when I “relax” my stomach
4. Smooth, controlled pedaling seems to help compared with forcefully pushing down on the pedals.
5. My right outer thigh feels tight or sore around the same time my lower back starts aching.

I’m planning to take a few days off cycling to recover since I have been biking a lot these last few weeks. I think (and hope) it’s just a muscular soreness and just needs rest.

Any ideas? Thank you

Just got this new wilier gravel bike three weeks ago. It feels like it’s too long. Should I change for a shorter stem?

I’ve been having problems with numbness in my hands (little fingers, or rather the outer side of my hands) for a while now, and I’ve often found myself sliding right to the front of the saddle. I’ve now lowered the saddle by 7mm and moved it a bit further forward – does that look more or less okay?
I’m really open to any tips – I’m new to cycling.
(I normally ride in bib shorts, of course; they were just in the wash)

Thanks
Chris

Hey !

Following my first post and your overall feedback, here’s my new fit.
I moved the saddle up (2.1cm) and forward (1.1cm or so).
I’ve ridden around 250km like this and it feels okay. Hard to say how much better it will be. I’ll need a bit more time I think to evaluate the effects on the knee pain.

Do you think it can be improved? How?

Thanks all!

Hi All,

I'm trying to choose a size for my first fully new bike and I'm looking for a little context. I've had a bike fit and I have my reach/stack numbers and some other data. I'm looking at road bikes and as a small person I'm looking at the smaller sizes. A lot of the smaller sizes have approx. the same reach length which would work with a normal length stem. The stack dimensions I could make work with more or less spacers, so I'm wondering how exactly to choose?

For instance, I'm looking at a bike with a size 46 and a size 49 with similar reach. For stack I could do the 46 with 20mm of spacers or the 49 with 10mm of spacers. I would opt for less spacers personally, but are there any other dimensions I should be looking at to choose between those sizes? Should I generally go for the smaller size as is generally the recommendation for road bikes?

I generally do quick group rides etc so would opt for a more racy position. Thanks in advance!