This week I’m focusing on main upper body complaints, giving handlebar sizing guidelines and analyzing the effects of the position of the handlebar. Often times one of our major complaints, and the first thing we start to feel from an extended ride, is tension to severe discomfort of the neck, shoulders, arms, wrists and hands. Due to the ever abundance of robust winds that blanket every corner of our state it seems we have adopted a “drop the bar until it hurts” scenario. This can result into multiple maladies that we associate with “no pain no gain” and chalk up to the admission price for passion.
When we look deeper into this issue we can really draw two distinct lines. One is the bar itself; being the right size, shape and profile for your personal needs. The second and more prominent is the bar position. Restricted by frame, fork and stem, the handlebar position is responsible for your balance, control, weight distribution, handling and even power output. The number one request for a custom bike is driven by the client’s desire for unique and personal needs of the bar’s position outside the realm of what is conceivable with conventional, inflexible components. Controlling the bar position allows the control and tuning of the ride quality and the body to be at its most efficient, powerful and comfortable position.
Stock bikes allow you to dial in your position in centimeters; custom bikes allow you to dial it in millimeters. While handlebars come in a dizzying array of styles, colors and prices, here are some of the basics.
1. Determine your shoulder width first by measuring the distance between the bony extrusions on your either of your shoulders (in centimeters). Ask someone in the shop to help you or eyeball it in the mirror.
2. Use your measurement as a guideline to begin selection of a handlebar.
3. Road handlebars can be measured either “outside to outside” O‐T‐O or
“center to center” C‐T‐C . Sizes will often run evenly between 36‐48 centimeters. Remember, a bar too small often causes a rounding of the shoulders, high neck tension and restricted breathing. A bar too wide can lead to pain between the shoulder blades and severe neck tension.
The next two measurements of the bar are known as REACH and DROP.
1. Reach is simply how far the bar perpendicularly extends from the center of the bar.
2. Drop is the distance from the top or how “deep” the drop section is. Many bars in recent years have made great ergonomic strides allowing flat transitions between the bar and modern shifters or ergonomic wings and shallower, longer drop sections that allow access to hand positions not previously used by the masses. Female riders have more options than ever before with bars designed for smaller hands in smaller sizes.
Let’s set this up:
1. Rethink the relationship of the bar and stem as separate.
2. Focus on rotating the bar in the drops to the most natural, comfortable position for your hands and then secure the bar.
3. Next, the shifters should be moved either towards or away from you to align your wrists and give your hands a neutral, handshake position.
4. Lastly, rotate the bar, but this time with your hands on the shifters. It should only take a small rotation to yield big results.
These tips will often give relief to overworked arms and shoulders and improve control while nearly eliminating any hand issues. During a fit session, my clients often exclaim they did not know it was possible to move their shifters. Voila! Technology has changed fit and it does not care about your flexibility. The advance in materials and equipment has resulted in lower hand positions than any other time in the existence of the bicycle. Integration of steering systems, shifting and race designs for stiffer and faster bikes have produced more bikes with increased distance between the top of the saddle and the handlebar.
I most often see the effects of a low, short handle bar position whereas the client chose to lower their bar and shorten their stem to lessen the sensation of feeling “stretched out.” As a result, lower back, neck, shoulder and hand pain typically increase. The client was not stretched out prior to their “aero adjustment”; the bar was simply not high and far away enough from the saddle. Imagine yourself in a push up position, arms straight from the body. Now move your hands six inches underneath you. Manageable for a few minutes, sure, but you are soon forced to arch and bend your back to hold yourself up. When you do this on the bike your spine is elongated and you close off your diaphragm which compromises your breathing and affects your hip angle, pedaling and the ability to produce power. Now imagine yourself in the plank position, where your arms are bent and your spine is straight. Two things to notice when this happens on the bike. The higher the bar, the more you can lean over thus the more aerodynamic you can be. Second, since you have raised the bar it has changed the weight distribution which has been forced back onto your sit bones relieving pressure off your hands. Your breathing is improved and you are more balanced for optimum power transmission. A sign that your bar is in the right location is that while pedaling, your can sit up on the bike without having to “push off” the bar.
Location, location, location is a coined real estate term implying the common notion that the better the location the more financially demanding it can be. Your handlebar position is similar in that its location is critical but differs that it costs more the further you are from where you need to be. If the location is in the wrong neighborhood then it is extravagantly costly, not to your wallet but to your performance, comfort and enjoyment of riding.
No comments:
Post a Comment