Bike Fitting

[Nick Stockley]

I've been thinking about getting a bike fitting done at my LBS. can anyone tell me if they have had it done and if it is worth the cost? the mechanic there told me they look at your seat height, cleat position, bar tilt etc. what else will they change?i looked into fitting because i feel quite stretched sometimes on the bike, so guess the position isnt quite right, but if its to do with the stem, wont i just have to get a shorter one? (please excuse my lack of any mechanical knowledge)any ideas, info, or any thoughts would be appreciated.

[NickF]

Are you going to be getting a new bike, or being retro-fitted to your existing bike?

[Richard Hallett]

It is worth getting  a fitting unless you are very confident you are properly set up.The end result may require the fitting of a different length stem but unless the frame is completely the wrong size most changes should be possible by using the adjustment built in to components.

[Nick Stockley]

nick - i'm getting the fitting for my existing bike.richard - thanks for that - the frame size is right so hoping it can be adjusted with the components already on it.what kind of results should i expect? apart from comfort what other benefits does a fitting offer?

[NickF]

I had a bike fit and comfort was the main improvement, which helps with overall performance.  The immediate effects are not so noticeable to be honest unless you get a significantly different stem length and/or have the bars raised a little/lowered a little - you will probably notice some handling difference here.  The long term effects are more apparent throught the comfort factor.And the other thing (always hard to quantify) to remember is that you probably won't be so likely to suffer from:Bad backKnee problemsNeck problemsLeg problemsWrist problemsYou get the picture - you're much more likely to avoid getting problems, which is well worth the outlay.  And you will be happier riding the bike for longer, so your fitness and skill will improve.