Hi all,
I had been struggling with some ITB pain/soreness, and I wanted to share my experience with it and try to contribute something to this forum.
I can trace the issue back to when I started trying out different saddles. I ride a cheap drop bar bike on my Sunday morning rides (usually 60/70kms), and the stock saddle is pretty ordinary for comfort. I was getting a sore rear end after the ride and I have a chamois and use cream too.
Since a few of my riding buddies have spare saddles they bought and didn't like. I thought I would take the opportunity to try them out.
Fancy carbon railed Selle Italia Flite - the big round hump was very uncomfortable. Used it once, then back to the owner.
Fizik Arione - again, didn't agree with my rear end.
Selle Italia Max SLS - this felt comfy on the rear end since it has lots and lots of padding. I liked to sit on this one!
However, after a few weeks, I started getting ITB soreness - thought it might have been a bike fit issue, adjusted saddle height and fore/aft position. This got to the point where the ITB would get sore and flare up 10-15kms into the ride.
I couldn't figure out why this was an issue, but then decided to go back to square 1 and reinstalled the stock saddle. The ITB pain did not reappear on the ride.
I think the Selle Italia Max SLS had too much padding for me, and maybe that contributed to a bad position on the bike, leading to pain/soreness.
I'm now testing a Fizik Antares VS - not that comfy, BUT the ITB issue has not reappeared. Hopefully it will stay away. I want to try a Selle SMP saddle soon
As always, YMMV.
ITB pain/soreness
Forum rules
The information / discussion in the Cycling Health Forum is not qualified medical advice. Please consult your doctor.
The information / discussion in the Cycling Health Forum is not qualified medical advice. Please consult your doctor.
-
- Posts: 381
- Joined: Sat May 10, 2014 8:33 am
- Location: Sydney, NSW
ITB pain/soreness
Postby Zippy7 » Sat Nov 26, 2016 10:46 am
Successful trades : Rheicel, Je, wgc138, 2ndeffort, celeste boy, rodneycc
- trailgumby
- Posts: 15469
- Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 5:30 pm
- Location: Northern Beaches, Sydney
- Contact:
Re: ITB pain/soreness
Postby trailgumby » Sat Nov 26, 2016 2:39 pm
I've been through this. I'm not all the way out the other side yet, but heading in the right direction.
It's not the saddle per se. I know you've swapped saddles and gained an improvement but bear with me.
It is more likely imbalances in your muscle recruitment patterns. The fix for me has been aggressive rolling of the ITB on a hard roller (hurt like hell to start with), massaging the sore spots to break up the stiction as it passes across the outside of my knee, and tweaking my riding and cleat position to encourage me to use my glutes more instead of relying so heavily on my quads.
I also have a set of exercises to do to strenghten my glutes and encourage me to use them in my pedalling action, and a warm up-exercise that gets my glutes firing immediately I start riding instead of waiting until my other muscles start to tire, by which time I've often reinjured myself.
The saddle and/or the discomfort might have subtly affected your muscle recruitment during the pedal stroke.
Once you have found a comfortable saddle, I'd go to a physiotherapist bike fitter and tell them your problems, and have them adjust your bike to suit.
Unfortunately there is no standard for saddles apart from the gap between rails. Two different model saddles of the same length and width will have you sitting in a slightly different position on each, and you will therefore need to have the fore-aft position changed, and potentially the height and angle to horizontal changed too.
Does this make sense?
It's not the saddle per se. I know you've swapped saddles and gained an improvement but bear with me.
It is more likely imbalances in your muscle recruitment patterns. The fix for me has been aggressive rolling of the ITB on a hard roller (hurt like hell to start with), massaging the sore spots to break up the stiction as it passes across the outside of my knee, and tweaking my riding and cleat position to encourage me to use my glutes more instead of relying so heavily on my quads.
I also have a set of exercises to do to strenghten my glutes and encourage me to use them in my pedalling action, and a warm up-exercise that gets my glutes firing immediately I start riding instead of waiting until my other muscles start to tire, by which time I've often reinjured myself.
The saddle and/or the discomfort might have subtly affected your muscle recruitment during the pedal stroke.
Once you have found a comfortable saddle, I'd go to a physiotherapist bike fitter and tell them your problems, and have them adjust your bike to suit.
Unfortunately there is no standard for saddles apart from the gap between rails. Two different model saddles of the same length and width will have you sitting in a slightly different position on each, and you will therefore need to have the fore-aft position changed, and potentially the height and angle to horizontal changed too.
Does this make sense?
-
- Posts: 381
- Joined: Sat May 10, 2014 8:33 am
- Location: Sydney, NSW
Re: ITB pain/soreness
Postby Zippy7 » Sat Nov 26, 2016 6:10 pm
Thanks TG
That makes sense - I commute (12km each way) and had no issues before, but that is a flat bar road bike. I even started the sunday rides on that bike, but went with a drop bar roadie to make it easier to keep up.
Agree that this issue is caused by overusing the wrong muscles due to poor bike position. In my case, it could have been that since the Selle Italia saddle had so much padding (a seriously thick layer padding that you could compress heaps) - I ended up having to adjust the saddle height up and up a couple of times. I guess I might have had it too high, but in the end, couldn't get it sorted.
Also, I should mention that since I use SPDs on both bikes, there was no cleat adjustment possible.
I'd only get the ITB issues on the long ride, and I could commute without too much discomfort (as long as I didn't try to overdo it).
That makes sense - I commute (12km each way) and had no issues before, but that is a flat bar road bike. I even started the sunday rides on that bike, but went with a drop bar roadie to make it easier to keep up.
Agree that this issue is caused by overusing the wrong muscles due to poor bike position. In my case, it could have been that since the Selle Italia saddle had so much padding (a seriously thick layer padding that you could compress heaps) - I ended up having to adjust the saddle height up and up a couple of times. I guess I might have had it too high, but in the end, couldn't get it sorted.
Also, I should mention that since I use SPDs on both bikes, there was no cleat adjustment possible.
I'd only get the ITB issues on the long ride, and I could commute without too much discomfort (as long as I didn't try to overdo it).
Successful trades : Rheicel, Je, wgc138, 2ndeffort, celeste boy, rodneycc
-
- Posts: 89
- Joined: Fri Feb 14, 2014 1:37 pm
Re: ITB pain/soreness
Postby alrsv1 » Thu Dec 01, 2016 10:08 am
trailgumby wrote:
I also have a set of exercises to do to strenghten my glutes and encourage me to use them in my pedalling action, and a warm up-exercise that gets my glutes firing immediately I start riding instead of waiting until my other muscles start to tire, by which time I've often reinjured myself.
Hi, can you elaborate on the glute and warm up exercises that you do please?
1997 Ritchey Road Logic, 1998 Frezoni MAX,
1992 Cannondale M2000, 201Pivot Mach5.5.
1992 Cannondale M2000, 201Pivot Mach5.5.
- trailgumby
- Posts: 15469
- Joined: Sat Jan 03, 2009 5:30 pm
- Location: Northern Beaches, Sydney
- Contact:
Re: ITB pain/soreness
Postby trailgumby » Thu Dec 01, 2016 7:48 pm
The "warm-up" that I do consists of standing on one leg with the thigh of the other parallel to the ground and pressing into the wall at the knee. Hold for 20 seconds and swap sides.
The purpose is to wake up the parts of the brain responsible for firing the glutes and pelvic floor so they start firing straight away. Without doing this, it can take up to 20 minutes for them to start firing properly on the bike, by which time my sticky ITB as it passes by my knee gets irritated and starts protesting.
The other exercises are going to take more time to describe than I have at the moment. I would recommend going to a cycling-savvy physio and getting him/her to diagnose your individual issues and setting you a program to address your specific needs.
The purpose is to wake up the parts of the brain responsible for firing the glutes and pelvic floor so they start firing straight away. Without doing this, it can take up to 20 minutes for them to start firing properly on the bike, by which time my sticky ITB as it passes by my knee gets irritated and starts protesting.
The other exercises are going to take more time to describe than I have at the moment. I would recommend going to a cycling-savvy physio and getting him/her to diagnose your individual issues and setting you a program to address your specific needs.
-
- Posts: 89
- Joined: Fri Feb 14, 2014 1:37 pm
Re: ITB pain/soreness
Postby alrsv1 » Mon Dec 05, 2016 3:05 pm
Thanks Trailgumby.
1997 Ritchey Road Logic, 1998 Frezoni MAX,
1992 Cannondale M2000, 201Pivot Mach5.5.
1992 Cannondale M2000, 201Pivot Mach5.5.
Jump to
- General Australian Cycling Topics
- Info / announcements
- Buying a bike / parts
- General Cycling Discussion
- The Bike Shed
- Cycling Health
- Cycling Safety and Advocacy
- Women's Cycling
- Bike & Gear Reviews
- Cycling Trade
- Stolen Bikes
- Bicycle FAQs
- Serious Biking
- Audax / Randonneuring
- Retro biking
- Commuting
- MTB
- Recumbents
- Fixed Gear/ Single Speed
- Track
- Electric Bicycles
- Cyclocross and Gravel Grinding
- Dragsters / Lowriders / Cruisers
- Children's Bikes
- Cargo Bikes and Utility Cycling
- Road Racing
- Road Biking
- Training
- Time Trial
- Triathlon
- International and National Tours and Events
- Cycle Touring
- Touring Australia
- Touring Overseas
- Touring Bikes and Equipment
- Australia
- Western Australia
- New South Wales
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Victoria
- ACT
- Tasmania
- Northern Territory
- Country & Regional
- The Market Place
- Member to Member Bike and Gear Sales
- Want to Buy, Group Buy, Swap
- My Bikes or Gear Elsewhere
- Cycling Brands
- Cannondale
- Garmin
- Giant
- Shimano
- Trek
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users
- All times are UTC+11:00
- Top
- Delete cookies
About the Australian Cycling Forums
The Australian Cycling Forums is a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.
Bicycles Network Australia
Forum Information
Connect with BNA
Brought to you by Bicycles Network Australia | © 1999 - 2024 | Powered by phpBB ®
This website uses affiliate links to retail platforms including ebay, amazon, proviz and ribble.
This website uses affiliate links to retail platforms including ebay, amazon, proviz and ribble.