Thanks for looking.
I got a Lemond Zurich late last year after not having rode seriously for several years.
Had done some longer touring before (TOMRV-back to back centuries on a weekend) and other assorted riding. Never trained really, and never paid much attention to heart rate and correct technique, gearing, intervals, etc.
Actually, mostly a tennis player and I biked for endurance as running is hard on my body.
I am 5'11" and 190 lbs. Decent shape, but it is clear I am not in the class of even intermediates here.
My typical rides this summer have been 10-20 miles and depending on the day will be between 14-17 mph. Mixture of flats and hills.
I did get a HRM. My HR Max is 182 to the best of my knowledge.
I did some reading on training with a HRM but never really stuck to it.
I used the HRM, but it was more a curiosity than anything.
I have improved some this summer and have ridden around 40 miles a week.

Anyway---
I recently read a Carmichael book and decided to work on my Aerobic base.
Have upped the miles to 75 a week at moderate heart rates (136-144) and trying to improve my cadence and technique.

Am having fun and can tell I am getting fitter and stronger up hills and on the rides overall after a few weeks now.

My question is my back is a little sore now and my right hip is also sore. Nothing painful, but I don't want to develop a chronic injury. Is their some seat height and positon adjsutments I should consider? I kind of feel that the seat may be a bit low. I set the height based on some articles on how to do so.

Am not sure-maybe it is just a product of riding more and increasing the miles and I will adapt.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

...i believe the answers to your questions are in charmichael's book.

The hip may be from over extending the leg and you might try lowering the seat a 1/4 or 1/2 inch. Do a search here on seat height, this is covered a lot. The neck could be from too low of bars. Did you lower the bars or raise the seat recently? If so these changes should be made a little at a time so you can adapt.

The sore neck could be riding more and longer in the drops. Again, it takes awhile to adapt and don't over do it at first. I know my neck still gets sore if I ride in a low aero position for too long. But it goes away after a few minutes of being out of the drops. Mix up the hand positions now and then.

Cycling does not cause the joint problems that running and some other sports so I would not get too concerned. But, if you have things set up extremely wrong you could cause tendon or joint damage.


Thanks for looking.
I got a Lemond Zurich late last year after not having rode seriously for several years.
Had done some longer touring before (TOMRV-back to back centuries on a weekend) and other assorted riding. Never trained really, and never paid much attention to heart rate and correct technique, gearing, intervals, etc.
Actually, mostly a tennis player and I biked for endurance as running is hard on my body.
I am 5'11" and 190 lbs. Decent shape, but it is clear I am not in the class of even intermediates here.
My typical rides this summer have been 10-20 miles and depending on the day will be between 14-17 mph. Mixture of flats and hills.
I did get a HRM. My HR Max is 182 to the best of my knowledge.
I did some reading on training with a HRM but never really stuck to it.
I used the HRM, but it was more a curiosity than anything.
I have improved some this summer and have ridden around 40 miles a week.

Anyway---
I recently read a Carmichael book and decided to work on my Aerobic base.
Have upped the miles to 75 a week at moderate heart rates (136-144) and trying to improve my cadence and technique.

Am having fun and can tell I am getting fitter and stronger up hills and on the rides overall after a few weeks now.

My question is my back is a little sore now and my right hip is also sore. Nothing painful, but I don't want to develop a chronic injury. Is their some seat height and positon adjsutments I should consider? I kind of feel that the seat may be a bit low. I set the height based on some articles on how to do so.

Am not sure-maybe it is just a product of riding more and increasing the miles and I will adapt.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

I strongly urge you to have a professional fitting done at a bike shop. Small pains and sorenesses are common and can be due to an infinate number of things. Making small adjustments here and there based on blind recommendations (through a forum like this) may hurt as much as help.

Find a reputable bike shop in your area. One which has a person that offers quality bike fittings. Such a person will put your bike on a trainer and go through different fit options with you. This service can cost up to $100 and you may end up buying a new stem or seatpost as a result. What you leave with is a quality starting point. Minor adjustments may need to be made afterwards but at least you can be confident that you are on the right track.

All too often, a new rider starts with a poor fitting bike. As discomfort develops, they begin to tweak things here and there. This often makes it worse and the trend continues endlessly. Spend the time and a little money to correct the problem with the help of a fit specialist or at least someone who can work with you in person.

I did a random internet search to give you an idea of the type of service I'm talking about. Here's an example: http://www.pro-bikes.com/service.html

...i believe the answers to your questions are in charmichael's book.

I will look through it closer. It is called the Ultimate Ride and actually does not seem to have much in there about the bike setup or fit. I do have another Davis Phinney book from the library that I believe has some info in it.
I guess I was just wondering from the more experienced guys here that the hip soreness is common "if the seat is not far enough back", or "if the seat is too low", or if you are "right handed/legged and are not pedaling equally on both sides", or your "pedaling technique needs to be improved", etc.

The hip may be from over extending the leg and you might try lowering the seat a 1/4 or 1/2 inch. Do a search here on seat height, this is covered a lot. The neck could be from too low of bars. Did you lower the bars or raise the seat recently? If so these changes should be made a little at a time so you can adapt.

I actually raised the seat a bit (maybe 1/4 inch) at the beginning of summer. Just to be clear, the slight strain or soreness is on the outside of the right pelvis/hip joint where the upper leg bone (femur) goes into the socket. Nothing major and it does not hurt when I ride-just seems irritated the last two weeks. The left side is fine.

You mention the neck, also. Neck is fine. (Was sore early in the summer when I was just starting again, but that was to be expected). Left lower back is kind of sore, but this could probably be anything-it has hurt after I play tennis for the last 18 years from serving.
I am less concerned about that than the hip.

I strongly urge you to have a professional fitting done at a bike shop. Small pains and sorenesses are common and can be due to an infinate number of things. Making small adjustments here and there based on blind recommendations (through a forum like this) may hurt as much as help.

Good advice. I bought the bike from a bike shop here locally. I can see what they charge for a fitting.

Thanks guys.

Find some IT Band stretches, look for Yoga moves which open the hip socket a bit more. Actually, some Yoga positions for the back of the hip are pretty good IT band stretches.

Also, if you are ramping up your training hours, be sure to add a few every week, don`t jump from 5 to 12. Also, take every fourth week at 50% duration in order to recover, heal, rest.

Find some IT Band stretches, look for Yoga moves which open the hip socket a bit more. Actually, some Yoga positions for the back of the hip are pretty good IT band stretches.

Ok, now I am going to sound stupid-what are "IT Band stretches"?
Stretching more is a good idea. I usually do so a lot when I am playing a lot of tennis, but have not been as much in the past 6 weeks as I have been almost exclusively on the bike and not the tennis court.
I do stretch my hamstrings a lot as they are vulnerable to cramps in the past, but that is about it.

I did read the Phinney book chapters on seat setup. The height checked out OK using the heel on the pedal method he espouses. It was not level though (sloped downward) so I fixed that.

You mentioned pain in the right hip. I had a similar pain, but in the left hip region. I recently had my bikes fit to me and found that my right leg is shorter than the left. About 1/8" of shims under the cleat in the right shoe did the trick, no more pain in the hip. Your problem may have a different origin but, if related to bike fit, the $100 or so you spend to get properly fitted is well worth it.

Well, I think I remember a chiropractor mentioning a slight difference in my leg lengths.
Can't recall which was which.
I am probably over-analyzing, but it feels like my right leg is longer than the left:)
When you are out on a two hour ride your mind wanders. For some reason (maybe just in my head) the right leg feels like it does not have the same freedom on the pedal stroke as the left or is slightly cramped.

I will see about the bike fitting.
I think the place I bought it from should do it for a fair price as I bought the bike there.

Thanks for the comment.

it band= iliotibial band (sp on the "i" componant may be slightly off!)...

it's the major tendon running from the outer hip to the outer knee.

a critical stretch to say the least. outer knee pain is usually a sure sign.

Well, the good news is my hip aggravation is clearing up. I rested two days and
did a lot of stretching before and after a couple of 20 mile rides this weekend and it feels pain free this morning.

The only adjustment on the bike was leveling the seat and moving it back very slightly.
I think this probably did have the effect of raising it slightly.

I doublechecked the height based upon the Phinney method in his book and it seems correct.

The main thing is my hip does not hurt and more riding did not aggravate it.
I will need to keep up the stretching. I had not been doing this very much and I know it is important, especially at my age (48).