Bar height: how low can you go?

I see articles from time to time on bar height and while they are good material they often leave you with a couple take home points:

1. It depends on the rider

2. Go see a professional bike fitter

Both are correct but I want to go a step further here in the interest of helping riders learn more about how their body affects their position. Knowledge is power, or something like that.

This is mostly applicable to road and triathlon/TT folks as the bars tend to be much lower than on a mountain bike or hybrid. Lower bars have some definite benefit in regard to aerodynamics and power production...as long as the position suits your individual anatomy!

Here we are. We want to know where the bars go. First you should make sure you are happy with your seat position THEN mess with the bars. If you are unsure, take some time on Steve Hogg’s website, then set your seat where it is comfy and powerful...complicated, I know.

https://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/bikefit/2011/02/seat-height-how-hard-can-it-be/

From here, the three biggest limitations to riding lower bars I see are:

1. Hip flexion - How far your knee can rise up towards your chest

2. Neck extension - How far your head can tilt back (imagine the last sip of a canned drink)

3. Hamstring flexibility - How far you can bend over toward your toes

To test all this I would check each thing in order from bar tops, to hoods, then drops. Also worth checking is the aero hood position many riders use. Hands on the hoods then drop your elbows to where your forearms are level to the ground and you look more like you are on a tri bike. If any of these tests give you trouble in the lowest positions(drops or aerobars) you might have your bars too low. Conversely, if you have plenty of motion leftover, maybe you can try a bit lower! Slam that stem! Well, sometimes. Maybe. Let’s move on.

You can test all this on a trainer (in front of a mirror is great) or a safe, flat road free of traffic. For the leg tests, try left AND right.The idea here, is for a repetitive activity, don’t work to the absolute limits of your flexibility. Much like a savings account, a bit of a surplus is a good thing!

1. Hip Flexion - In your chosen bar position, stop with one knee at the top of the pedal stroke (cranks should be in line with seat tube) with foot unclipped but resting on top of the pedal. Slowly raise the foot off the pedal and the knee rising towards your chest. You should be able to do this without discomfort or difficulty. Also maintain the same back position...don’t curl up in a ball.

2. Neck extension - While riding and looking up the road as you normally would, tilt your head up without changing your torso or arm position like you wanted to see the sky. If you can’t do this...TOO LOW.

3. Hamstring flexibility - With one leg at the bottom of the pedal stroke (cranks should be in line with seat tube) and knee slightly bent try to lean your torso forward some more (starting from the bar top position and moving gradually lower). If the back of your leg tightens up right away, you might be close to too low.

After checking these, you will have a better idea of how YOUR anatomy affects YOUR bike position and will be better able to make decisions on your fit. An individualized approach helps us move beyond the answer “it depends”. For each of the tests, there are multiple factors at play, but the beauty of these is we don’t have to obsess over twenty different things!

If you have limitations, it is not bad news...it is simply how you are TODAY. That can change with some focused mobility and strength work over 3-4 weeks. Kit Laughlin’s YouTube site is my favorite one stop shop for improving flexibility. https://www.youtube.com/user/KitLaughlin

Whatever position you choose, you should feel relaxed and powerful while riding. If you make a position change, give it a couple rides before making a decision. 

Riding goals and duration are also factors. A dedicated criterium racer will likely ride lower than a new rider looking to knock out their first century. Looking pro is great but the real priority is being able to perform. Good luck and as usual, hit me with any questions.

Hip Flexion

Neck Extension

Hamstring Flexibility

The seated calf raise: are you missing out?

Why bother with this often ignored weight machine? Why not just stand up and do calf raises?

The Soleus muscle!

The soleus is the hidden workhorse of the leg. It is covered by the easily visible gastrocnemius but contributes a huge amount of the force needed for running...and walking. The image and chart below really make this message clear. Running is ALL about the soleus!

Seated calf raises are the best way to work the soleus (the knee needs to bent 80 degrees or so for this goal) with the weight machine pictured being probably the easiest one. Standing calf raises really are not enough on their own but are better than NOT doing calf work. You can also use a smith machine or simply put some weights on your lower thigh near your knee. How much your ankle moves will depend on your anatomy and mobility but I think 20 degrees dorsiflexion (heel down) to 10 degrees plantarflexion (heels up) is a pretty decent starting point.

I mentioned runners here, but honestly this is worth doing no matter what sport you are into. My point is…even if you are a swimmer or cyclist, you are also a walker! Strong calf muscles are important as we age, which we are all doing. Soleus weakness shows itself in decreased walking speed and balance in older folks. I have heard some concerns over concerns of “imbalances” from exercises like this in isolation but this just isn’t true based on the research I have seen.

I would shoot for 3-4 sets of 4-10 reps with 2-3 minutes rest between sets. For the first few weeks, 3 sets of 15 reps with moderate weight is good to get used to a new exercise. Go fairly heavy after that, it should be tough to finish the last couple reps of each set. Based on current tendon research, go slow here. 3 seconds up. 3 seconds down.

The Seated Calf Raise is also a great example that really valuable exercises can be a bit simple and boring. No bosu ball, activating anything, or fancy special technique. Just get the work done. I bought this machine from Facebook marketplace for $75 with some careful searching. There are plenty of them around. I have been using this for three months and really glad I have it.

Credit to @mickhughes.physio and @montanarunninglab for their frequent mentions of machine based strength work!

Fixing muscle imbalances

This post will hopefully serve as some help to those with concerns such as:

“I feel wonky.”

“I think I have some muscle imbalance.”

“My hips don’t feel straight while I am riding.”

Let’s get to it. The causes of issues like these are numerous and often take a while to sort out. I will go through them in a progressive order but if you think I missed something please let me know. I don’t mention trying to “correct” them while riding as this is mostly wasted effort in my opinion. The way to go is going after root causes OFF the bike.

Side Note: Riders with dual sided power meters looking to even out power balance:

1. Check your cleat position. Cleat position dictates which muscles are recruited by the nervous system during the pedal stroke.

2. Check your function. The book Anatomy for Runners is great for this. The goal is fairly even strength, stability, and mobility between sides.

3. Calibrate your power meter. This is my favorite as it is the easiest to fix!

First of all, we have to talk about structural asymmetries. This includes things like leg length differences, scoliosis in the spine, one foot that turns out more than the other, or a rounded upper back. You are BORN with this stuff usually and it is challenging to change so it is best to accept that humans are all a bit crooked and get to work on what you CAN change. These include:

1. Bike Fit

2. Flexibility/ Mobility

3. Strength

4. Motor Control

Bike Fit: Get a kickass bike fit from someone with a really good reputation...not just someone with fancy equipment or who used to be a pro rider. Someone with proven outcomes and references. That might be me…or someone else.

Flexibility/Mobility: Begin Max Shank’s 5 Minute Flow in the morning and stretch at night. Yoga is good too. Here is what is important. Pay attention to differences in left and right side for each stretch or movement. The goal is to be close to similar from left to right. If one side is tighter do twice as much stretching for that side. It WILL improve. Good resources include Max Shank, Kit Laughlin, and GMB Fitness. Research it and be consistent. Foam rolling is okay but not mandatory. Same for massage, lasers, all that stuff.

Strength: Simply getting stronger helps many cyclists and runners. Bilateral AND single side movements are important. If you can take a kettlebell lesson with someone Strongfirst or RKC certified, DO IT! Extra bonus if they are FMS certified. Good resources here are Dan John, Jay Dicharry, and Chris Johnson. Seek out equal strength and balance on each side through a variety of movements.

Motor Control: This is how your brain communicates with your muscles and it is wired pretty strong. To improve this get a hold of Todd Hargrove’s book A Guide to Better Movement and read it. All of it. Then do the lessons in the back 10 to 15 minutes 3 times a week for 3 months. Another good one is Moshe Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement.

Sounds like a bunch of work right? It IS! You can find lectures or videos from all these folks on YouTube if you don’t like to read….It took ten or twenty years for your body to get twisted up and will take a few months to sort out, sometimes longer or shorter. I grew up playing baseball and soccer, so I had plenty of weird stuff myself. I did the things above, and got lots better. It works, I promise. Don’t stress over doing the perfect routine, just get to it and do something besides sit at a desk and ride your bike.