Does a big rider necessitate a big saddle?

[jkemp9]

Ok, some background: I'm 20 years old, 6'2", 230lbs, out of shape on my way back into it. Despite the weight I'm definitely not obese, broad shoulders, hips, so on. I've been doing 25 mile rides with an average of about 14-16mph and I occassionally play tennis the night after a ride (meaning this ride doesn't kill me for the entire day and night), and have been doing this 3-4 time a week for two months. That's all the cycling experience I have.
The frist problem I am having is occassional numbness in my toes, the right foot more than the left. I am right "footed" and, due to lack of experience, probably favor that leg while pedalling. The numbness isn't enough to stop me from riding but does cause some discomfort and concern. I wear stiff soled specialized road shoes with speedplay x-5 pedals.
The second, more important/severe problem is pain, numbness, and skin irritation in my, please excuse the lewdness, taint area. I did a 40 mile ride with trek club shorts on and was in a considerable amount of pain afterward. Although there are no lasting effects that I know of, I fear there may be some day. I have a Spec Allez with the stock saddle. I do some out of saddle pedaling to ease the pain and it helps but I'd rather not have any pain at all.
Is this something I'm going to have to deal with? Could these both be problems with position? Could it be lack of cushioning in the saddle to support my heavy load? Could a wider saddle help?
Sorry for the long post, thanks for any help.

 

[Eden]

stock saddles are usually pretty awful..... You might want to check out a saddle with a cutout or groove in it to help with some of the pressure issues - though the tingly toes may be your shoes and not your saddle. My feet tend to swell a bit on longer, hotter rides making it necessary to loosen my shoes sometimes. As far as saddles go, you should be sitting on your sit (aka butt) bones, not your soft tissues. See if you can find a shop that has one of those measurment things you sit on to find a saddle that is a good width for your pelvis. If you get a wider saddle and dont really need it you may find you just develop other chafing issues. You will feel some soreness at your sit bones for a while until you acclimate to sitting on a saddle - feels kind of like a bruise. That is normal and it should go away with a few weeks of regular riding.

Also - don't sit around in your shorts after you are done riding. That's a great way to develop saddle sores - ick. Chamois are great at absorbing sweat etc. They are also great at breeding bacteria. Take a change of clothes in your car if you drive to your rides and get out of the nasty cycling shorts asap.

 

[Gadge]

I'm a big rider and have the same foot numbness that you speak of. It got so bad that I had to invest in hybrid pedals (spd one side and flat on the other). This allows me to come off my toes and place the pedal under my foot arch, when the pain gets too much. As my riding has progressed over the last few years i find that i need to do this less and less. I should also note the I only get foot numbness on long hill climbs.

Re saddle sore.
My cycle buddies, all well under 190lbs,all suffer from this but not me - and I'm bigger than you!.
I find that a decent road bike style gel saddle, tilted down at the front by 10-15 degrees takes all the pressure off the pelvic bone and places it on the bones beneath the butt cheeks. Try it, it works for me.

I did a 70 mile cycle on Sunday and a 30mile on Tuesday and Wednesday, 50 mile yesterday and have no saddle sore at all - my thighs hurt like hell though...

I hope this helps.

 

[vascdoc]

Ok, some background: I'm 20 years old, 6'2", 230lbs, out of shape on my way back into it. Despite the weight I'm definitely not obese, broad shoulders, hips, so on. I've been doing 25 mile rides with an average of about 14-16mph and I occassionally play tennis the night after a ride (meaning this ride doesn't kill me for the entire day and night), and have been doing this 3-4 time a week for two months. That's all the cycling experience I have.
The frist problem I am having is occassional numbness in my toes, the right foot more than the left. I am right "footed" and, due to lack of experience, probably favor that leg while pedalling. The numbness isn't enough to stop me from riding but does cause some discomfort and concern. I wear stiff soled specialized road shoes with speedplay x-5 pedals.
The second, more important/severe problem is pain, numbness, and skin irritation in my, please excuse the lewdness, taint area. I did a 40 mile ride with trek club shorts on and was in a considerable amount of pain afterward. Although there are no lasting effects that I know of, I fear there may be some day. I have a Spec Allez with the stock saddle. I do some out of saddle pedaling to ease the pain and it helps but I'd rather not have any pain at all.
Is this something I'm going to have to deal with? Could these both be problems with position? Could it be lack of cushioning in the saddle to support my heavy load? Could a wider saddle help?
Sorry for the long post, thanks for any help.

Bike fit may have more to do with these symptoms than the saddle or shoes. See a professonal bike fitter first. Then begin experimenting with a different saddle, etc.

 

[Hasukawa]

I found a great saddle that elimintaes pretty much every type of discomfort in that region. The ISM Sport Saddle, I started riding on this about a year ago and I am a large man, 6'2" around 300lbs, and I do some competitive riding on a SS road bike. It took about 2 long rides to get my body adjusted to the seat and I haven't had any problems since. The seat forces you to only put your sit bones on it, which you notice right away. Durring my first long ride with it I had chaffing issues on my thighs but not since. The only problem I have with the seat is that I have not figured out a way to safely pedal while going handless, because there is no nose for me to guide with. They have Pro versions of the seat that are like wedges, but I don't see myself spending 3 times what I paid for this one just so I can pedal handless. The seat is really small too and ith my large size I'm very comfortable on it. The do have a larger Touring saddle but I wanted the smaller lighter one and made the right choice. I paid 65 for the seat and it has been one of the best investments in my bike.
As for the foot numbing thing, I have that too yet everyone keeps telling me to get road shoes, I bike in tennis shoes in toe clips. Yet I have found one advantage to getting numb toes, when it starts happening I start actively pedalling cyclically to fight it off.

 

[garage sale GT]

I am 6'1" and a not-too-chubby 195, and stock saddles work fine for me. As long as your butt bones are well supported, that's all you need. I think your shoes can cause numbness issues as well as the saddle.

 

[hd reynolds]

Only if you have a big butt.

 

[mongooseboy]

Only if you have a big butt.

yep thats pretty much right.

on foot numbness, you may have your seat too far back/forward causing improper alignment on your foot/pedal contact. also, for the "tender areas" you can adjust the tilt of the saddle, i had to do that with my specialized allez saddle, now its just as comfy as any another solution might be a different saddle. Specialized has some very nicely engineered Body Geometry saddles that might be worth a look and the money.

there might be some bike fit issues too...it could be worth having a professional fitting...

 

[stevecycles]

I'm a big guy, 6'2", 280. Down from 370 when I started riding, and trying to get to where you are.


I have not had saddle issues and am up to 75 mile rides. I have a Specialized Avatar Gel Saddle, 143mm width. This saddle comes in 3 widths, and despite my size was fitted for the medium. - So big guy does not necessarily mean big saddle. I also suggest a chamois cream. I like Chamois Butt'r

Foot numbness? Could be many things - overall bike fit, feet swell on ride, cleat position, etc. Find a good LBS with folks that know bike fit and get adjusted. It's not an exact science, make a tweak or two, test, and tweak again if necessary.

Good luck.

 

[vascdoc]

It's not an exact science, make a tweak or two, test, and tweak again if necessary.

Although it is not a science there are some methods better than others. The old fashion stand over the bike and pull it up into your groin is certainly outdated. They measure your body for length. My fitting involved using laser guides and other means to check the alignment of your hips, knees and ankles. They check the angles of various parts of your body. Changes are not only made to the height of the seat post or the angle of the seat. Changes can be made to the position of the cleat on your shoes, the stem length and height of the handle bars. One thing I have found useful is the FSA K-Wing handlebars. My fit today is better than my custom built bike in 1977.

 

[bernmart]

But the important point is that being big doesn't require a big saddle, as the OP wondered about.

I'm 6'2", 195 lbs. Always thought of myself as having a big butt. I got measured on a Specialized "assometer" and found that my sitbones were slightly less that 143 mm. apart. I bought a Specialized Toupe in size 143--a "little" saddle if there ever was one--and I'm blissfully comfortable on it.

Bike fit does matter, though. I had a pro fit done at my LBS, and he set the saddle height at the optimal height--a good 3/4" higher than it had been. On my own I tried jacking it up another 1/4" and the new saddle hurt like hell. Back at the prescribed height and all was well again.