New guy needs help with bike size

[mainjet]

Hello. As I said I am a new guy here and I have very limited knowledge about road bikes.
I am looking for a road bike to get into shape and loose weight. Like a lot of people, I don't want to spend more money than I should for my ability. However, I would like to get a good bike that isn't going to hurt me to ride.
I have been looking at the Trek 1500 and it seems that the price point is about right for me. My questions come in at he correct size to get. I know that I should be fitted but if I see a good deal I would like to consider grabbing it.
I have gone to the fit calculator and made all the measurements. Here are the results -

Measurements

-------------------------------------------

Inseam: 32.5

Trunk: 25.1875

Forearm: 13

Arm: 25.5

Thigh: 23.625

Lower Leg: 21

Sternal Notch: 56.75

Total Body Height: 69



The Competitive Fit (cm)

-------------------------------------------

Seat tube range c-c: 53.5 - 54.0

Seat tube range c-t: 55.1 - 55.6

Top tube length: 53.3 - 53.7

Stem Length: 10.9 - 11.5

BB-Saddle Position: 70.6 - 72.6

Saddle-Handlebar: 52.0 - 52.6

Saddle Setback: 5.4 - 5.8

Seatpost Type: SETBACK



The Eddy Fit (cm)

-------------------------------------------

Seat tube range c-c: 54.7 - 55.2

Seat tube range c-t: 56.3 - 56.8

Top tube length: 53.3 - 53.7

Stem Length: 9.8 - 10.4

BB-Saddle Position: 69.8 - 71.8

Saddle-Handlebar: 52.8 - 53.4

Saddle Setback: 6.6 - 7.0

Seatpost Type: SETBACK



The French Fit (cm)

-------------------------------------------

Seat tube range c-c: 56.4 - 56.9

Seat tube range c-t: 58.0 - 58.5

Top tube length: 54.5 - 54.9

Stem Length: 10.0 - 10.6

BB-Saddle Position: 68.1 - 70.1

Saddle-Handlebar: 54.5 - 55.1

Saddle Setback: 6.1 - 6.5

Seatpost Type: SETBACK


Seems likea lot of information but what does it mean? What is the actual size bike that I should be looking for, 54 cm? Which of the measurement is the actual bike size? Can anyone look at the above results with the geometry of the Trek 1500 and tell me if a 54 cm bike with standard geometry will work? I realize that I will probably need to make some adjustments like seat post set back and such but I need a platform to start with.
I ride on the country roads which are mainly flat but can have some occasional steep hills or long uphill grades. I am 210 lbs so you can see why I need a bike.
I was riding about 12 miles every morning. Stop laughing! That's all the time that I had in the morning before work (thank God). The old bike that I had would just hurt my lower back and it is heavy. It's just your run of the mill Panasonic that somebody gave me.
Any help that you could give me would be very much appreciated. I am just lloking into the bikes and trying to familiarize myself with what I need. I will make the purchase anytime between now and Spring.
Thanks in advance.

 

[carpediemracing]

It seems no one wants to reply so I'll give it a shot. You did a lot of homework in researching fit, but it seems like it's a case of "too much information" and possible a bit of overlooking some major factors. Perhaps stepping back a bit will help.

First, what is your current bike's measurements? Have you experimented with position changes (as much as is possible)? You might be able to raise or lower your stem, raise/lower your seat, play with setback, tilt your bars a little differently, etc. If your bike is too far off then it won't do too much good.

Second, what sort of limitations are you experiencing relative to your body and your position. If you have any physical problems (bad back, knees, hips, whatever) your fit needs may drastically change. When I got heavier (i.e. my torso got thicker) I found that raising the bar and moving it forward was more comfortable. The distance to the bars remained pretty constant relative to my torso (think of it as the radius of a circle with the center being your hips and the outside being your hands). As I've started to regain some of my fitness, my bars are slowly moving down. Fit is not a stationary target. It moves all the time relative to your riding fitness and goals.

Finally, what sort of riding do you want to do, or are you aiming for? Do you want to ride 12 miles a day? Maybe the 12 miles a day are a build up to do a 50 or 60 or 100 mile ride? How adventurous will you be on the bike - would you consider riding out 20 miles before staring back home, or will you stay on roads you know well. Do you want to do any group rides? Mass start racing? Do you ride a motorcycle or drive a car enthusiastically? Do you view a downhill as a rest period, a scary obstacle, or a chance to see if you can break 50 mph? This kind of attitude check will help point you towards a particular type of bike (and accessories). Flat roads with a few hills here and there doesn't require any particular kind of bike. But someone who has an eye out to do a long touring trip will have very different needs from someone who wants to bomb around corners and aspires to win a town line sprint on a group ride.

You mention your weight. It is similar (a little less) to the weight of a cycling collegue I have who is about the same height. I don't know how you are built but his position is limited with regards to bar extension and bar height (really how low it is) due to his torso. So a bike that would fit a, say, 150 lbs rider would probably be uncomfortable for a 210 lbs rider. Most of the position difference would be attained through relatively non-permanent methods, i.e. the stem, bars, seat, seatpost. But it will still be a factor in fitting your next bike. Consider a realistic weight loss program or goal - if your fit requirements change enough due to massive weight loss, would you consider buying yourself a new bike as a reward? If so, make it more appealing to attain that goal by holding off a bit on the bike.

If you are in the Northern hemisphere, it would be a good time to go into a shop since it'll be slow. The shop employees can spend more time talking with you. Learn as much as you can and some employee might be upgrading their bike and offer you their old one at a great price.

hope this helps
cdr

 

[mainjet]

Thank you for the reply. I was starting to wonder if you had to "know somebody" to get a reply. Thank you for taking the time to give such an informative reply.

I have landed pretty much at the same place as you were leading me in the reply. I decided to start a fitness program at a gym by my house. This will include cardio and weight training. I have decided that when I loose 20 lbs. I will reward myself with the bike. Hopefully that will be right around the time that the weather is getting better and I want to get out on the bike.
The old bike that I have is really not worth investing any money in. I have decided that I will buy a trek 1500 from Village Cycle Center in Chicago and have them fit the bike to me. That will be my starting point and at least I will know that the bike is set up correctly for me.
I want to do this for fitness and because I enjoy that type of excercise better than a treadmill. I have two friends that are really into cycling and I would like to go on some longer rides with them occasionally. Mainly, I would like a good road bike that I can get on in the morning before work and get some good excercise. 12 miles is okay as long as I know that it is working me out but eventually as I get more fit and my times get better, I would like to ride further in the morning.
Thanks again for the reply. I will continue to read over it and see what other useful information I can glean from it.

 

[carpediemracing]

Not a problem. It seems like in cycling, those offering advice are few and far between and it seemed like you actually tried to learn before you asked. Plus your question required some detail in answering.

A thought on the "morning rides". If you have, say, an hour to ride, and you ride 12 miles in that hour, you may find that your total rideable distance does not increase too dramatically. Averaging 4 mph higher would allow you to ride a total of 16 miles. Realistically, unless you run all the lights and blatantly disregard any threat to your safety, it'll be hard to average over 18-19 mph, esp in Chicago or its suburbs. Well, okay, unless you're doing a loop around a development block with all right turns.

What you might want to do is to put together a rough and simple schedule for riding. Doing the same effort (i.e. trying to finish the same loop faster) everyday is not the most productive way of training. The old standby schedule is the following:

Mon: rest or easy

Tue: Sprint or speed workout. Efforts would be all out for a minute or less, maybe 5-8 of them (possibly starting with 2 or 3), followed by say 3-5 minutes of recovery. The idea would be to be as fast as possible on the efforts. When your speed drops noticeably, stop the efforts. Your cadence should be 120 or higher on the efforts. You can vary gears - big ring x 15T, then 13T, then 15T, etc. If you have a cyclocomputer, note your max speed and try to beat it (or match it) each week. Avg speed will suffer since you're resting between efforts.

Wed: steady ride, a little longer if possible. Try and keep your cadence high but don't make big muscular efforts. Chicago is ideal for this type of training since it's flat-ish. Small ring most of the time, unless you have a crazy tailwind.

Thu: longer efforts, depending on your available terrain, 3-20 minute long effort. Usually a more steady effort but definitely above your "comfort" level. Do a total of about 20-30 minutes of effort with a few minutes of easy riding between each one. If you are doing a 20 minute effort (a long climb so probably not in Chicago) you would probably do only one effort. Use bigger gears and lower cadences. Raising your average speed is your goal here, so this might be the fastest ride of the week.

Fri: rest or easy

Sat, Sat: longer rides. For weight loss (and overall fitness/efficiency), this is critical. If you can manage a 2-3 hour ride, that would be great. Longer is okay too but you'll need to deal with eating while riding. Do some efforts, sprint for a town line sign, then take it easy. Mix it up. Even though you may not be riding for a specific goal, doing long rides (over 2-3 hours) will force your body to become more efficient in pedaling and position. You'll notice the differences small position changes make and learn what your body needs regarding position and fit.

However, on a poorly fitted bike, long rides will be tortuous. An alternative (to reduce the time factor) would be riding for a while then running. Personally running really kicks my butt so a 30 minute run for me is probably as exhausting as an hour on the bike. A 1-1.5 hour ride followed by a steady 30-45 minutes on the treadmill will be pretty effective and take less time.

Note - on the Mon/Fri, you might go to the gym and lift upperbody and do some non-stress cardio (swimming would be optimal, but an easy session on some elliptical or rower or something would be reasonable).

For a "general" schedule, this does it all:
1. speed work on Tuesdays - increases maximum speed. If you increase your max speed from, say, 30 to 40 mph, then riding 20 mph becomes that much easier.
2. power work Thursdays (and prob Sat and Sun) - increases time trialing ability, making long steady efforts. builds power.
3. steady rides on Wed, Sat, Sun - increases base aerobic fitness, burns calories.
4. recovery days - allows body to recover so it is able to work harder when you ask it to do so.

hope this helps get your thought processes rolling
cdr

 

[Benan]

Not a problem. It seems like in cycling, those offering advice are few and far between and it seemed like you actually tried to learn before you asked. Plus your question required some detail in answering.

A thought on the "morning rides". If you have, say, an hour to ride, and you ride 12 miles in that hour, you may find that your total rideable distance does not increase too dramatically. Averaging 4 mph higher would allow you to ride a total of 16 miles. Realistically, unless you run all the lights and blatantly disregard any threat to your safety, it'll be hard to average over 18-19 mph, esp in Chicago or its suburbs. Well, okay, unless you're doing a loop around a development block with all right turns.

What you might want to do is to put together a rough and simple schedule for riding. Doing the same effort (i.e. trying to finish the same loop faster) everyday is not the most productive way of training. The old standby schedule is the following:

Mon: rest or easy

Tue: Sprint or speed workout. Efforts would be all out for a minute or less, maybe 5-8 of them (possibly starting with 2 or 3), followed by say 3-5 minutes of recovery. The idea would be to be as fast as possible on the efforts. When your speed drops noticeably, stop the efforts. Your cadence should be 120 or higher on the efforts. You can vary gears - big ring x 15T, then 13T, then 15T, etc. If you have a cyclocomputer, note your max speed and try to beat it (or match it) each week. Avg speed will suffer since you're resting between efforts.

Wed: steady ride, a little longer if possible. Try and keep your cadence high but don't make big muscular efforts. Chicago is ideal for this type of training since it's flat-ish. Small ring most of the time, unless you have a crazy tailwind.

Thu: longer efforts, depending on your available terrain, 3-20 minute long effort. Usually a more steady effort but definitely above your "comfort" level. Do a total of about 20-30 minutes of effort with a few minutes of easy riding between each one. If you are doing a 20 minute effort (a long climb so probably not in Chicago) you would probably do only one effort. Use bigger gears and lower cadences. Raising your average speed is your goal here, so this might be the fastest ride of the week.

Fri: rest or easy

Sat, Sat: longer rides. For weight loss (and overall fitness/efficiency), this is critical. If you can manage a 2-3 hour ride, that would be great. Longer is okay too but you'll need to deal with eating while riding. Do some efforts, sprint for a town line sign, then take it easy. Mix it up. Even though you may not be riding for a specific goal, doing long rides (over 2-3 hours) will force your body to become more efficient in pedaling and position. You'll notice the differences small position changes make and learn what your body needs regarding position and fit.

However, on a poorly fitted bike, long rides will be tortuous. An alternative (to reduce the time factor) would be riding for a while then running. Personally running really kicks my butt so a 30 minute run for me is probably as exhausting as an hour on the bike. A 1-1.5 hour ride followed by a steady 30-45 minutes on the treadmill will be pretty effective and take less time.

Note - on the Mon/Fri, you might go to the gym and lift upperbody and do some non-stress cardio (swimming would be optimal, but an easy session on some elliptical or rower or something would be reasonable).

For a "general" schedule, this does it all:
1. speed work on Tuesdays - increases maximum speed. If you increase your max speed from, say, 30 to 40 mph, then riding 20 mph becomes that much easier.
2. power work Thursdays (and prob Sat and Sun) - increases time trialing ability, making long steady efforts. builds power.
3. steady rides on Wed, Sat, Sun - increases base aerobic fitness, burns calories.
4. recovery days - allows body to recover so it is able to work harder when you ask it to do so.

hope this helps get your thought processes rolling
cdr

Very detailed & helpful guide for the newbies. Thanks!

 

[BikeBarronBob]

Hey there! Glad you found the guide helpful. If you have any specific questions or need any advice, feel free to ask. I'm here to help you out on your cycling journey. Enjoy the ride!