New Saddle or More Time On Saddle?

Sounds like your saddle is positioned incorrectly. It is either too high or too far back and you're
riding on the tip. Pinching your prostate until it's numb is never a good thing.

I had this problem when I first started riding 12 years ago. I invested in a flat saddle that
doesn't have the "classic" shape of being high at the back. Triathletes use flat saddles because
they are more comfortable in the aero position. I find them more comfortable all around. But you
don't need an expensive one. You can probably get one on sale now for $50. (Never pay big money for
cycling products. Comfortable products are always affordable. And saving weight is vastly over-rated
and expensive.)

So I suggest lowering your saddle post by about 1/2", and sliding it all the way forward in the
rails. And make sure the saddle is angled flat. It's difficult to comment without actually seeing
the set-up. But if that doesn't work, then buy a flat saddle.

And I assume you are wearing padded cycling shorts? If not, please get a pair ASAP.

Cheers, Pubrat

"Chris" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Question for the veterans:

How do you determine if you need a new saddle or just more time on your current saddle? I'm a
relatively new triathlete and have only been training for a couple months now. My "long" rides are
only 90-120 minutes, but after about an hour, I start to get this "nerve pain" near my family
jewels. :P I'm not really sore or anything; it feels more like it's cutting off circulation or
something and my testicles start getting this weird tingling feeling.

Anyone else have any idea of the feeling I'm describing? Will this go away over time? Should I
invest in a new saddle? When have you given your saddle enough time? What do you folks think?

Thanks in advance.

In article said:

Question for the veterans:

How do you determine if you need a new saddle or just more time on your current saddle? I'm a
relatively new triathlete and have only been training for a couple months now. My "long" rides are
only 90-120 minutes, but after about an hour, I start to get this "nerve pain" near my family
jewels. :P I'm not really sore or anything; it feels more like it's cutting off circulation or
something and my testicles start getting this weird tingling feeling.

Anyone else have any idea of the feeling I'm describing? Will this go away over time? Should I
invest in a new saddle? When have you given your saddle enough time? What do you folks think?

Get your bike fit professionally (ask for a "Fit Kit," where they do funky stuff like measuring your
femur length). Do NOT settle for a place where they "eye you up." Call around and find a real bike
shop that works with racers. This may cost you about $50-$60, but it is WORTH EVERY PENNY.

If this doesn't help, get a new saddle. This kind of pain is not normal and you shouldn't be trying
to get used to it.

--Harold Buck

"I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."

- Homer J. Simpson

In article said:

And I assume you are wearing padded cycling shorts? If not, please get a pair ASAP.

Yeah, good point. It's worth paying $50 for a pair of shorts that are really comfortable. Hand wash
after every ride to avoid saddle sores.

--Harold Buck

"I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."

- Homer J. Simpson

Is that what's happening? Am I pinching my prostate? Is this a pretty common problem that
people have?

I already have a flat saddle, but I haven't played around with its positioning yet. Yes, I am riding
off the front of my saddle but I'm wondering if moving it forward will help any? It seems that with
that triangular shape, you're bound to slide forward? I haven't tested that theory, but everytime I
push myself back onto the back of my saddly, I just naturally seem to slide forward. I guess I won't
really know sliding is natural, or if I'm just moving because my body is trying to get into it's
most natural position until I try it though.

I am wearing padding cycling shorts, btw. Pearl Izumi Attack shorts. I don't think it's the shorts
that are causing me the problem.

Thanks for the feedback!

In article said:

Sounds like your saddle is positioned incorrectly. It is either too high or too far back and
you're riding on the tip. Pinching your prostate until it's numb is never a good thing.

I had this problem when I first started riding 12 years ago. I invested in a flat saddle that
doesn't have the "classic" shape of being high at the back. Triathletes use flat saddles because
they are more comfortable in the aero position. I find them more comfortable all around. But you
don't need an expensive one. You can probably get one on sale now for $50. (Never pay big money
for cycling products. Comfortable products are always affordable. And saving weight is vastly
over-rated and expensive.)

So I suggest lowering your saddle post by about 1/2", and sliding it all the way forward in the
rails. And make sure the saddle is angled flat. It's difficult to comment without actually seeing
the set-up. But if that doesn't work, then buy a flat saddle.

And I assume you are wearing padded cycling shorts? If not, please get a pair ASAP.

Cheers, Pubrat

"Chris" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Question for the veterans:

How do you determine if you need a new saddle or just more time on your current saddle? I'm a
relatively new triathlete and have only been training for a couple months now. My "long" rides
are only 90-120 minutes, but after about an hour, I start to get this "nerve pain" near my family
jewels. :P I'm not really sore or anything; it feels more like it's cutting off circulation or
something and my testicles start getting this weird tingling feeling.

Anyone else have any idea of the feeling I'm describing? Will this go away over time? Should I
invest in a new saddle? When have you given your saddle enough time? What do you folks think?

Thanks in advance.

In article said:

In article said:

Question for the veterans:

How do you determine if you need a new saddle or just more time on your current saddle? I'm a
relatively new triathlete and have only been training for a couple months now. My "long" rides
are only 90-120 minutes, but after about an hour, I start to get this "nerve pain" near my family
jewels. :P I'm not really sore or anything; it feels more like it's cutting off circulation or
something and my testicles start getting this weird tingling feeling.

Anyone else have any idea of the feeling I'm describing? Will this go away over time? Should I
invest in a new saddle? When have you given your saddle enough time? What do you folks think?

Get your bike fit professionally (ask for a "Fit Kit," where they do funky stuff like measuring
your femur length). Do NOT settle for a place where they "eye you up." Call around and find a real
bike shop that works with racers. This may cost you about $50-$60, but it is WORTH EVERY PENNY.

If this doesn't help, get a new saddle. This kind of pain is not normal and you shouldn't be
trying to get used to it.

Thanks for the advise. I'm pretty comfortable with the tri shop that's doing my fitting. I'll
probably take my bike back there and tell them of the problems that I'm having. They'll be more than
happy to make the adjustments for me, I'm sure.

I didn't think the pain was normal, but it's good to hear other people tell me its not. I can
understand the need to get used to sitting on something hard for hours at a time. Tingling and
numbness I can't see as ever being good, though.

- chris

In article said:

I already have a flat saddle, but I haven't played around with its positioning yet. Yes, I am
riding off the front of my saddle but I'm wondering if moving it forward will help any? It seems
that with that triangular shape, you're bound to slide forward? I haven't tested that theory, but
everytime I push myself back onto the back of my saddly, I just naturally seem to slide forward. I
guess I won't

You can adjust the seat angle. Mine was too far down, so I kept sliding forward. I angled it up just
a bit and things are much better now.

--Harold Buck

"I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."

- Homer J. Simpson

Chris, your saddle is definitely not positioned properly. You should not notice the need to push
yourself back on the saddle, nor should you notice yourself sliding off of the front.

Saddle positioning is an art, both for how to set it up, and for how to sit on it. I find that the
perfect position for me is a level saddle, which sits slightly higher in the tail section, and one
for which my sit bones rest on the backs of the saddle and thats about the only body to saddle
contact that is made. This puts the pressure on my bones, not my delicate tissues, and it sits me
upright for proper peddling, not wasting energy and effort trying to stay properly positioned so my
crotch doesn't start to hurt. With such a saddle position, I am able to scooch forward if needed for
short powerful seated climbing, or move even farther backward for long uphills. The neutral position
allows me such comfort as to ride with no hands for miles, even climbing.

I would not suggest making dramatic changes to your saddle position,
1/2" can drastically affect performance. I can notice a change in as little as 1/16". But if moving
it a 1/2" to start and then continuing to move it till you find the right spot works, go for it.

I would think though that lowering it is the proper first step. Then level it so from a horizontal,
the saddle "looks right". I'd then try to move the saddle to where your comfy sitting on it with the
only contact points being your sit bones and the back of the saddle. I'd then move the post up till
you find your pedalling strength begins to deteriorate, then moving it back down just a touch.

Good luck. Check the other saddle thread currently active. It takes years sometimes to find the
right saddle and position.

In article said:

In article said:

I already have a flat saddle, but I haven't played around with its positioning yet. Yes, I am
riding off the front of my saddle but I'm wondering if moving it forward will help any? It seems
that with that triangular shape, you're bound to slide forward? I haven't tested that theory, but
everytime I push myself back onto the back of my saddly, I just naturally seem to slide forward.
I guess I won't

You can adjust the seat angle. Mine was too far down, so I kept sliding forward. I angled it up
just a bit and things are much better now.

I'll have to get a level and check it out tonight. But eyeballing it, it looks pretty level. Angling
it up might seem like it would keep me back further, but seems like it would cause more pain on my
goods. Where angling it down seems like it would make me slide forward even more.

I think I'll try moving the saddle forward on the rails and see if that doesn't help.

- chris

Quoted message said:

Get your bike fit professionally (ask for a "Fit Kit,"

IMHO, "Fit Kit" has no application to proper triathlon position. Find someone with lots of
multisport experience or who is FIST certified. Obviously positioning is the biggest varible to
fix; but, your fit can be good and your "jewels" still hurt. Here's my suggestion IF your fit
is good. Take out a level and make sure the front 1/2 of the saddle is completely horizontal.
Next, skew the nose of the saddle .5 cm away from your "hang." This allows your taint to be on
the side of the saddle and not get pinched. make sure you keep your hips rotated slightly
forward while riding. These tips were given to me by Tinley when we all started on aero bars in
about '88 or so. I still ride a Ti Flite w/ no problems at all after 130+ tris, 12 IMs, and 3
kids (in the last 4 years). Good luck! Good Luck! David Never give up, Be satisfied w/ your
best, Do unto others.....

In article said:

Quoted message said:

Get your bike fit professionally (ask for a "Fit Kit,"

IMHO, "Fit Kit" has no application to proper triathlon position. Find someone with lots of
multisport experience or who is FIST certified. Obviously positioning is the biggest varible
to fix; but, your fit can be good and your "jewels" still hurt. Here's my suggestion IF your
fit is good. Take out a level and make sure the front 1/2 of the saddle is completely
horizontal. Next, skew the nose of the saddle .5 cm away from your "hang." This allows your
taint to be on the side of the saddle and not get pinched. make sure you keep your hips
rotated slightly forward while riding. These tips were given to me by Tinley when we all
started on aero bars in about '88 or so. I still ride a Ti Flite w/ no problems at all after
130+ tris, 12 IMs, and 3 kids (in the last 4 years).

"3 kids" is the important part. I want to make sure I'm not doing any permanent damage to
my goods. 🙂

Thanks for the tips. I'll check everything out when I get back home.

- chris

Quoted message said:

"3 kids" is the important part. I want to make sure I'm not doing any permanent damage to my
goods. 🙂

Thanks for the tips. I'll check everything out when I get back home.

- chris

When buying a bike, try 3 or 4 saddles on short rides near the store. One will be noticeably more
comfortable than the others. Of course, it will cost the most.

Once into a season, with regular rides 3-6 hours long on a comfortable saddle, I can then switch to
almost any saddle without much trouble. However, it might be different for someone without plenty of
recovery between long hard rides.

In article said:

Question for the veterans:

How do you determine if you need a new saddle or just more time on your current saddle? I'm a
relatively new triathlete and have only been training for a couple months now. My "long" rides are
only 90-120 minutes, but after about an hour, I start to get this "nerve pain" near my family
jewels. :P I'm not really sore or anything; it feels more like it's cutting off circulation or
something and my testicles start getting this weird tingling feeling.

Anyone else have any idea of the feeling I'm describing? Will this go away over time? Should I
invest in a new saddle? When have you given your saddle enough time? What do you folks think?

Thanks in advance.

Just a follow-up:

I did end up changing my saddle out. I ended up with a Serfas Arroyo saddle and it seems to be
working very well for me. Not a bit of numbness in any of my rides for the past couple of weeks.

Thanks to everyone who responded. Your help and ideas were very much appreciated!

- chris