Turkey, BIKE warm-up camp, 22 degrees, great tours, the first kilometres of the year in short kit. Finally sun cream instead of cold protection on the face. And yet biking becomes torture. My bum burns like fire, my hands feel like they've been treated with sandpaper. My neck and back are still aching hours after the tour. Do you recognise this? Then you are one of the 80 per cent of bikers whose fun on the trails is diminished by these side effects. Not always, fortunately, because aches and pains come and go and the aches and pains described can be filed under the heading "teething troubles" at the start of the season. In most cases, pain is caused by an incorrect riding position, unsuitable geometry, weak muscles and a lack of familiarisation. Added to this is incorrect clothing. Troubleshooting starts on the bike: Firstly, you should check the riding position and geometry of your bike (see below). Next, optimise your equipment. Car racers have the contact points with their equipment customised: seat, steering wheel, pedals. If you also optimise your saddle, grips and shoes, you have almost won the race against pain. Now you should recognise and treat the weak points in your body. You can easily strengthen your muscles with a little hard work. On the following pages, we have categorised the problem areas by body part and suggested solutions. So that you can get the season off to a good start.
Are you sitting correctly?
