Pedal Pushers Cycles / stevehoggbikefitting.com CycleFit Report for Name: Date:

Email:info@stevehoggbikefitting.com

Web: http ://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com

Ph. 612 8338 8911

Fx. 612 8338 8922

COMFORT + EFFICIENCY = PERFORMANCE

BACKGROUNDSECTION1. WHAT IS CYCLEFIT?

Cyclefit is process developed by Steve that is based on the idea that optimising neural function precedes biomechanics in importance. Biomechanics is the ‘child’ or neural function. All systems of bike fitting, no matter how sophisticated they may appear are based on biometric (measurement based) or biomechanical models.

Critiquing these approaches one at a time; biometric systems fail because measuring a client’s limb lengths and body proportions is the static quantification of only one aspect of a person engaged in a dynamic activity (cycling) and doesn’t consider the enormous range of functional differences that occur amongst people of similar size and proportions. Functional differences; like degree of flexibility, stability, pedaling technique, functional and neurological asymmetries and so on. I hope there isn’t anyone who still seriously believes that measuring your torso length, arm and leg length and proportions and consulting standard tables for information equals a quality bike fit.

Biomechanical models are much more complex and often use tooling like video or motion capture that have a WOW! factor. But they miss the target in one crucial aspect. That is that neural function isn’t considered. Optimal biomechanical function largely depends on optimal neural function because every action on a bike starts with a signal from the brain or elsewhere in the central nervous system that is at least in part based on a constant flow of proprioceptive feedback from the body. This process needs to be optimised within the functional constraints exhibited by the rider. Optimal neural function is intimately related to good posture and adequate flexibility.

A bicycle is a symmetrical apparatus in a positional sense but humans all function with varying degrees of asymmetry. So it is important that a good position allows the rider to be as functionally symmetrical as their current structural make up allows. Any challenge to the rider’s position from any source, whether it be poor position, inflexibility or lack of proprioceptive awareness from the parts of the body involved in generating force, or issues with the spatial awareness component of vision, or of the vestibular system, will cause the rider to develop a pattern of compensation. All patterns of compensation increase the tendency to asymmetry. So a quality bike fit is mainly concerned with establishing a functionally symmetrical position by identifying and removing as many challenges to the rider’s position as possible. In addition principles of fitting that I have evolved are applied. The nature of these fitting principles means that the detail of their individual application varies as much as people do.

Steve thought of the name CycleFit in September ’96. Since then a number of businesses in the U.K. Germany, Belgium and the U.S. have taken to using the same or a similar name. We have no connection, past or present, with any of these businesses. There are a number of people who imply a connection with me or who claim to use “Steve Hogg methods”. Steve has no connection past or present with any of these people.

The only people that have trained with us and are authorised to say so are those listed below.

Scherrit Knoesenof The Bike Whisperer185 Pitshanger LaneEaling, LondonW51RQU.K.Phone: 0208 998 7271enquiries@thebikewhisperer.co.uk

Colby PearceOf Pearce CoachingSuite G, 2480 Wilderness PlaceBoulder 80301ColoradoU.S.APhone: 303 884 8088cwpcoaching@me.com

Jerry Gerlichof Castle Hill Cycles12th Street and North Lamar@ Castle Hill FitnessAustin, Texas 78703U.S.A.Phone: 512 478 4567jerry@castlehillcycles.com

Mark Dwyreof T.I. Cycle711 King St EastGananoqueOntario K7G1H4CanadaPhone: 613 382 5144mark@ti-cycle.com

SECTION 2. WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT AFTER A CYCLEFIT

As an activity, cycling requires the central nervous system to switch muscles on and off in a precise and complex sequence. Repetition ‘embeds’ this motor pattern Your position on the bike has been changed and the motor pattern you have evolved in the past is no longer going to work well, because the physical relationships between the contact points (seat, bars, brake levers and pedals) on your bike are no longer the same.

This means that for a period you may feel a bit strange and lacking in power as you will be firing muscles out of sync with what is required by the changed position. A common experience which can be paraphrased in a variety of ways is “First week: weak and powerless. Second week: weird but comfortable. Third week: getting it together”

My strong advice is to ride as often as possible for the first 3 weeks but at low to moderate intensities only. At heart rates of no higher than 75% of your maximum is ideal. This means, no racing, no hard efforts and stay away from steep hills. Our bodies adapt much more quickly to positional changes at low intensities. At higher intensities we tend to fall back into patterns of motion that we are used to but that won’t work well anymore, because of the altered position. From the fourth week onwards, ride as hard as you feel the need.

If you have any one off niggles or aches, it may not be a concern. BUT, if there is any pattern to any aches or pains you may experience, or if they get worse ride on ride, this is not normal, so PLEASE CONTACT US. Don’t try and ride through pain! The chances of problems of this type occurring are low but if you are in any doubt, contact us.

If you decide to embark on a regime of structural improvement (and most of you will be advised to), then it is a good idea, once you feel you have noticeably improved how your body functions off the bike, to book an hour with us and have the implications checked out.

Remember - Your body adapts far faster and with less discomfort when subjected to moderate loads. Be sensible.

If you have any queries contact us.

Remember - People are not static. They change over time. From time to time you may need a positional ‘tune-up’. When that is necessary, contact us.

Remember – COMFORT + EFFICIENCY = PERFORMANCE

SECTION 3. NOTE REGARDING ONGOING ADVICE:

10 – 30 times a week I am called upon to answer emails from people that I have positioned in the past as to whether a bike or frame they may be considering is suitable for them and what the various implications of any particular choice are regarding fit.

While I am happy to help in any individual case, the sheer volume of mail means that this can be extremely time consuming. To answer these mails I have to:

Open your file Open a net browser Look at the web sites of the manufacturers of the frames or bikes that you may be looking at Find the frame geometry for each option you are looking at; Calculate the implications relative to the ideal frame geometry for you Write an email recommendation regarding the suitability of each option and explain enough detail so that you can make an informed choice etc.Occasionally a mail may be in relation to a cycling technical matter. Given the amount of unpaid time that this consumes, I have to establish some ground rules.

1. For a period of 3 months after I position someone I will not charge for this kind of advice. After 3 months has elapsed, you will receive a PayPal invoice for time consuming queries that are outside ‘normal’ bike shop queries. I won’t charge for every query, but I will charge for those that are time consuming to answer.

Effectively the world of cycling is a single market and for a host or reasons, it is often less expensive to buy off shore as many of you have found. I don’t have a problem with that philosophically, but as a result, I need to charge for what we have the greatest demand for - advice.

This step has been necessary for some time but I have been reluctant to institute it. What finally cracked me was a gent who I had fitted sending me a ‘short list’ of 27 frames that he was considering purchasing and wishing to know which was most suitable and what the implications of any particular choice would be. None with links to the manufacturers web sites. 5.5 hours later, he had his answer and I had learned a big lesson.

2. All the info you require to complete a comparison of this nature is in Section 9. How To Determine Whether A Frame Fits You

3. After reading Section 9, if you still require advice regarding the suitability of a bike or frame, save me time and yourself money by providing an email link to the frame geometry of the bike or frame that you are considering. Alternately, you can cut and paste the frame geometry into the email that you send me. If you don’t, I will still answer your questions, but it will cost you more.

Thank you for your understanding

SECTION 4. FURTHER READING

You have spent 4 hours here and are probably suffering from information overload. I would rather be guilty of that than the converse. The two articles that follow are an attempt to put whatever you remember back into context. After reading them, if you develop an interest in this sort of thing, there is much, much more on our website.

Bright Speech transcript ( Prior to Alpine Classic 2007)

Steve Hogg copyright 2007

I am going to ask you to make a leap in your thinking about bike position. If you are conditioned to reading the commonly available information, you may need to go over this several times to grasp the concepts.

All modern thinking about how to fit a human to a bike is reductionist in approach. Take a complex system of interactions like a human being, quantify it somehow and fit it to a bike. Because it's a complex system, break down that complexity into bite size pieces by examining aspects of its interaction with the bike in a narrow sense. The approach might be strictly biomechanical, perhaps measurement based, statistical norm based or whatever. It may have a proprietary name; Fit Kit, Bio Racer and Wobblenaught spring to mind, though there are others. That is how the world thinks of a bike fit process. It's a succession of steps of narrow focus but without any overarching idea of holistic intent,; which is what I mean by a reductionist approach. The formula driven methods this type of approach engenders are prevalent throughout the cycling world and don't work optimally for large numbers of people in any way that can be shown or explained. I spend a large part of my working life getting results for the people that the above style of thinking has failed.

The two major forces working against a cyclist are gravity and wind drag. That should be self evident and beyond argument. Our pattern of muscular enlistment changes as we change our relationship to gravity, and wind resistance increases as the square of the increase in speed. It follows that how we relate our bodies to gravity and how we equip ourselves to overcome wind drag are the keys to optimal performance. Another necessity is comfort. I would define comfort as the harmonious interaction of the muscular and cardiovascular system while proprelling the bike with minimum effort required to maintain a position on the bike. Conversely, I would define lack of comfort as muscles being enlisted for purposes they weren't designed for and / or for periods that they can't cope with.

Comfort + Efficiency = Performance.

Brain activity.

Observation 1:" 90% of brain activity is tied up in relating the body to gravity" (quote: Roger Sperry - 1981 Nobel Prize Winner for brain research). To talk more about the implications of this with regard to bike position we need to know:

Posturally or phasically.

Observation 2: Our external musculature works in one of two ways, posturally or phasically. If beset by a challenge, the brain will ALWAYS prioritise the muscles acting posturally as they are the ones that allow us to resist gravity, maintain an erect position and play a major part in breathing. In contrast muscles acting phasically are the muscles that generate power to propel bicycle and rider. Yet the brain gives them a lower priority because there is greater evolutionary value in being able to breathe than there is in being able to move.

The postural / phasic split is a generalisation but an accurate one. Some postural muscles like the hamstrings and gastrocnemius act phasically on a bike because they are relieved of the need to help maintain an erect posture as they do when standing.

Neurological basis to an optimal bike position

Observation 3: Taken together Fact 1 and Fact 2 mean that there is a neurological basis to an optimal bike position. To be most efficient, we need to sit on a bike in such a way as to enlist the minimum amount of postural musculature. If we achieve that, we can devote the greatest effort, both neurologically and physiologically, to switching on and off the muscles acting phasically that generate power, and the minimum effort to controlling the higher priority postural muscles that allow us to hold a position on a bike relative to gravity.

When needlessly enlisted, these postural muscles diminish performance by robbing heart beats, blood flow and oxygen from the muscles that propel the bike.

Minimum effort, maximum gain

Observation 4: The only way this is achievable on a UCI legal bike is to have the seat the minimum distance behind the bottom bracket that allows the rider to cantilever their torso out from their pelvis with no more effort required of the upper body during periods of high intensity than the minimum necessary to steer and control the bike.

Why is this a big deal?

Lungs

Observation 5: There are 20 torso muscles used in respiration. Of those twenty, eighteen have postural implications which mean that they can be used to breathe with, or they can be used to bear weight and to stabilise with. If you want to breathe to fullest capacity, then these muscles need to be able to relax to allow full breathing. This isn't possible if they carry tension because they are being used to bear weight or to resist pedaling forces. Equally, many riders have poor ability to extend their thoracic spines and sit on their bikes with a pronounced curve in their spine as viewed from the side. If you function like this, you are reducing your effective lung capacity as limited ability to extend the spine means a shorter effective torso length, which in turn equals lack of room for the lungs to expand into.

I have to digress here. Many triathletes and TT riders ride much further forward than what I have described above and support significant weight with their arms and shoulder complex while still performing well. How can this be?

My experience is this. I am happy to believe that a rider can trade off comfort for increased aerodynamic efficiency and possible increased performance even at the cost of reducing effective lung capacity to whatever degree, and still ride as fast or faster in TT and Tri situations. But there is no getting away from the fact that riding like this means a lot of weight is supported by the upper body while concurrently, propulsive power is developed by the lower body. Where do the stresses of this approach meet?

In the lumbar and / or thoracic spine.

Some people can ride quite effectively like this at some structural cost over time. But many can't and so it is not for everyone. A substantial proportion of forward position riders develop significant muscle and postural imbalances over time. Some feel the effects quickly and shy away. But many don’t feel the effects for years. When a problem has taken 3 – 10 years to arise, there are no 5 minute solutions. Those who can make radical forward position work are best advised to give structural maintenance and improvement the highest priority in their training; otherwise they can butt up against the limits that their structure and bike position imposes on them more quickly than a position based on the principles I am talking about here.

Structural fitness

Observation 6: The major variable in determining how far back the seat needs to be will not be how the rider is proportioned, though that can't be totally discounted. It will be the level of structural fitness (posture / flexibility / functional stability) of the rider and the techniques that they bring to the task. An optimal bike position is a reflection of the functional abilities of the rider and considers the purpose they want to put their body and bike to for the period they would like to do it.

Cleat position

Observation 7: Cleat position plays a much larger part in the entire picture of rider on bike than is generally realised. Every watt of power you produce is transferred to the bike via your feet on the pedals. This relationship needs to be optimised if the goal is efficient and comfortable performance. The world generally believes that the centre of the ball of the foot ; the 1st MTP (metatarsophalangeal) joint should be over the centre of the pedal axle. As a general recommendation this is rubbish and demonstrably so. Grab a broomstick, cricket bat, baseball bat or other long lever. Hold your lever in both hands with elbows comfortably bent. Stand a friend in front of you at a distance that allows you to place the end of your lever a few inches beyond the side of their shoulder. Exert force and try and move your friend sideways. You won't be very effective.

Now take a small step forward so that about ¼ or 1/5 of the lever extends beyond your friends' shoulder. Exert force again and you will move your friend with much greater ease. Most of you will realise the analogy here. For those who don't, the first position is ball of the foot over the pedal axle and the second position is ball of the foot in front of the pedal axle. The key with this is just how far in front. Too much foot over the pedal will give you massive leverage but limit ability to jump hard in a sprint. Not enough foot over the pedal means a lot of effort for limited result in high torque per stroke riding as the calves then have to work too hard while attempting to stabilise foot on pedal.

Any cleat position will allow the rider to produce good power. The question is for how long and at what risk of injury?

Germany's Gotz Heine believes that for greatest efficiency, the tarsometatarsal joints (the midfoot) should be over the pedal axle and has any amount of compelling arguments to back for midfoot cleat position. For sustained steady effort of high or low intensity, this position, correctly applied will mean greater ability to sustain power over time and / or better ability to recover from severe efforts. TT's, pursuiting, Audax riding, road racing and triathlon are ideal for this kind of cleat positioning. With this style of midfoot or arch cleat positioning, the largest muscles; glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps are heavily enlisted. All are close to the torso meaning that vascular flow is less interrupted and the potential problems that arise from transferring power through the foot and ankle are largely eliminated. What is also obvious using torque analysis is that midfoot cleat positioning flattens the riders torque curve for a given power output. In essence the rider is pushing for longer per stroke rather than harder. This is important because a lower torque peak for the same wattage equals lower peak muscular contraction which in turn equals less fatigue and / or quicker recovery because of lower production of fatigue metabolites. All of which means greater ability to sustain a given load. Whether a rider should decide to experiment with midfoot cleat position will be determined by what kind of riding the rider prioritises. Crits and track events with plentiful changes in speed are best served by forefoot cleat positioning. For steadier paced riding, fast or slow, it is worth investigating midfoot cleat position and making a personal judgement.

Another much overlooked aspect of the feet is the need for canting the foot and for arch support. The foot is 3 interrelated complexes; the rear foot, mid foot and fore foot. All can and do need correction to varying degrees. Lengthy experience convinces me of the following:

1. Better than 99% of riders need some degree of corrective cant to one or both feet for optimal proprioceptive feedback to occur while pedaling. The best solution is BFS cleat wedges used under the cleat or cut to shape and placed under the heel of the shoe insole. All wedges, whatever their placement are directly or indirectly correcting the rear foot, NOT the fore foot, in all but exceptional circumstances.

2. Something over 90% need arch support for the same reason. And I don’t mean mass produced arch support insoles of which there are many on the market. Most are so generic that they only offer real arch support to people with low arches. I mean quality off the shelf solution like the E Soles Supportive and G8 ranges with replaceable, modular options for arch support.

A bike is a symmetrical but are we?

Observation 8: A bike is a symmetrical apparatus in a positional sense. The handlebars and pedals are equidistant from the centre line and the seat is over the centre line. I have positioned I don't know how many thousands of riders and I'm still looking for the first symmetrical one. Most people have one side of their pelvis higher than the other, one facile side and one clumsy side. Many have limb length discrepancies and neurological and sensory deficits. What that means is that everybody is functionally asymmetrical to varying degrees and many are measurably asymmetrical as well. When an asymmetrical rider is placed on a symmetrical bike, they will always maladapt. One of the major tasks of positioning is to achieve the greatest level of functional symmetry for the rider consistent with the limits imposed on them by their structure and degree of function.

Back to neurology again

Observation 9: Fact 8 means that we are back to neurology again. The only way to achieve greater symmetry on a bike is to improve the way our brains and bodies function which brings me to a much abused word - fitness. Culturally we are inclined to think of fitness as an efficient cardiovascular system and the development of strong muscles. That isn't fitness! At best it is an incomplete description and covers only one aspect of fitness. Neurological fitness is the measure of how accurately signals from the brain travel to their destinations around the body and how accurately feedback from the body gets back to the central nervous system. Neurological fitness is fundamental.

The sole (non chemical) determinant of neurological fitness is structural fitness. In other words, adequate posture, flexibility and functional stability. If we have adequate posture, flexibility and functional stability, nerve signals travelling around the body are not impeded by overly tight muscles or misaligned vertebrae. I have never,

ever, ever seen a rider whose pain or poor performance was caused by legs that were too strong or lungs that were too efficient. Always, issues are caused by the limitations of the structure we have inherited and / or developed and far too often, neglected. If you want to perform on a bike, be fit in the fullest sense of the word.

If you train 15 hours a week, still do so, but make sure that 3 - 4 hours of that total time is devoted to structural maintenance and improvement.

As well as maintaining and improving your structure, maintain a wholesome diet. When a food has been processed to the point where it isn't obvious what it came from; you are better off not eating it as other than an occasional treat. If internal organs are under any pressure because of poor nutrition, then general lack of performance and hard to resolve physical issues can result. My experience is that it is not possible to have good core strength in a dynamic situation without a healthy bowel.

To be truly fit you need to understand that the way that our body’s function is the external manifestation of the central nervous systems’ internal organisation, filtered through accidents of birth and development. There is no chicken or egg in this, it is a loop. Your body does what your central nervous system tells it to but your central nervous system learns what your body does. If you want to change how your body works, change how your central nervous system functions. How do you do that?

By improving how your body works. Stretching, core strength exercises, Yoga, Pilates, functional exercise regimes or any method of structural self improvement is mandatory if you really want to perform to potential on a bike. Recognising this leads to:

The nervous system

Observation 10: Our peripheral nervous system (PNS) sends 3 billion signals per second to the central nervous system (CNS - brain and spine) alerting the central nervous system to the state and position of every part of the body. However, the CNS can only process 2 thousand signals per second of this total. That is 1/1,500,000 th . Proprioception is the name given to our CNS’s awareness of our bodies in space. Given our lack of processing capacity relative to the amount of stimuli the CNS receives from the body, you can see that proprioceptive awareness is a much filtered thing. Every time you stretch or stimulate a muscle, the muscle sends a proprioceptive charge up the spine saying "Remember me?" and the brain obligingly devotes more space to that part of the body.

We all know riders who hunger for the latest lightweight, go fast bits but would be better served by losing the excess ballast that they carry around the middle. There is an analogy between that example and an adequate level of structural fitness. Most riders will make greater improvements in their performance if they work to improve how their bodies function structurally and by so doing, improve the function of their central nervous system, than they ever will by spending money on equipment.

Aerodynamics & ego

Observation 11: Aerodynamics is a powerful marketing tool. I absolutely agree we need to be as aerodynamic as possible to perform well consistent with our proportions, level of structural fitness and the uses we will put our bike and body to. However, there is no prize for the most aerodynamic position, only for the first across the line. We need 4 things to perform well on a bike. 3 are mandatory and 1 is optional. The first 3 are:

Optimal control of movement

Ability to breathe to the highest capacity

Strong leverage on the pedals.

The optional fourth is an aerodynamic position. If you prioritise aerodynamics over the 3 mandatory qualities listed above, you are likely to ride more slowly and be uncomfortable in the process. Set your bike position to reflect your structural realities, not your ego.

Your body is something over 90% of the total wind drag on a bike. As well as spending money on the latest aerodynamic go fast gear, spend time on improving how you function so that you can comfortably assume a more aerodynamic position.

To conclude, think of this. If you want to perform to your potential on a bike you need adequate structural fitness. The better you function off the bike, the better you will function on the bike. 'Adequate', by the way means well above average, because the average level of structural fitness in our society is appalling.

What is proprioceptive feedback?

Proprioception is the name given to the central nervous system’s awareness of the body in space. Many millions of sensory nerves known as proprioceptors are located in the joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, eyes and ears and convey a constant flow of information about their position in space and relationship to gravity to the central nervous system. This process is known as “proprioceptive feedback’

A basic problem occurs though. The amount of stimuli reaching the central nervous system every second is massively higher than can ever be processed and acted upon. That means our awareness of our body is space is much filtered and imprecise. One result of this is that many riders assume that they function symmetrically on a bike because that is their mental picture of themselves while cycling. More often than not, the reality of their situation is somewhat different.

There are only two general causes of niggles, injury, pain or lack of performance on a bike. The first reason is problems with your bike position. I or someone like me can address that.

The second is significant shortcomings with your structural fitness. Only you can address that. Some one like me is a high quality band aid. I can't change you, only the way that you relate to the bike. Many structural issues and problems of symmetry can be worked around adequately with a good bike position using a holistic, structural approach to the task. But the problems can only be solved off the bike.

Understanding this will leave many of you thinking "I need to do something". There are only 3 motivating factors that effect permanent change in human behaviour; pain, fear and ambition.

Which button do you want to press?

BASIC PREMISE Steve Hogg copyright 2010

All humans function asymmetrically. This is normal and the product of many things; differences in limb length, neurological, skeletal and muscular differences between the left and right sides; handedness, footedness, the dominance of one eye over the other and so on. We have evolved to walk and run in an upright position and as a species, generally cope well with our asymmetries while performing these activities because our pelvis isn’t fixed in space and can tilt to either side to accommodate uneven terrain, unequal leg length or other asymmetries.

In a positional sense, a bike is a symmetrical apparatus in contrast to the human being atop of it. The seat is over the centre line and the pedals and handlebars are equidistant from the centre line. To interact with a bike at lowest metabolic cost, a cyclist needs to be as functionally symmetrical as possible. But we have not evolved to cycle, an activity that requires a prone torso position and flexed lumbar spine, and in contrast to when walking or running, our pelvis is more or less fixed in position by the seat and our feet are firmly fixed in position by cycling shoes engaged in clipless pedals and our hands are fixed, to a lesser degree by the brake hoods, bar tops and bar drops. This largely ‘fixed’ position means that there is a greater risk of overuse injuries developing while cycling compared to walking, because the body is locked into a relationship with an apparatus, the bicycle, and this relationship allows less tolerance for asymmetry.

All issues of injury or discomfort while riding a bike stem from only 2 general, overlapping causes. The first is simple problems with the position. These are are easy to resolve and examples are matters like a cleat angle that isn’t correct, or poor seat height or setback, poor bar position and so on. The second is because of the fundamental mismatch that occurs when the biomechanical and neurological asymmetries of the rider interact with the mechanical symmetry of the bike. Before discussing this further, I need to make clear that neural function precedes biomechanics in importance. Why?

Every action on a bike starts with a signal from the brain or elsewhere in the central nervous system, which in turn is based on a constant flow of proprioceptive feedback (see box) from the body. The key to achieving a quality outcome for a client lies in optimising this central nervous system / body feedback loop within the constraints caused by the rider’s functional makeup. Biomechanics are important but optimal biomechanical function largely depends on optimal neural function

To achieve as close as is possible to ideal neural and biomechanical performance means reducing or removing any challenge to the subject’s position. A challenge is any factor that challenges the rider’s stability or symmetry on the bike. Challenges fall into 3 broad categories – Positional, Functional, and Neurological. Positional Challenges are issues like poor seat position, bar location or cleat position. Functional Challenges are matters like differences in limb length, an asymmetric pattern of flexibility, differences in foot morphology between left and right sides and so on. Neurological Challenges are matters like a pattern of cerebella hemispheric motor control dominance; suboptimal proprioceptive feedback from the parts of the body involved in applying force to the pedals; matters relating to effects that issues with sight and the vestibular system have on posture and spatial awareness; and bike equipment and accessories composed of materials that have a negative effect on fine motor control etc.

The pelvis’ key role in functional symmetry while cycling.

Pelvic stability is the foundation of a good position. The legs hang down from the pelvis and the torso extends from it. The effects of any pelvic asymmetries present while cycling flow outward to the periphery; i.e cause differences in function between each leg, each side of the torso and each arm. When the pelvis isn’t square on the seat, one leg will reach further than the other, the plane of movement of one or both knees will be challenged, one side of the torso will have to extend more than the other, one shoulder may be lower and / or thrust further forward than the other and so on ad infinitum. All riders will autonomically do whatever is necessary under load to stabilise the pelvis. The more musculature that needs to be enlisted in the quest for pelvic stability, the less efficient the rider will be. A quality bike fit should ensure the highest attainable level of functional pelvic symmetry at the lowest metabolic cost consistent with the structural and functional makeup of the rider.

All challenges inherently reduce efficiency and performance and increase the tendency to injury. Any challenge to the position causes the rider to develop a pattern of compensation. By nature, the compensatory responses evoked by a challenge work by further increasing the rider’s tendency to asymmetry which is antithetical to the desirable goal of achieving as high a level of functional symmetry as possible while cycling. In addition, compensatory patterns don’t solve a problem they merely shift the load elsewhere. The central nervous system is adept at allowing the body to compensate for a less than perfect interaction with the bike but has no way of predicting the long term consequences of compensating for a challenge without being consciously aware of the situation. It is this lack of ‘predictive foresight’ that increases the chance of injury over time. In practice there are multiple and overlapping challenges and compensatory responses present in any individual case.  While bike fitters generally take a biomechanical or biometric approach, rather than working from a neurological perspective, the fitters that provide a high quality service are in effect, reducing or removing many of the challenges to the positions that their clients hold on the bike. But the commonly used biometric and biomechanical models only work to a point because these models ignore material challenges and many neurological challenges. A major and little known neurological challenge to the positions of almost all riders is that very, very few riders have clear proprioceptive feedback from the feet.

To explain: it can be demonstrated that all but a tiny fraction of 1% of riders enjoy clear proprioceptive feedback from hips, knees and ankles, but not from the feet. Yet it is through the feet that we transfer power to a bike. This lack is a largely unrecognized challenge to the rider’s position and provides a major trigger for an increased tendency to asymmetry because in a motor control sense, the central nervous system is working with incomplete information while the body is applying force to the pedals. When proprioceptive feedback from the feet is restored, pelvic asymmetries of function present while riding often moderate noticeably and occasionally disappear. Ensuring that the central nervous system receives clear information from the feet means that there is a lesser need to maintain many of the asymmetric patterns of movement and function that are the compensatory response(s) for the lack of clear neural information.

Optimal proprioceptive awareness is intimately related to posture and function. No one has perfect feet, so metaphorically speaking; a measure of static is added to the signal traffic relayed from the feet to the central nervous system. Even so, these signals are easily read by the central nervous system providing the lumbar spine is near perfectly supported and aligned. We have evolved to walk and run, not to cycle, and it takes almost gymnastic flexibility to reach out to the drop bars of a road racing bike while maintaining near perfect lumbar alignment and support.

The upshot of all of this is that in respect of receiving clear proprioceptive feedback from the feet, the central nervous system can cope with imperfect cant of the feet OR imperfect lumbar alignment and support, but not both, without being challenged to the point where the potential for overuse injury and diminished performance increases significantly. This can be averted by using conscious thought to ‘correct’ technique. This can work until attention drifts, as it always does, and the rider reverts to what comes naturally to them, no matter how suboptimal this may be, because of the constraints that their structural fitness (or the lack of) and bike position impose upon them.

As only a miniscule fraction of the cycling population has the extraordinary flexibility and functional stability required to ride a bike without compromising perfect lumbar spine alignment and support, then the cant of the feet needs to be perfect for proprioceptive signals from the feet to be ‘heard’ loudly and clearly by the central nervous system. Perfect cant is achieved is by using a combination of arch support and the individually correct number of cleat wedges, heel wedges, or a perfectly prescribed pair of orthoses. However, the general methodology for prescribing orthoses is based around running and walking mechanics in which the heel is fixed to the ground for a period during each stride. Cycling differs because the heel is in more or less an open kinetic chain. These differences in activity mean that in my experience, it is rare to see a perfectly prescribed pair of orthoses in cycling shoes. One degree of cant too much or too little will cloud the proprioceptive response.

Adding importance to this is that much of the movement integration, in this case, the flexor on / extensor off, flexor off / extensor on muscle firing sequence of the pedaling action of the legs is determined by the CPG, a bundle of neurons located in the lumbar spine, as the signals do not have time to travel to the brain and back.

The CPG responds to force feedback from the feet making it likely that the more accurate the proprioceptive response from the feet, the more accurate the movement integration process of the CPG.

Wedging the foot subtly affects the relative position of the various elements in the kinetic chain involved in pedaling. Quality bike fitters use any combination of observation (whether by eye, motion capture or video capture), trial and error, client feedback and educated guesswork to determine the degree and orientation of wedging. I have moved away from this view and have found that a test based on maximising proprioceptive feedback from the feet to be empirically accurate in the sense that it minimises the chances of injury and improves the performance of my clients. In many cases this has resolved long standing overuse injuries from cycling that have defied repeated attempts by a suite of health professionals and bike fitters to resolve.

I have a patent approved in the U.S. and pending in Australia, U.K. and New Zealand on a method to quantify and restore proprioceptive feedback from the feet while cycling. This testing protocol can also be used to determine non seeing visual problems, issues with jaw alignment and bite, and much more. All of these matters are relevant to optimising cycling performance. To my knowledge, no other bike fitting service anywhere is going down this path.

Last word: If the previous two articles interested you, have a look at www.stevehoggbikefitting.com from time to time

BIKE SECTION 5. IDEAL FRAME DIMENSIONS AND POSITIONAL PARAMETERS

The CAD drawing representation of your Ideal Frame Dimensions and Positional Parameters on the next page is NOT a drawing of your current frame. It is a drawing of a hypothetical frame that would be ideal for you given the position you leave here with on the bike. The figures that are accurate are seat height, seat setback, distance from nose of seat to centre of bar and drop from seat to centre of bar. Details about how to measure your position follow in section 6.

Note: all dimensions on the drawing are to be rounded up or down to the nearest mm. The only exceptions are crank length, seat tube angle and head tube angle.

The drawing can be used as a record of your position, a basis of comparison if considering a new bike or as a template for a custom frame.

When looking at the drawing, you need to know that the dimensions fall into 2 categories; Positional Parameters are the relative placement and dimensions of your seat, bars, cranks, Q factor, cleat position, handlebars and stem. The Frame Dimensions only relate to an ideal frame, not your current frame.

The positional parameters are accurate; i.e; the relative positions of the seat, handlebars and pedals are as you leave post Cyclefit. It is important to understand that the frame dimensions on the drawing (and possibly the stem length) are not of your current bike but what would be necessary to give you a ‘perfect’ frame for the new position.

There are a multitude of different seat and handlebar shapes, as well as different pedal systems and shoes. Different seats have different proportions and dimensions as do shoes, pedals and handlebars etc. It is important that you understand that the position that you now have, and that is illustrated on the previous page, is based around the equipment that you currently use. Changing any of it (seat, shoes, pedals, stem, and handlebars) may lead to changes in your current position that you didn’t intend. What I am saying is that if you change your seat to a different type for instance; maintaining the same body position is not as simple as placing the seat at the same height and distance behind the bottom bracket centre. This is because seats can vary in length by over 40mm between brands and models and the proportions of different seats mean that they force the rider to sit in different places relative to the length of the seat.

I have listed the equipment and other pertinent info that your current bike position is based around below:

Seat: Fizik Arione

Seat is up 1 degrees at the nose

Seat nose is pointing to the straight relative to the centre line of the bike

Bar brand / model / width: 3T /Ergonova Pro /420 mm as measured centre to centre

Bar drop / reach: 123 /77 mm Bar angle: + 8 degrees measured with tape on

Brake lever type / height: Sram Red / +15 mm

Stem length / angle on drawing of hypothetically ideal frame: 120 mm / -6 degrees

Stem length / angle on existing bike: 110 mm / -8 degrees

Shoe brand and size: Sidi 45

Pedal system: Shimano Spd SL

Recommended crank length: 172.5 mm Existing crank length: 172.5 mm

Notes:

SECTION 6. HYPOTHETICAL FRAME DRAWING

SECTION 7: COMPARISON TO PREVIOUS POSITION

SEAT HEIGHT is moved up 15 mm

ANGLE OF SEAT RELATIVE TO HORIZONTAL is changed from up 2 degrees to up 3 degrees

SEAT SETBACK has moved forward 11 mm

SEAT NOSE DIRECTION is changed from pointing straight ahead to straight ahead

HANDLE BAR is changed. Original bar drop / reach / width: 123 / 77/ 420 mm measured centre to centre

New bar drop / reach / width: 128 / 89 / 440 mm

HANDLE BAR ANGLE is changed from up 7 degrees to up 5 degrees measured without bar tape

BRAKE LEVER HEIGHT has moved up 13 mm measured without bar tape

OVERALL REACH TO BARS is increased by 11 mm

HEIGHT OF BARS RELATIVE TO SEAT is increased by 14 mm

STEM LENGTH / ANGLE is changed from 120 mm / -6 degrees to 110 mm / +6 degrees

PEDALS are changed from Spd SL to Speedplay Zero

SEAT is changed from Fizik Arione to SMP Avant

CLEAT POSITION has moved backward by 5 mm on the left shoe and backward by8 mm on the right shoe

CENTRE OF 1ST MTP JOINT (ball of foot) is 13 mm in front of the centre of the pedal axle on the left foot and 13mm in front of the centre of the pedal axle on the right foot

WEDGING: On the left foot there are 3 medial wedges located in shoe under heel [3] under cleat [] in shoe under forefoot [].

On the right foot there are 3 medial wedges located in shoe under heel [] under cleat [] in shoe under forefoot [].

Note: Lateral wedge means thick side of wedge is towards outside edge of shoe

Medial wedge means thick side of wedge is towards inside edge of shoe

SHIMS: There are 4 mm of shims under your left cleat [] insole []

THERE IS AN arch support insole in both shoe(s)

SECTION 8: HOW TO MEASURE YOUR POSITION ACCURATELY AND REPEATABLY

Mount your bike in an indoor trainer and use a long carpenters level held between the centre of the front and rear axles to ensure that the bike is dead level. You will need to use a phone book or some other item to lift the front axle high enough to be level with the rear axle. If you don’t level the bike properly, every measurement you take will be inaccurate

Seat height: Measure the length of the flat section of your seat rail and place a marker pen dot at the half way point. Lay a 300mm steel rule along the top of your seat. If the seat has a perineal cutout as many do, lay the rule along the upper edge of the seat so that it doesn’t sink into the cutout. Use a tape measure to measure from centre of bottom bracket to the underside of the steel rule ensuring that the measuring edge of the tape passes through the dot you have placed on the seat rail.

Seat angle relative to horizontal: Place a dial protractor (available at any hardware store) or digital level on top of your seat and read off the angle. + equals nose up; - equals nose down. If your seat has a groove or perineal cut out through the middle of it, ensure that the steel rule is laid along the edge of the seat so you are measuring from the high point at the rear of the seat to the high point at the front of the seat.

Seat setback: Hold the long carpenters’ level vertically with the edge passing through the centre of the bottom bracket. While ensuring that the bubble of the level is centred, hold a steel rule against the edge of the level and measure the distance to the nose of the seat.

Seat nose to handlebar distance: Ensure that the front wheel is pointing straight ahead. Measure from the nose of the seat to the centre of the top of the handlebar adjacent to the edge of the handlebar stem’s bar clamp. The reason you are not measuring to the centre of the stems bar clamp is because the CAD drawing on Page 5 uses the hypothetical centre of the handlebar (inside the handlebar) as an input. The parallax involved in measuring as I have described; to the centre of the bar adjacent to the edge of the bar clamp of the stem will yield the same hypothetical measurement + / - 1mm

Seat to handlebar drop: Hold the level horizontally so that one end of the level is on the seat directly above the dot on the seat rail. Use a steel rule to measure from the bottom edge of the level to the top of the handlebar adjacent to the stem bar clamp. For an mtb or 26.0 mm standard diameter road bar, add 13mm to the observed measurement. For an oversized 31.8mm mtb or road bar, add 16mm to the observed measurement. Again, my CAD program uses the hypothetical centre of the bar as an input, so adding the radius of the bar gives an accurate measurement.

Important Note: If you use the article below so you can see photos of what this document describes it is important to note that in the linked article section Seat to Handlebar Drop I have made no mention of adding 13mm or 16mm to the observed measurement. You will need to do that to duplicate the measurements shown on the drawing in Section 4: Frame Drawing.

Bar angle (road or bullhorn bars): Remove your bar tape and hold the dial protractor against the underside of the rearmost section of your bar drops. A + angle means that this part of the bar runs up towards the front. A – angle means that it runs down towards the front. (see next page)

Brake lever height: With bar tape removed, hold a steel rule firmly against the underside of the rear most section of your drop or bullhorn bar. Use a second steel rule to measure from the first steel rule to the bottom of the brake lever. You will have always have a gap or an overlap. A gap is a + measurement (bottom of brake lever is higher than bottom of handle bar) and an overlap (bottom of brake lever is below bottom of handlebar) is a – measurement.

For more info (with photos) about measuring your position, see http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/articles/measure-for-measure-keeping-your-measurements-accurate/

SECTION 9. HOW TO DETERMINE WHETHER A FRAME FITS YOU

When comparing the drawing on Page 5 to the frame geometry of any frame you may be considering, there are a number of things to keep in mind. Firstly, ignore seat tube length. Once upon a time when all frames had level top tubes and most frames were steel, it was possible to make comparisons based mainly on seat tube length. No longer! There is no convention amongst manufacturers about how to measure seat tube length. That means that frames with similar fit might be called a Medium 50cm by one manufacturer, a 56cm frame by another and a 54cm by a third. No, I’m not kidding. The most important things to consider are Head Tube Length, Top Tube Length and Seat Tube Angle and Stand Over Height.

Head Tube Length (HTL): If you are looking at a frame that has a shorter HTL than ideal, the difference can be made up with head set spacers or by using a stem with a higher angle than the one used in the drawing on Page 5.

If the drawing on Page 5 shows a frame with an integrated head set and you are looking at a frame with an external head set (usually a steel or titanium frame but there are exceptions) then deduct b25mm from the HTL as that is the approximate space taken up by a high quality external head set.

Conversely, if the drawing on Page 5 shows an external head set and you are looking at a frame with an integrated head set, then add 25 mm to the HTL shown on Page 5.

Implications of Top Tube Length (TTL) and Seat Tube Angle (STA): The two are interrelated. To keep it simple, here are a couple of ‘rules’. When you are considering a frame and how well it will fit you, for every degree of STA that it is steeper (higher number) than what you are looking for, you need to add 10mm to the ideal TTL. Conversely, for every degree that a potential purchase is more relaxed (lower number), then deduct 10mm from the ideal TTL. The difference can be made up by using a longer or shorter stem.

Not all examples are so straight forward. The table below explains more. If you are in any doubt, contact us for clarification.

Stand Over Height (SOH): is self explanatory. In Section 4: FRAME DRAWING you will see a horizontal dotted line. That is your inseam length. The more ‘fit’ aware bike manufacturers list SOH in their frame geometry sheets. Make sure that any frame you buy has an SOH of at least 25mm less than your inseam length. With cycling shoes on, that should allow you a minimum of 35 – 40 mm of crotch to top tube clearance when you mount and dismount the bike.

When working out the implications of relative frame designs it is helpful to draw up a small table. I have an example on the next page. The black measurements are ‘actual’ and the red measurements are ‘effective”; that is once the implications have been calculated.

Head Tube Length

Top Tube Length

Seat Tube Length

Stand Over

Height

Stem Length

Ideal Frame

150mm 563mm 73 degrees 820mm (inseam) length

110mm

Bike 1 142mm 548mm / 558mm

74 degrees 792mm 115mm

Bike 2 165mm 560mm / 565mm

73.5 degrees 800mm 110mm

Bike 3 153mm 554mm / 549mm

72.5 degrees Not Known 125mm

I’ll explain the implications of the various bike options above. We have a situation where an ideal HTL is 150mm, TTL 563mm and STA 73 degrees. This is used in conjunction with a 110mm stem.

Bike 1 has a HTL that is 8mm shorter than ideal. More head set spacers can be added to make up the shortfall providing the fork steerer tube has not been cut too short. Alternately the stem could be flipped to the higher position and head set spacers rearranged, so the 8mm short fall doesn’t really present a problem. The Bike 1 STA is 1 degree steeper than ideal. That means that the seat will have to be moved all of the way back on it’s seat rails to gain an ‘effective’ STA of the ideal 73 degrees. If that can be achieved, then the measurable TTL of 548mm increases to an ‘effective’ TTL of 558mm which is a 5mm shortfall. This can be addressed by finding a 115mm stem, or alternately, by using a bar with a 5mm longer reach than you currently use. So all in all, a good fit. The 28mm difference between rider Inseam Length and Bike 1 Stand Over Height is adequate

Bike 2 has a HTL of 15mm longer than ideal. This may or may not be a problem. Whether it is a problem is determined by the stem angle you have drawn in BikeCAD and the amount of head set spacers you have allowed in your drawing. I tend to allow a 20mm head set spacer stack in most cases, and to draw frames with minus 6 degrees stems in the main. Assuming this, then that 15mm longer than ideal HTL can be compensated for by reducing head set spacer stack or possibly by fitting a minus 17 degree (horizontal) stem. The STA is 0.5 degrees to upright and the TTL is 3mm too short. These two pretty much cancel each other out. By the time the seat is moved to gain the ideal ‘effective’ STA, ‘effective’ TTL increases to 565mm which is only 2mm longer than ideal. All in all, quite a close fit, other than the difference in Inseam Length and Stand Over Height which is only 20mm. This is marginal but should be okay because the stack height of cleats and shoe soles will add at least another 10mm of stand over clearance

Bike 3 is within 3mm of ideal HTL so no problems there. STA is 0.5 degrees slacker than ideal meaning that the seat will have to be moved forward slightly to mimic the ideal STA. Doing so will ‘effectively’ reduce TTL by 5mm leaving an ‘effective’ TTL that is 14mm shorter than ideal. This shortfall can be made up by finding a 125mm stem or by using a 120mm stem in conjunction with a bar that has a 5mm longer reach than your current bar. Yes, this bike would fit okay but both the other options are less of a compromise. The other concern with Bike 3 is that SOH is not listed. Even if you are going to buy it, perhaps because you can get it at a far better price than the other two options, make sure that you have adequate stand over clearance before putting down the bucks.

As to whether to choose Bike 1 or Bike 2, the question that arises is am I as flexible and functional now as I will be in five years. If you think you will be more flexible and functional in five years time (and here I’m assuming that 5 years is a typical service life for a bike) then I would suggest Bike 1 as the preferred option because there is a greater possibility of lowering the bars over time. If the answer is “No” or “Unlikely” then either Bike 1 or Bike 2 become viable because even though Bike 2 has a lesser possibility of lowering the bars over time, there will be less need.

There is much more detail again about frame geometry and its implications here

BIKESECTION 10. ASSESSMENT OF ON BIKE STABILITY, SYMMETRY AND TECHNIQUEScored as:E = ExcellentG = GoodA =Average (means improvement needed. The ‘Average’ amongst the cycling population is not good, more a reflection that most people are fairly dysfunctional on a bike.P =PoorVP = Very Poor The exception to above scoring is Pedalling Technique which is descriptive only

BEFORE FIT POST FITHip drop

Hip forward

Psoas activity: Left/Right

Glute activation: Left / Right

Sitting centred on seat

Leg over extension: Left / Right

Which elbow is closer to locking than the other

Left knee lateral movement

Right knee lateral movement

Left knee over centre of pedal

Right knee over centre of pedal

Which shoulder dropped

Which shoulder forward

Pedaling technique

Pedaling fluency

Upper body tension under load

Pelvic stability under load

Other?

Note: An Average, Poor or Very Poor score in the After column indicates that stability, flexibility or coordination work needs to be done off the bike to address the underlying issue(s). You will only function as well on a bike as you can function off the bike.

SECTION 11. FUNCTIONAL MOVEMENT ASSESSMENT

Overview

The purpose of the Functional Movement Assessment is to determine the chance of injury while performing common movements requiring multiple joints to execute. Each of the 7 movements is scored like this:

0 = painful. Treatment or advice should be sought

1 = high risk of incurring an overuse injury during this or activities involving similar movements

2 = moderate risk of incurring an overuse injury during this or activities involving similar movements

3 = low risk of incurring an overuse injury during this or other activities involving similar movements

With the movements that test each side separately, if there is a difference in scores between sides, your score is the lower of the two scores for that movement.

DEEP SQUAT SCORE:

HURDLE STEP SCORE:

INLINE LUNGE SCORE:

SHOULDER MOBILITY SCORE:

ACTIVE STRAIGHT LEG RAISE SCORE:

TRUNK STABILITY PUSHUP SCORE:

TRUNK ROTARY STABILITY SCORE:

Any scores of 0, 1 or 2 should be addressed. A score of 0 means that medical advice should be sought to determine the cause of pain.

Scores of 1 or 2 mean that to prevent possible injury you need work to improve both your mobility and stability for each of those exercises.

Many good stability exercises are available here: http://www.ndu.edu/HealthFitness/docUploaded/Physioballs.pdf

In depth reading about corrective movement exercises can be found in:

Stability, Sport and Performance Movement by Joanne Elphinston

and

Athletic Body in Balance by Gray Cook

SECTION 12. POSTURE SCREEN NOTES

No physical activity you can think of is ever more important than the acquisition and maintenance of good posture. You have consulted us to improve your bike position; in other words to improve your posture on the bike. One fact you need to be aware of is that there are limits to what can be achieved with on bike posture. The major limiting factor is your off bike posture

Good posture is necessary for optimal neural function. In turn optimal neural function is necessary for optimal biomechanical function. So the simple message is that if you want to be the best cyclist you can be relative to the time you have to devote to the sport, you need to have the best posture you can attain. Every system, every structure and every process in the body are interrelated. By seeking our advice you have demonstrated a commitment to improving your cycling. In part, that commitment should also involve improving your posture if you are serious about improving your cycling.

Above is a common postural problem but it is far from the only one. Have a look at the illustration of optimal posture below

Now compare that last illustration of good posture to the results of your Posture Screen below. Yes, we were able to make some improvements to your posture but you still have work to do, so please don’t think that is the end of it.

Many of us spend a lot of time seated. This is what good seated posture looks like.

Your spine is divided into 4 segments; Cervical (neck), Thoracic (upper and middle back), Lumbar (low back), Sacral (rests with the two halves of the pelvis). All but the Lumbar spine have direct muscular support. The Lumbar spine is where most people experience back pain. The major reason being for that being that the Lumbar spine relies chiefly on indirect support provided by good posture. Poor posture increases the chances of low back pain developing. Poor posture compromises physical performance and breathing ability. Poor posture compromises your ability to ride your bike well. Stand tall, sit tall and good posture will develop quickly.

Above all remember that the aim of posture is to resist the effects of gravity on the human body. Gravity attempts to push us down into our own individual pattern of postural dysfunction. The most important physical activity you can perform every day is to resist gravity with good, upright posture.

Key points to remember:We all want to be ‘fit’. The fundamental requirement for this is neurological fitness which is the measure of how well your central and peripheral nervous systems function. Every action on a bike starts with a signal from the brain. The better the feedback loop between brain and body (nervous system) works, the longer, harder and faster you will be able to ride without problems. Achieving good structural fitness by undertaking a regime of stretching, core strength or other neuromuscular training is the only way to improve central nervous system function and proprioceptive awareness. If you train long enough or hard enough, you will always butt up against the limits imposed on you by your structure. No one ever has problems because their legs are too strong or their lungs are too efficient. Problems occur on a bike because of –

a) Poor bike position. We can fix that and also work around many structural issues to a individually variable but usually large degree.

b) Poor central nervous system function caused by poor posture and less than adequate flexibility. Only you can fix that

SECTION 13. ASSESSMENT OF LATERAL PELVIC SYMMETRY

The pelvis is the foundation of the body. The legs extend down from it while the torso and arms extend up from it. A pelvis that functions well is a precondition of a body that functions well. Nowhere is this more apparent than in lateral pelvic symmetry

Lateral pelvic symmetry plays a large role in global biomechanical function. If one side of the pelvis is higher than the other then both feet, ankles, knees and hips are loaded differently and are forced to work differently. The potential fallout can be enormous and may cause, or be associated with, low back pain, poor function in the hips, sacroiliac joints, scoliosis, knee pain, foot issues, middle back, upper back and neck pain and a whole lot more. You will do whatever you need to do to keep your head over your centre of gravity. Your head is heavy. It weighs something approximating the weight of a bowling ball. If it needs to be carried off the centre line of your body because of pelvic misalignment then strain on the entire upper body increases.

As you came in our door, your left iliac crest was 15 mm higher than the other side. After treatment the pelvis was level.

If you don't have a measurable difference in leg length your iliac crests will now be level. If you do have a leg length difference, the difference in height between left and right iliac crests should now be no more than the difference in leg length.

You probably found the method used to address your lateral pelvic symmetry unusual. Feedback is always welcome so let us know if your lateral pelvic tilt returns. The improvements should permanent other than if you contract a bad virus like the flu, or if you have heavy impact like a bad bike fall or a car crash.

You need to be aware that some equipment can cause a lateral pelvic tilt. Examples include many bike helmets, sunglasses, prescription glasses with antiglare coatings, swim goggles and some items commonly found in cyclists’ tool bags. These matters were addressed during your session with us but if you change any of those items in future, you need to be aware of the possible consequences.

SECTION 14. SUGGESTED READING HIGHLIGHTED IN YELLOW

1. Awareness Through Movement by Moshe Feldenkrais A concise and profound book with the 12 exercises at the back that are an introduction to training your nervous system so as to control your movements with greater economy and symmetry. Now out of print but available 2nd hand on www.amazon.com

2. Stretching and Flexibility by Kit LaughlinThis is a 15 step program for those serious about learning the detail of how to stretch thoroughly.

3. Flexibility for Cyclists by Fred and Kele McDanielSimple, concise, succinct text. This routine should be performed 2 – 3 times weekly when warmed up from other activity. Once you are familiar with the stretches, it will take an hour to complete them. If you are time poor during the working week, the first 6 stretches are “must do” stretches. On weekends perform the complete routine at least once. How hard to stretch?If agony is 10 on a 1 to 10 scale, then stretching discomfort should be no more than 2 – 3.

4.Overcome Neck and Back Pain by Kit Laughlin Well thought self help approach to chronic neck or back pain.

5.down load the Core Strength manual at www.ndu.edu/HealthFitness/docUploaded/Physioballs.pdf Concentrate on Pillar Holds, Abs, Obliques and Balance sections. You will find that the exercises fall into 3 categories; ones you can do with ease, ones you can do with a degree of difficulty and ones that are beyond your abilities. Concentrate on the ones that you can do with some degree of difficulty before moving on to harder exercises. Treat this as fun and do something every week.

6.Stability, Sport and Performance Movement by Joanne ElphinstonThe most accessible work of its’ kind written for athletes and coaches.

7. The Four Hour Body by Timothy FerrissAmusing, contrarian advice that works. For anyone wanting to lose weight, gain weight, gain muscle and a whole lot more.

8. The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing by Dr Philip Maffetone.Does your performance on the bike and general health fluctuate?

This is THE book for anyone wanting to get the most out of themselves in respect of athletic performance, general health and wellbeing. Train more easily to perform faster. I know that sounds strange but……………………………………… read the book!

8. Athletic Body in Balance by Gray Cook. Simple and profound approach for identifying and resolving mobility and stability issued during movement.

SECTION 15. YOUR ‘TO DO’ LIST

1. Good posture is the most important exercise that you can perform every day. Stand and sit TALL and cultivate the habit. Good posture is one of the bases of good health.

2. Stretch your entire body thoroughly 2 – 3 times weekly. If you struggle with this, see “….5 Minute Method etc “ below.

3. Other

SECTION 16. AREAS OF PARTICULAR FOCUS WHILE YOU START THE STRETCHING HABIT

I will have suggested that you start a general stretching regime. If you are new to stretching, create a positive habit by using the 5 minute method listed in the next section of this report. Here are 2 important stretches that you can start your 5 minute habit with.

Psoas stretch

Pronounced SO ASS with a silent P. Psoas is the attached to the bottom of the lowest thoracic vertebra, T12 and the entire lumbar spine. It crosses the hip and inserts high in the inner femur. Its action is to help lift the upper leg if the torso is fixed and to help bend the torso forward if the legs are fixed. Psoas is the muscle in humans that is least adapted to an upright posture and a tight psoas can have such a profound negative impact on human posture and function that it is often known as ‘The Hidden Culprit’. A hypertonic psoas will inhibitand weaken the muscular contractions of the gluteus maximus (major bulk of the buttocks) which is the most powerful muscle in the body and plays a large part in allowing you to apply pressure to the pedals. In turn this may create situation where the hamstrings are forced to work harder than is ideal in an effort to extend the hip forcefully while pedalling because the gluteus maximimus is not working as well as it should be. All because of a chain reaction set up that starts with a tight psoas.

Psoas tightness can be affected by sitting to much with poor seated posture, driving a lot (right psoas because of flexed right leg held on the accelerator pedal) and stress on the liver caused by dietary allergens or over indulgence (right psoas has a connective tissue relationship with the liver. If the liver has to work hard, it takes in more blood which increases its weight and tugs on the right psoas)

The most effective stretch is illustrated and explained below. Lie on your back with a roller under your upper pelvis as shown.

From the position above, pull the bent knee all the way back to your chest while at the same time extending the other leg making sure that you lock the knee joint and pull your toes on the extended leg back towards you. You should feel a mild stretch in the groin area. If you can’t feel anything, move the extended leg slightly away from the centre line until you do feel a stretch. Hold that stretch for lengthy periods though I caution you to start gradually, say 30 seconds, and build up to several minutes. To come out of the stretch, let go of bent knee first.

4 dollar stretch for thoracic spine.

This is called the $4 stretch because that is what the equipment needed is likely to cost you. You will need 2 tennis balls and an old sock. Place the 2 tennis balls in the old sock and force them right into the toe section of the sock. Now tie a knot in the sock so that the balls stay compressed together. You are going to use the balls in sock to find and stretch the tightest areas of your thoracic spine. This will help you to stop your gravity induces stoop and help you lengthen your back and increase your ability to breathe well on a bike by allowing your lungs more room to expand into. It will also aid your efforts to develop better posture.

Your thoracic spine is the area of the spine where there are ribs attached to the spine.

Now lie on you back and place to 2 balls in sock across the lowest part of your thoracic spine and lie back down so that your head touches the floor. Bend your knees so that the soles of your feet are on the floor and pushing with your feet against the floor, move the balls up your spine one vertebral junction at a time pausing for 10 seconds at each junction. Sooner or later you will find 1 – 3 vertebral junctions where the balls are much more uncomfortable than at the other ones. The uncomfortable areas are the ones most in need of stretching out.

You need to know that this can be quite a confronting experience for some. Let your head rest back against the floor and start with the balls in place for 30 seconds at each of the 1 – 3 areas of greatest discomfort before moving to the next one.

Don’t be surprised if you are muscularly sore in that area the next day. Wait for the soreness to subside and then resume the practice of this stretch. This is the quickest and most effective way to remove a kyphosis which is a rounding of the upper back like that illustrated below. This is epidemic in our society.

SECTION 16. THE 5 MINUTE METHOD OF INTRODUCING POSITIVE CHANGES INTO YOUR LIFE.

Above is a list of changes I am suggesting you make to the way that you live your life. That advice is intended to improve how you function and reduce your tendency to injury. Most people leave here motivated to do as I suggest but usually their enthusiasm lasts only so long. The key to making permanent changes is to create a habit. So if I have told you to stretch twice a week and perform core exercises once a week, start by spending 5 minutes on each session. Anyone can find 5 minutes!! That's a miniscule 15 minutes a week I am asking you to invest in your wellbeing. Can you do that?

You are right to ask what 3 times a week x 5 minutes will do for your wellbeing?

Physically, next to nothing. But it will create a positive habit and habits are a powerful tool. After a month or two of 5 minutes 3 times per week ,that habit will be part of your life. When it is, add another 5 minutes. Anyone can find 5 minutes in their day no matter how busy they are. So now your habit is 10 minutes x 3 sessions weekly. A few months later when that is ingrained behaviour find another 5 minutes . And so the progression goes until you are spending an hour 3 times a week improving how you function. Following this advice will give you benefits without the stress of trying to make immediate changes to your existing habits. All you are doing is creating new ones that benefit your cycling and everyday life.

Lastly, it is normal human behaviour for your enthusiasm about positive changes to wax and wane. If you lose motivation, don’t think “To hell with that, never again”. Just miss a session or two and start again. Most people need several abortive attempts before they get in the groove. Creating a habit eases this transition.

SECTION 17. A NOTE ON STRETCHING EFFECTIVELYMany people dislike stretching and so do very little. Many others stretch ineffectively. Those that dislike stretching tend to go at it too hard. Those that stretch ineffectively tend to go at it too hard or not hold stretches for long enough.

When we stretch, we are trying to lengthen and align collagen fibres of the muscles which are inelastic. Collagen doesn’t respond to force, but it does respond to duration. What that means is that for best results and efficient use of time stretch long, NOT hard. You only should perform any stretch to the point where you feel MILD discomfort only. On a 1 to 10 scale with 10 being serious pain, stretching intensity should be 2 to 3. Don’t be a hard case please, as it will lessen the effectiveness of your stretching program and reduce your enthusiasm for a necessary part of your training program. As a assessment tool, if there is ANY soreness from stretching 2 days post stretch; you have stretched too hard. Ideally you shouldn’t have any soreness the day after a stretch if you do it sensibly.

For areas of the body where you don’t really have a flexibility issue, hold the stretch for 60 seconds. For areas or muscle groups where you are particularly tight, hold the stretches for several minutes.

A handy tip is to count how many breaths you take in a minute and round that up to the nearest 5. If for instance, the rounded up number is 25, then 25 breaths is the minimum time for any stretch. 75 or 100 breaths may be the length of time you hold some stretches. Above all, stretching like this should be EASY and relaxing because you are not stretching HARD; just effectively.

Lastly, stretching is most effectively done when warm post exercise OR in the afternoon or early evening. Try to avoid stretching in the morning unless warm from exercise. When we sleep our intervertebral discs take in extra cellular fluid; lymph, and this reduces spinal mobility. This is one of the reasons why we are all less flexible when we first rise in the morning. After we have been up for several hours the effect of gravity and our body weight

compresses the spine somewhat and pushes that extra cellular fluid back out into the rest of the body. Exercise has much the same effect as muscular effort pumps lymph around the body. This explains why it is more effective to stretch post exercise or after midday.

SECTION 18. NOTES ON DEALING WITH HEALTH PROFESSIONALSI may have probably advised you to consult various health professionals regarding issues that become obvious during your assessment and noted in this folder. We live in a culture where the prevailing model in the health industry is the drug / surgical model. Sometimes this is appropriate, sometimes less so. I am not anti health profession, but have found that like car mechanics, building tradesmen and other service professions, good health professionals, in the sense that they have interest in, and insight into your problems, are not as common as they should be. Here are a few tips.

1. Always take a written list of questions – You need to use your time with a health professional to help educate yourself as to the issues you have and the options you have open to you. With a written list, you are less likely to get side tracked. You will achieve better results if your mind is on the job too. For that to happen, you need information Don’t leave until you have answers in language you understand so that you can make informed judgements about potential solution paths open to you and remain more in control of the process of structural improvement..2. Never give unearned respect – Professional respect is something you give someone when you feel their course of treatment or advice is achieving results. Ask questions and get answers so that you understand what is going on and that you are part of the process and driving it to some degree. Better health professionals will want to give explanations without prompting. If in doubt about anything, ask.3. Always give feedback – Some people in the health professions assume that they have ‘fixed’ someone because they don’t see the client again. In many cases health consumers don’t like to make a fuss or complain, they just look elsewhere instead. If we give feedback, the people we are paying for advice or treatment know the state of play and can modify their approach to treating your specific issues accordingly. It is hard to expect health professionals to improve their abilities to treat or advise on a course of remedial action unless you, the client, provide quality feedback to them.4. Don’t give up – If you feel you have done everything and seen everyone in an attempt to resolve an issue for limited results, don’t give up. Every problem has a solution to varying degrees. Often the most time consuming thing is finding the person(s) with the necessary insight to advise or treat you effectively5. Where ever possible, choose health professionals who are cyclists or triathletes or who have a cycling / tri clientele. – People like this are best equipped to help resolve any issues you have that may limit you on the bike

Thank you for reading this far.