Mountain Bikes - Haven't ridden in a long time....?

Question

How high should the seat on my mountain bike be. My boyfriend rides his all the time and says that the seat should be high enough that my leg can stretch out all the way on the bottom pedal (hope that makes sense). But when the seat is that high I don't feel comfortable or in control of the bike. I don't like not being able to put my feet on the ground. I have to stretch to my tiptoes before I can even put them on the floor.

What is the right height to put the seat. I am about 5'10 or 5'9

Answer 1

Bike is balance.

A lot of friends that have started riding usually want their saddles low so they can touch the ground while seated. It's a safety feeling thing.

But if you're riding when you're saddle is that low, you will hurt your knees (trust me on this, it happened to me).

So, you have to strike a balance between peddaling efficiency and safety feeling.

I definitely can't touch the ground when I'm seated on my bike, I have to hop in front to touch the ground. I just never think about it, it just comes as a reflex.

What I think you should try is to try to raise your saddle just a bit every time. That way, it won't be a huge difference suddenly, but you get used to riding at a different height.

The 'ideal' position is like everyone said, you should almost stretch your leg when your foot is at the bottom of the peddal stroke. I measure my saddle height by putting my heel on the pedal and move the peddal to the furthest away from me, and I should be able to stretch my leg completely. That way, when I peddal with the toe of my feet, my leg is slightly bent.

But fit is no perfect math, you should find your height that's proper to you. I just think that maybe you should try to raise your seat, but a bit at a time.

Answer 2

Try this: Wear the shoes you will use when riding. Set the height of your seat so that your leg is fully stretched when your heel is on the pedal (the pedal should be in the 6 o´clock position at this moment). As you will pedal with the front of your shoes this will give you the right bend in your knees.
There are many reasons to make sure you this is right:
- Power transfer to the wheels.
- Your knees health.
- The fact that all the bike´s other geometry is based on this position.

Answer 3

You're boyfriend is kinda right if he was referring to your heel on the pedal. That is one way to set up the seat height, but is generally not done as it is not as accurate as the standard method: With the ball of your foot (the big toe knuckle) on the pedal, and the pedal at the bottom of the stroke, you should have a slight bend (about 10 degrees) in your knee. You can go lower than that - but not much - but definitely do not go higher.

The tip toes on the ground is about right, though you shouldn't have to 'reach' to do it, you should be easily able to touch your toes to the ground.

You can't really talk about a number with regards to seat height on a web forum. It depends on your inseam, if the bike has suspension, what the seat tube angle is, etc. The best method is the 'bended knee' formula above.

If you're really uncomfortable with the seat high, go ahead and drop it an inch or so until you get more comfortable riding. You'll find as your fitness increases, you'll need the seat to be at the _proper_ height as this is better for your knees and is much more efficient. I wouldn't ride for more than 30-45 minutes on a bike with the seat to low....really bad for the knees.

Answer 4

You boyfriend is close, but not really. Your leg should be slightly bent when at the bottom of the stroke. If you extend all the way, you lose all power near the bottom of the pedal. You should not be able to touch the ground flat footed. You're definitely too low if you can do this. The bottom line is that the right seat height is what feels comfortable. Adjust it so your leg is slightly bent when down, then fine tune to your comfort level.

Answer 5

ur feet should be touching the ground fully when it is fully stretched