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Severe Saddle Pain
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Hi,

I did a search of this forum and found a few possible things to try but thought I would ask as well.

I struggled with high hamstring tendonopathy (HHT) for 2 years. Everything I had read and been told by sports specialists was that HHT was a running specific injury. I took several extended breaks from running, spent lots of money on treatment and working with a functional strength trainer with little improvement. It wasn't until I went away for a bit and took a break from cycling that I realized cycling was the problem, not running. In large part the problem was a result of my ISM saddles (I had 2 different ones). I have since learned that several women have had the same issue as me from an ISM saddle. I have since spoken to a couple fitters had my tri bike re-fit (Retul) and a new saddle put on my bike. It was recommended that I try a SMP T3 saddle. I have been able to ride with out any hamstring issues on the SMP T3 but my goodness, do I ever have extreme pain in my clitoris now!! OUCH!! I can only ride 20-25km and then the pain sets in. I rode 50km 3 days ago and was in agony. I still hurt a couple days later.

From some reading today I think I may have to drop my seat a bit, it was raised close to an inch after my last fit and I think that may be too much. I am also going to drop the nose a degree or two and see if that helps. I have well fitting bike and tri shorts and use a chamois cream. Any other thoughts/suggestions to eliminate the pain would be most welcome. I can't continue to ride my tri bike with this pain and I have bought three saddles in last 1.5 years and can't afford to keep doing that.

Thanks in advance.
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [CDNtriGal] [ In reply to ]
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Can you sit further back on the SMP so that the wider part of the channel "cradles" your girly bits? Also, have you read this article by Cobb?
http://www.cobbcycling.com/innie-or-outie/

At the end he has specific recommendations based on whether you are an "innie" or an "outie."

No coasting in running and no crying in baseball
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [CDNtriGal] [ In reply to ]
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See if you can find bike shops that will let you test ride saddles. All of the ones around here either have a library type system where you sign out their test saddles for a week or two, or they have return policies that let you return used saddles for up to a month.

It took me a few tries to find a road bike saddle that I like, and I did find that I had to tilt the nose down just a couple degrees (nothing too visibly obvious, but it made all the difference) or it put too much pressure on my clitoris. That is even with a saddle that has a slight groove, but not a real cutout (Fizik Donna Arione). I also found that I needed proper, but not too wide, sit bone support, or I would start distributing my weight forward to alleviate pressure and friction there.
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [Tri3] [ In reply to ]
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Tri3 wrote:
Also, have you read this article by Cobb? http://www.cobbcycling.com/innie-or-outie/

At the end he has specific recommendations based on whether you are an "innie" or an "outie."

Yes, thanks. I did read it. I am most definitely an outie.

I have tried shifting my weight back and forth and it all hurts. I think I will try dropping my seat height a touch and drop the nose a bit. Cross my fingers that it work.

Most of my local bike shops do have loaner programs but 90+% loan ISM saddles. I already know they don't work for me.
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [CDNtriGal] [ In reply to ]
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I find that the saddles with a narrow channel are often worse than the ones with no channel -- we are either pinched or squashed. I went looking for the biggest hole in the middle of the saddle possible and ended up with a version of the Selle Italia SLR Superflow. Performance Bikes used to carry it, and they had a return-anything policy. I don't think Selle makes the exact model now, but they still have models with really big cutouts; google may help you find one at a liberal-return-policy place.
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [CDNtriGal] [ In reply to ]
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Sitting on your clitoris is an absolute no-no! If Dan were to run a survey of the male cyclists who sit on their penis, I feel confident that the correct number would be ZERO(because of the pain)! Just because our parts are smaller doesn't mean you should tolerate that level of discomfort.

I use a dash saddle and I shift very far forward on my pelvis, although I have a flexible back. It isn't perfect, but it greatly exceeds anything else that I've found so far. BTW, previous to my current choice, I rode an ISM saddle. Good luck and keep trying!

DFL > DNF > DNS
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [Tri3] [ In reply to ]
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Ouch!

Well Cobb VFlow saddle works great, the cutout is exactly where it needs to be, and the nose should be level. Nose tilted down typically puts more pressure where you don't want it. Definitely you want to get some other saddles to try and find one that works for you.

I'm suspicious of your bike fit but that's a question for another day.

Good luck.
BrokenSpoke
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Re: Severe Saddle Pain [CDNtriGal] [ In reply to ]
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I had a couple of Adamo ISM but found even with cable ties they were a bit wide. I also had that pain issue, I have since gone to a Specialized Power saddle and love it. I also have quite an anterior pelvic tilt as well so tip the nose down a lot to get comfy in TT position. I get some comments about how tilted my saddle is but at the end of the day I can ride comfortably and stay in aero for an ironman race with around a 5 and half hour bike split. No anterior soft tissue pain and weight distributed on my sit bones/ rear pubic rami pretty comfortably. Also, I ride almost always with minimal padding- Tri shorts all the way with just a fleece- the more foam and fabric there is down there, the more things get bunched up, compressed and irritated. If you have a good saddle and a good position, you don't need inches of padding to ride comfortably. Good luck but I agree with other comments, find a store that will loan you different options and adjust your seat height to the new saddle height each time too. 😊
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