Bikefitting - Set up your road bike perfectlyTips & Tool

Bikefitting - Set up your road bike perfectly: Tips & ToolPhoto: Kerstin Leicht
Which road bike frame size is right for me? Which stem is the right one and how can I change my riding position? TOUR explains which riding position is best for you and how you can perfectly adjust your road bike yourself.
Bikefitting for road bikesPhoto: Kerstin Leicht

When the racing bike fits like a tailor-made suit, man and machine merge into one. The power flows, everything is easy, nothing pinches. Feeling how your own muscles smoothly propel the machine forwards can be addictive. Achieving this riding sensation is the goal of all cyclists. It doesn't always work straight away, but you can work towards it with bike fitting.

Bike fitter or self-help

You can use professional bike fitters and their various methods - or you can do it yourself. All you need is a tape measure, a plumb line or a cross laser, your mobile phone and, ideally, a roller trainer and a second person. With the right measurements, anyone can find the right bike - or make their bike fit.

It's all a question of flexibility

Because the perfect riding experience is created when you feel good about yourself - and this is only possible if there is no pain or numbness. Neither of these can be taken for granted, because the bent-forward posture that characterises road cycling requires strength in the torso and good mobility; and all the more so the lower you want to crouch over the handlebars. If you go beyond the limits of your mobility, your muscles will tense up and you could suffer from discomfort. In the long run, this can really spoil the fun, even if your legs still have plenty of strength. This means that knowing your own physical requirements is the first step to finding the right bike.

You can find the complete instructions for bike fitting in the download below for 3.99 euros or in TOUR 03/2021.

Why not free of charge? Because quality journalism has its price. That's why we guarantee independence and objectivity. The TOUR tests are based on standardised and reproducible test procedures, which we always disclose. TOUR articles can be bought - TOUR test victories cannot!

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Robert wurde 1964 in Düsseldorf geboren und fuhr seine ersten Straßenrennen mit 17 Jahren. Zum Spitzenrennfahrer reichte es nicht, aber zu späten Nischenerfolgen. 2011 gelang es Robert, Zeitfahrweltmeister der Journalisten zu werden. Nach seinem Maschinenbaustudium in Essen führte ihn sein Weg bereits 1993 zur TOUR, wo er anfangs mit der Legende Hans Christian Smolik zusammenarbeitete. Heute ist Robert freiberuflich für TOUR und BIKE unterwegs, mit den Schwerpunktthemen Aerodynamik, Messtechnik und Entwicklung neuer Prüfmethoden. Motto: Geht nicht? Gibt‘s nicht. Robert berät auch die Radindustrie und Profiteams, coacht Athleten und kümmert sich um den Radsportnachwuchs. Als Radsportler mag es Robert kurz und schnell, auf schmalen wie auf breiten Reifen.

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