Ah – saddle pain – a torture that can destroy a good ride and turn cycling from your greatest pleasure into your greatest torture.

The problem with saddle pain is that it’s very personal and hard to diagnose exactly. Firstly, you need to find a saddle and a pair of shorts that suit you – these factors are important because if they are wrong they will not only be uncomfy, but this discomfort will cause you to sit differently – rotating your hips forwards or backwards to avoid sitting on the soft tissue that’s hurting. That in turn can cause all the back and knee pain we’ve already discussed.

Once you’ve found the right saddle and shorts, you need to check the angle is right. If the saddle is pointed too far downwards, you’ll be forced to rotate forwards, and your hips will tilt downwards. This will cause you to sit on the narrowest part of the saddle, and result in soft tissue discomfort at the front. You may also notice knee niggles, wrist and arm pain as a result of your tilted pelvis.

If your saddle is tilting backwards, you’ll place the pressure on your sit bones, causing pain there. Even worse, the nose of the saddle can chafe and rub exactly where you don’t want it too. If this is the case, you might also find you have lower back pain as your pelvis is tilted upwards.

In both cases, adjust the saddle to tilt upwards or downwards as required. Remember it doesn’t need to be dead flat – a slight tilt works for most women, just don’t let it become extreme.

Shopping for a new bike? Here’s how to find one that fits.