Innie or Outie
The quest for a comfortable, yet practical, bike seat has presumably been going on since the second day the bicycle was invented. It is the search for the Holy Grail, the quest for all the answers to the Universe, the only thing stopping World Peace, and it is on every person’s mind that straddles a bicycle. But how can something as enjoyable as riding a bicycle bring so much discomfort for some and yet still be disregarded or accepted as being the norm? Discomfort should not be accepted as a consequence of cycling. We believe that cycling, at all athletic levels, should be enjoyable, fun, and exhilarating, which is why we at Speed & Comfort strive to change the norms by adding greater comfort into cycling. We also know that comfort on a seat is personal, so we are opening up the readily avoided discussions of your “downstairs” soft tissue pain to bring joy back into your biking experience.
Imagine walking into a bike shop, preparing yourself to have a talk with your local fitter or bike shop personnel with one of the most personal topics known to cyclists…your crotch hurts on your bike seat. Whether it is numbing, sores, pressure, or overall soft tissue discomfort, you know something needs to be fixed to continue cycling. But where do you begin this personal conversation? Do you dive right in? Men cyclists may have a less troubling time approaching another male in a bike shop, but a woman approaching a male for an answer to her soft tissue problems can be a problem in itself. Many men are not equipped with the knowledge to approach and fix the problems females may have on a bike saddle and both parties of the conversation may be too embarrassed to even address the problem at hand. As the sport of cycling and triathlon expands, it is time to expand the knowledge of bike fitters and shop owners around the world on how to better accommodate women to the correct bike saddle. It starts with a simple question…are you an innie or outie?
For the men of cycling, there seems to be a tendency to just “suck it up” when facing an uncomfortable bike saddle; more miles in the saddle will make it better and just ride through the pain. Men have specific anatomy that requires various types of arranging to find comfort in the saddle without getting crushed, while women have a completely different set of issues that can be more complicated to address. For women, the concept of suffering through the pain in their “lady parts” is not pleasurable, nor is it appealing. The thought of many hours in the saddle has kept many women away from the sport of cycling, or forced some out of the sport. It is necessary to break the barriers and open up the discussions to make women all around the world find comfort in their seat.
As a seat manufacturer, we get numerous e-mails and phone calls from women asking for help on solving these highly sensitive issues. The calls and e-mails usually read about the same, “I can’t ride more than a few miles” and “I’m too embarrassed to discuss this with my local bike shop”. Something needed to be done to fix this, something needed to be said, and a system needed to be developed that made more sense. Attention needed to be brought to this subject. As a seat designer, John Cobb started asking questions to relieve this problem women were having. He began with his wife Ginger. He asked her questions about specific seat pressure points for women and where seats were going wrong. After gaining some useful answers, he then went on to ask other female customers similar questions. So in 1995, after looking around, John started modifying seats from existing manufacturers, trying out different shapes and sizes to receive even more feedback. After some time, it soon became apparent that there were a couple of key issues and elements at hand for women cyclists. One factor that seemed to be a key element in women’s comfort is whether or not the rider uses aero bars, and another is how aggressive the front-end setup of the bike is. Looking at these two factors can also help determine a better seat fit. But these factors alone were not enough to eliminate the soft tissue complications facing women riders. Sensitive issues require more attention and detail.
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As with so many advances in product designs, there seemed to be a clear pattern developing in relation to which women would choose which seat shapes. One group of women would really like a narrower nose section, while another group of women would absolutely hate that design and completely love a wide nose section design. There was very little middle ground, it was love it or hate it, but what were the deciding factors? Why would some prefer the wide nose and some prefer the narrow nose? This required much more than just accepting the “wives tales” that all women needed wider seats, and the need to look beyond stories, which broadly stated: women need shorts with thick padding to eliminate soft tissue pain (which is not the case).
While experimenting with women’s comfort on the bike, we were also doing skeletal studies of the human body to help find increased comfort along with greater speed and power in riders of all shapes and sizes. During this time, a connection surfaced that showed a consistent trend in the relationship of the hip sockets to the pubic bone location in female riders. However, further studies showed a trend in females relating hip socket location and posterior size. It was shown that females with more forward hip sockets tended to have flatter rear ends and females that had more rearward hip sockets had a more pronounced rear from front to back. Along with this, it became evident that the females with the forward hip sockets also had a more forward pubic bone protrusion, while the females with the larger posteriors and more rearward hip sockets tended to barely show any pubic bone protrusion. There had to be some relationship between this finding and saddle comfort for women’s soft tissue. Striving to know more about this connection and what it may mean, studies were continued, more in-depth questions were asked, and more research was conducted. And after further research into this women’s problem by looking at numerous molds, x-rays, and more, John Cobb was beginning to see a connection between pubic bone location and soft tissue orientation in women.
Over the next few years and throughout many fitting sessions, more serious questions were asked of women cyclists. Harder and more personal questions were asked and answered, and more trust was developed between the fitter and the subjects so that the very frank and exact questions led to answers that could be had. During this time, certain trends relating to female anatomy were being developed and followed. Tests were continued to identify consistency in these trends in order to help the female riders find more comfort on the bike. And then it suddenly became so clear. The answer was there all along, but nobody knew how to ask the questions to find the right answers. A social conversation triggered the thought: is your navel an “Innie” or an “Outie”? That’s a fair question, and a common one that happens in the locker rooms across America. So to move to the next level for females, are your “lady parts” an “Innie” or an “Outie”? There is a physical difference between the two types, and that difference can help tell you what saddle will be the best fit for your body type.
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The women’s sexual anatomy, the vulva, labia, and clitoris in particular, make up the women’s soft tissue that cause the most concerns and discomfort for female riders. The vulva and labia are the outer exposed soft tissue areas around the opening of the vagina. Because women’s sexual anatomy is lower in the pelvic region, and cannot be “adjusted” like men’s sexual anatomy, finding comfort can be more difficult on a bike saddle. Putting direct pressure on any of this soft tissue area can soon lead to pain, unhappiness, and short bike rides. But the question still remained: how does all of this information seem to work or not work together? Does that relationship of a more or less pronounced pubic bone signify a certain type of female body part shape?
For the women who are considered “Outies”, the vulva and the labia are much more pronounced and exposed, often showing as a physically larger area. The clitoris also may be a physically larger area. In other words, there is more fleshy surface area to the external genitalia for those who are considered outies. For the “Innies”, the vulva, the labia, and the clitoris tend to be more enclosed or drawn up internally so that the crotch area is smoother. The innies will have a smaller exposed soft tissue surface area. So far, it seems that either one can be found with either pubic bone style, but it is beginning to show that the forward hip socket location combined with the protruding pubic bone, tends to be an “Outie” more often, while a less pronounced pubic bone tends to be an “Innie”. As we gain more data, a more consistent trend should emerge on this. While comfort is specific and personal for each body, we have found a trend that connects certain body types to a preference in seat type. We have found that the “Outies” tend like the wider nosed saddles such as the Delta-M or Type-5 models, while the “Innies” consistently like the Delta-P and Delta-V and the Type-R models. So after a lot of dancing around, there is the answer! Go check out your downstairs and make the call. Comfort and happiness are what you stand to gain by looking and making the best choice for your body. If you still have questions, you can always give us a call or send us an e-mail…we are not afraid to address your personal comfort! After all, Speed comes with Comfort!
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