Just wondered how good/bad riding with one gear is for your health. Might be a silly question to which you will reply “MTFU” but thought I’d ask anyway 🙂

for most its ok. i was fine for a bit but suffered a bit as well. some just outright suffer.

people are anatomically different from each other.

I’ve not noticed any more knee related issues than I had riding gears when doing long SS rides – a lot of the time you’re ‘pushing’ a lot less than you woudl with a geared bike in the big ring abd just spinning along, anyway, so it probably evens out the extra grunt you need to put into the up hill bits.

Of course in 20 years time they may be shot to pieces…

so far, no 🙂

Had more grief off the pedalo on holiday than I’ve ever had off my bikes.

I find the worst thing for my knees is to sit & push a hard gear. To that extent, the SS is better because as soon as things get even a little bit grunty I’m out of the saddle & stomping, which doesn’t seem to affect my knees at all.

1. Choose a gear ratio

2. Go for a ride without shifting

3. How do your knees feel after?? 😉

… not for me of course as i’ve had knee issues in the past.

I think my knees are stronger for singlespeeding.

I ride SS all the time. My wife and I agree that provided you ride frequently and keep your muscle and cardio strength up, it’s a better way to ride. If you ride twice a month – forget it. The bike will chew you up and spit you out along with your knees!

Don’t go 2:1 either – most people choose to hard a gear. She rides 32×18 and I ride 32×19 29er. We do all our riding on these bikes – buzzing round the woods, West Highland Way, trail centres etc etc.

75% of my riding is singlespeed and the only time I have knee problem was riding 100 miles o road on a ss. I have done it many times on a geared road bike no issues.

So I conclude, ss can be bad for your knees

Caused all sorts of problems for me, initially because I was maybe staying seated too long, and when I learned to get out of the saddle quicker either A)the damage was done or B)the effort of grunting up big hills just caused different problems.

Either way, as soon as I stopped singlespeeding my knees stopped giving me problems, no longer needed two walking poles to see me home from long walks in the hills and I wasn’t getting that horrible midnight ‘locking’ syndrome that I’d been experiencing with the SS.

Real shame because I was really enjoying it otherwise. Think I maybe had underlying weaknesses/problems that the SS just aggravated. Could possibly do loads of physio etc. but buying gears just seemed easier… 8)

What ratio would you reccommend Teacake? We are surrounded by commons and smallish hills here in womble land. There is the possibility of a move to Cape Town where the terrain is a bit more challenging than my current rides but I’m really liking the simplicity and retro look of a singlespeed.

No

No long term problems here, although I’ve never been an exclusive ss rider. As hard as 32×16 was on the hills, the knees were always fine (used to get killer tricep pain on the harder climbs). I’m currently pushing a decent gear (48 x 16) round pancake flat S Manchester on the commute and that feels hard at times, but again the knees are spot on.

I did get knee pain riding a ss cross bike round hilly Edinburgh, though. Forget the ratio but it was nothing too big at all, but I think it might have been down to other stuff I was doing at the time (weightlifting).

Just anecdotal really – one things for sure if your knees are complaining you should stop it, try re-positioning yourself on the bike etc.

knee issues & singlespeed are imo from people whoride a lot geared, move to singlespeed and don’t take enough caution to easr into it/ take some rest.

SS should strengthen the knees.

SS should strengthen the knees.

I’d agree but it doesn’t do much for the mechanical aspects of the joint and if you’re pushing a gear up hill all the time that’s too much you can have joint surface inflamation issues, I’d imagine.

not had any problems so far 18 months so far do agree that 2:1 ratio is not a practical one i run 34:18 and works for me here in north east essex(smallish short sharp hills).

No knee problems but I’ve had some aches from the hips at times. I’ve been probably 95%+ singlespeed for the last 4 years.

I occasionally have trouble with my knees, don’t get it any more frequent or worse when SSing, just as bad when using gears. However if I’m having trouble with my knees I’m more likely to use gears.

I had knee problems then started using a singlespeed for commuting. At first my knees hurt a bit but now they feel stronger and better.

I find playing football much worse for my knees than singlespeed.

I found the transition from geared to SS quite easy, no knee probs. I’m a bit of a whippetbloke so get out of the saddle a lot anyhoo’s and just carried on the same way. THing I did notice was long spins, I’m a bit of a grunter see so spinning out just gets my goat, so now I simply slow down a bit and roll on..
Choosing the gear ratios well helped.

I ride geared and/or SS 29er depending on mood.. No real issues here.

I actualy find my knees prefer singlespeeding and I used to have rubbish knees.

Guess they must be strengthened but the big gear.

Pushing hard from the saddle’s not a great idea. Stand when it gets hard. The only time I have knee issues is from grinding big heavy bikes — of the sort where standing up really doesn’t work — up long hills.

I had a few problems after just converting to SS, despite being semi-used to SS having SS-ed my pub bike years ago. I was miffed because SS was such a revelation that I would have been gutted to put the gears back on. I gave myself a month and if the knee issues persisted I was going to go go all geary again, I think I took a week off as well. Gradually the knee pain subsided and now they feel great, probably better than before in fact. Mindful of the fact though I bought myself a winter/mud gear which goes on in December and comes off in April/May. I ride a 29er 32*18 in summer and 32*20 in winter.

Get sore knees if i spin too much

is this theory wildly out

People who have knee problems = Fat biffers who mash the pedals
People who don’t have knee problems = Racing snakes who pedal smoothly

Where would “racing snakes who mash” and “fat biffers who pedal smoothly” fit in?

another full-time SS rider here. 29er @ 52″ in the Malverns. One or two hills Im close to stall speed with serious “bench press” forces going through the crank. Im worried more about the chain than my knees.

An hour 4-5 times a week. Out of saddle climbing.
No knee problems unless Im trying too hard whilst seated.

.. I remember a time, a few years ago, when singlespeeding was trendy enough to get lots of replies to such a troll question … I guess singlespeeding just isn `t trendy anymore ..

So we’re all saying techniques the thing yea, rather than grunt it out, seems kinda logical.

I generally get problems with my left knee and lower-back when I stand-up pedal. So sadly, it’s not for me.

1996-2005 most, maybe 85% of my riding was singlespeeding. By ’05 my knees were so bad, I could only ride for an hour or so and after getting off the bike I could hardly walk. Since going back to gears and making some other changes to riding style and frequency my knees are good enough that I take them for granted again. Sad really, cos I loved my one speed – but hey! I’m still riding a bike and that’s what matters.

I find MTB often hurts my knees but road biking doesn’t. I often wondered if this is saddle height?

Im worried more about the chain than my knees

After you had one snap giving it full on power to the cranks, you never recover from that thought 😉

[edit]I find my knees ache if I stop cycling for a few days!

Good excuse & I am sticking to it 😉

Just a quickie – as I age I have dropped the ratio.

32;17 for a Swinley / Surrey Hills vibe – and I will screw on an 18 if I was going to a welsh trail centre. The days of a 16 have left me.

BUT I have had ‘knee trouble’ on what I call my ‘best foot forward’ side. The physio has put me right about the need to look after the ITB – and by using a roller on this in the gym I am getting back to normal.

Been riding singlespeed since 98 no knee issues but hurts my varicose veins 😳

Have I pulled it at 32:16! Back to the drawing board..New to this SS lark.

Do folks favour flats or Spuds? I ride flats on my geared bikes these days but happily ride spd’s too.

deffo spd’s makes a massive difference to getting up more hills without pushing.

Id say ss does mess with my knees if i just ride my ss for a few months. i need to switch it around with my full sus to keep the pressures down

Had to quit SS due to back/hip damage did not help when I pumped myself full of painkillers/booze when riding,I,m am getting on a bit though!

Rich

teamhurtmore – Member
I find MTB often hurts my knees but road biking doesn’t. I often wondered if this is saddle height?
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Yep – hip for me though – not so bad that can be arsed to **** about with my saddle though.

Age comes into this – how old are the guys grinding a big gear up steep climbs who say it’s fine?

Cue: I’m 50, 63, 97 etc 🙂

Fixed is definitely hard on your knees, especially with a big gear

This post is (Opinion based on experience with zero medical qualification – like all good Interweb medical advice should be)

what teacake said.

My winter gear never came off the bike this summer so 34:18 for a few hours round the woods or 34:19 or even 34:20 for a big day in the hills (see SUW thread).

My knees hurt after the Puffer but that’s about it, and everything hurts after the Puffer.

Spinning out on the flat bits is the biggest pain of SSing