Could This Simple Hack Change Your Cycling: Q Factors Explained!

Have you changed your bikes Q factor? 🚲

If you ride a dual platform pedal you can compare your foot position between flat-side and clip-side while riding. That's probably a good indication of your preferred natural position vs what is forced by your clipless system.

Fresh off a bike fit (last week) and one of the adjustments was to widen my stance by 4mm total. This seemingly small change had a great effect on comfort and rippled throughout several measurements bringing my feet more in line where they should be. If your bike fitter isn't looking at that, consider finding one who does. HUGE difference for me.

Thank you for this! I've been trying to get my wife's bike to fit her better and reduce the knee pain she's been experiencing, even on shorter 30-45 minute rides. I couldn't think of anything else to try and correct but then your video came along. I realized I'd completely forgotten about the Q-factor. I ordered some pedal extenders and snuck them on her bike for a blind test. It was FTP test day on Zwift and she remarked how this was the first test she didn't have knee pain and also had an 8% improvement in watts!

i've accepted my bike fit is trash

Yes! Just this winter I switched to longer spindles (+4mm each pedal) in an effort to improve hip and knee fatigue. Amazing improvement.

Ride flats, not clipless and you will position your feet where they want to be :-). And, if you want to get your feet closer together use old square tapered or octalink bottom brackets to keep the Q-factor low.

Big thanks Connorxand GCN, great topic I've never considered. But at 60 years old, 6'2" tall and with chronic lower back and hip pain riding, I'm going to try longer pedals for sure. Hoping for good results so I can ride pain free!!

In terms of making small changes, sometimes big changes can help you understand your issues more easily. For example, if you change your seat height so that it's too short, you can feel what too short feels like. If you then change it to be too high, you can feel what that feels like. You know that the proper height is somewhere in between. At that point you can start moving slowly in one direction until you just feels like it's about right. Then move all the way to the other extreme and move the other direction slowly until it just feels like it's about right. The two "just about right" points will still probably have some space between them. You can then move the saddle height smack dab in the middle of that knowing that you are in a "goldilocks" position with a little bit of room to spare on either side.

Q factor made a huge difference, when I switched from the old 68mm road and track BB bike to a FATBIKE Surly Moonlander which is 100mm. It took me a season to get used to the difference. As I am into my 7th decade of riding I usually stay with just the slow moving stable fatbike, after 6 decades of having used a 68mm BB. Yes I use a Brooks B17 or Brooks Pro saddle or a plastic Unicanitor saddle for the track/stationary riding. Bikepacking on varying terrain for hours with changing terrain is always nice. Cranks that are straight vs curved, pedal width and feet width, all make a difference in Q-factor as well.

Great new video there Big Man!! A part of bike fit l honestly never thought about before. I have all the other points of possible discomfort worked out on my bike, but still have some problems. This new information, as brought to us By You, may be the answer to my long persistent problems. Thank You SO much for the Insight!!😎

I remember when campagnolo first launched their very narrow bottom bracket. Wonderful to get the best fit. I once even crushed the chainstay of a steel bike to allow me to run a narrower q factor! Bike fit for me has always been a thing I have obsessed over

I did a lot with Q a few years back. I was fortunate to have a friend who is a chiro for many profis in The Netherlands. I moved cleats and picked up some pedal extension and relieved some pain and increased the joy of riding.

Just bought the 15mm SQlabs pedals, your video came out at the right time. Always wondered why I had chainstay and crank rub when using MTB pedals on my road bike. Explains a lot.

Such useful information I'd never really heard of Q factor before this but thank you for opening my eyes to it. This could really help reduce knee issues and comfort on the bike. Great video...

As a long legged 6ft 3in I put a Deore crankset on a road frame and moved my SPD cleats inboard which was a huge improvement but had to drop my seat height slightly.

Great video Conor.. I've been riding Speedplay zero's with the 65mm spindles for the last fifteen years, and they have been a total game changer for me in terms on comfort and hip- knee- ankle and power on the bike. I used to suffer from all manner of knee pains and saddle sores and quit cycling out of sheer pain and frustration many times, until I read in Cycling weekly that you could purchase the aforementioned longer spindles for Speedplay, it wasn't an easy task and required weeks of online searching. I'm still riding my carefully hoarded original made in USA Speedplay Zero's .. Will eventually buy a fep pairs of Wahoo Speedplay's now the earlier quality control issues have been resolved...

Narrower for the win for me! Less flex in pedal spindle, cranks and frame. It's also slightly more aero. If we were pushing both feet at the same time a wider stance might produce more power, but we're not. You'll also have more side to side movement when pedaling if it's too wide, like Cameron Mason!

Simple answer is to put on a pair of flats every six months and go for a ride. After 30 mins or so your feet will find the most natural position. Compare this to your normal position and make an adjustment if there's a notable difference. Ride shoes with a similar sole thickness. One thing I'd like to see tested is effect of stance width on cornering, I suspect that wider may help. Crank length can also have an effect.. GCN have several presenters who are top notch crit riders, they should be able to assess this.

Yes did a bike fit recently. Changed stem and saddle set up. Went for new longer length pedals. What a difference. Much better comfort. Better alingment and I feel like I can ride smoother and stronger because of it.