Women Cyclists: Higher Handlebars Means Better Sex

Male cyclists have been reading for years about the risks of bicycle seat pressure on certain sexual organs. Now it’s women’s turn to contemplate the possible unfortunate consequences of too much saddle pressure on the sweet spot. Writing in WBUR’s CommonHealth blog, Cary Goldberg reports on a study in the Journal of Sexual Medicine for which researchers measured saddle pressures and sensation in the genital region, then raised and lowered handlebars to see if it made a difference. What did they find? The lower the handlebars, the greater the pressure, and the greater the pressure, the less sensation in an area where more sensation if generally considered a good thing. Irwin Goldstein, editor-in-chief of The Journal of Sexual Medicine, had this to say: “There are a myriad of factors affecting women’s sexual function. If women can minimize pressure application to the genital tissues merely by repositioning their handlebars higher, to increase sitting upright, and thereby maximize pressure application to the woman’s sit bones, then they are one step closer to maintaining their very important sexual health.”