A bike fit you can do at home

A proper fit costs a couple of hundred pounds and a morning, which is a lot to spend on a bike you bought last month. Etapa reads a short video of you pedalling and tells you what to change.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

It is not the same thing as a fitter, and it says so — but it will catch the saddle that is two centimetres too low, which is the one making your knees hurt. Most people never have their bike fitted. They buy it, ride it, and put up with the numb hands and the sore neck because they assume that is what cycling feels like. Usually it is not: it is a saddle a little too low, or bars a little too far away, and both take a five-minute adjustment with the multi-tool that came in the box. The hard part is knowing which one. That is the part Etapa does.

How it works

Film one short clipUp to 30 seconds of you pedalling, filmed from the side. Easiest on a turbo trainer; failing that, prop your phone on a chair two or three metres away, or hand it to whoever is in the house.
It reads eight thingsSaddle height, saddle fore-aft, where you are actually sitting on the saddle, reach, back angle, knee angle, hand position and neck position. Each one comes back as what it sees and what to do about it.
You change one thing and rideAdjustments come in plain English — “drop the saddle about a centimetre and ride a week on it” — not angles you would need a goniometer to check. Every check is saved, so next month you can see what actually changed.

What it reads

Sitting forward on the nose of the saddle usually means the reach is too long. Sliding backwards usually means the saddle tilt or fore-aft is off. White knuckles on the hoods mean your weight is hanging off your hands rather than sitting on the saddle. These are the patterns a fitter looks for in the first two minutes, and they are all visible from the side, which is why one clip is enough.

What it is not

It is not a professional bike fit, and the app says so before you start. Nobody is measuring your inseam, checking your cleat float or watching your foot roll through the pedal stroke. If something hurts in a way that worries you, or the adjustments do not fix it, see a fitter — Etapa will find ones near you rather than leaving you to search. What this does well is the common, cheap, obvious stuff: the position that is a bit off and has been for two years.

Does it work on my bike?

Yes. Road, gravel, hybrid, mountain bike, an old tourer with flat bars. The read is about where your body is, not what the bike costs. It works just as well on a turbo trainer as outdoors, and better, because the camera stays still.

When to do it again

After you change anything — new saddle, new shoes, new bars, a bike fit at a shop — and once in the spring when you start riding properly again. Your position drifts: saddles slip, cleats wear, and you get more flexible over a season. The history list keeps every check, so you can see what you changed and whether it helped.

Reads your whole position

Saddle height, fore-aft, where you sit, reach, back angle, knee angle, hands and neck. Each one with what it sees and what to change.

One clip, thirty seconds

Filmed from the side while you pedal. A turbo trainer is easiest, a chair two metres away works fine, a friend works best.

Plain English, not angles

“Drop the saddle about a centimetre” rather than a knee-extension figure you have no way of measuring at home.

Keeps the history

Every check is saved, so you can see what you changed in March and whether your neck stopped hurting in April.

Knows its limits

It is not a professional fit and never pretends to be. For pain, it points you at real fitters near you.

Comes with the rest

Your fit findings sit next to your guide, your rides and your companion, so you can just ask why your hands still go numb.

Is this a real bike fit?

No, and Etapa says so before you start. A professional fitter measures you, watches you from several angles and can change your cleats and your saddle on the spot. This reads one video from the side and catches the common, obvious problems — a saddle too low, a reach too long, weight hanging off your hands. For most people who have never been fitted at all, that is the gap worth closing. If you are in pain, see a fitter, and the app will find you one nearby.

What do I need to film it?

A phone and somewhere to put it. A turbo trainer is easiest because you stay in one place. Otherwise prop the phone on a chair two or three metres away, side on, roughly at saddle height, and ride past it — or hand it to someone. Good light helps: if the clip is too dark to read, it tells you that rather than guessing.

Will it tell me to buy a new stem?

Sometimes, if that is genuinely the answer, but it starts with the free things. Most of what it finds is fixed with the multi-tool that came with the bike. Where a part really is the problem, it says what kind and roughly why, so you can take that to a shop rather than being sold something.

Does it work on a mountain bike or a hybrid?

Yes. It reads where your body is, not what the bike is called. Road, gravel, hybrid, mountain bike and flat-bar tourers all work. The reach and hand-position notes change to match the bars you actually have.

Do I need to pay for it?

Etapa is free to download and every subscription starts with a 7-day free trial, so you can run a fit check before you are charged. Unlimited checks need a subscription after that. One exception: if a post-ride check-in flags pain, that fit check is free regardless.

Find out what is making your neck hurt

Download Etapa, film thirty seconds on the turbo, and read what it says. Every subscription starts with a week’s free trial.