Position with the pedals. The first step is to position the ball of your foot directly over the pedal axle. The next step of course to have the correct seat height and the right fore/aft positioning of your saddle (how far forward your saddle is relative to your bottom bracket. Seat height should fall in the range of 89%-93% of your inseam. You measure your inseam in socks, feet pedal width apart, from the floor to your crotch, placing a book between you legs can help with
doing this measurement. Measure your seat height from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of your saddle. Different shoes, pedals, saddles and your flexibility will all effect your optimal seat height.
Next is the fore/aft, with your crank arms parallel with the ground your knee cap should be directly over the pedal axle of the front foot. If you find your lower back gets tight as soon as you start running, or you have a very upright
running style (like our Olympic Champ Simon) you may find some relief by sliding your saddle slightly forward (it's a hip flexor thing). Sliding you saddle forward however does lessen your leverage on the pedals and will limit your power output especially when climbing. A forward position does make it easier to spin fast, so make sure you work on your leg speed to get the most out of this positioning.

Next is the reach to the bars and positioning of your aero bars . Simply clamping some aero bars on a standard road bike set up won't work best for most athletes. If you are too stretched out to reach your bars you have no stability in your lower back, which does not allow you to put all of your power into the pedals. Your arms should have about a 90 degree bend at the elbow and your upper arm should be almost perpendicular to the ground. This usually requires changing to a shorter stem to bring your arms back in a bit. Now you can get everything out of your pedal stroke, it's time to get aero. If you get a shorter stem, also try to get one with a negative rise (to position your bars lower).
The lower you can position your arms, the more aero you will be, more later of getting lower. Narrow is the other factor, get you arm rests in a close as together as possible. Just be aware that narrower can be a bit harder to control. Narrow also applies to your knees, if you have a tendency to stick them out while you pedal you need to work both on your flexibility (mostly butt and hamstrings) and concentrate on keeping them in, and tracking straight up and down.

Position the things you need around your position and practice getting at them. Behind the seat water bottles are great, unless you have to sit up, slow down and reach back to get at them. Try a road specific camel back or other drinking system that lets you stay in your aero position. Also positioning your shifting on the aero bars and taping some gels somewhere up front can keep you aero longer.

The trick to getting as aero as possible is in your flexibility. The lower you position your arm rests the more stretch will automatically be placed on your hamstrings. As you extend you leg, your hamstrings eeach the end of their range of motion. If this happens before the bottom of the pedal stoke, you'll end up rocking from side to side losing power and getting chafed. Lowering your saddle can reduce this, but that too will limit your power output, your saddle should be as close to the upper limit as possible with out causing you to rock when you pedal.

The best time to start working on your aero position is now, shorten your stem, and get it a bit lower than it is now. Start some flexibility training at least 3 times per week, totally separate from your other training, and really work on your hamstrings, upper and lower back and hip flexors. As your flexibility improves, you'll be able to gradually lower your arm rests even more and get more aero without losing any power.

By Steve Lund
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www.InternationalCyclingCoaches.com

Steve is a former Canadian National Cycling Team coach who now works with both cyclists and triathletes of all levels. Some of his clients have included Simon Whitfield, Peter Reid and Pan American TT Champion Sandy Espeseth.