Saddle Fit for the Rider - Male vs. Female
your upper inner thighs.
Because female thighs tend to angle outward at the hip and inward at the knee known as Q flexion a woman carries more weight on her upper inner thigh than a man does. When a woman sits on a saddle that is too wide in the twist her leg is pushed forward instead of being able to hang straight down and the knee and toe are forced out at a 45 degree angle. Not only does this make it difficult to achieve a straight line from shoulders to hips to heels it also puts extra pressure on the hip joints which can be quite painful.
These plaster casts show the stark differences in pelvic structure between a woman left and a man right and how these affect their position in the saddle. As you can see the womans pubic symphysis supports her position like the third leg in a tripod whereas the man sits comfortably on his two seat bones. Photo courtesy of Schleese Saddlery
Because a mans pelvis has a higher pubic symphysis PS when he sits in a balanced position on his seat bones as on a bipod with his spine perpendicular to the ground his PS will be tipped upwards and not contact the saddle. When a woman sits in the saddle with her spine perpendicular to the ground her PS is much lower and closer to front of saddle and can contact like the third leg of a tripod and rub. This can result in recurring bladder infections even bleeding. Pelvic tilt is also affected by the saddle model and the saddle balance.
The ratio of the length of the upper leg to the length of the lower leg determines the position andor length of the stirrup bar. Most women have a longer upper leg
than lower leg. The stirrup bar acts like a fulcrum and the stirrup leather like a pendulum. With a normally positioned stirrup bar a womans leg will usually end up being too far forward because the leg falls according to its centre of gravity. Therefore many women require extended stirrup bars to ensure that the leg hangs in the correct position.
Proper flap positioning accommodates female anatomy in saddle design. The way a womans hip bones are articulated at the hip joint differs from a mans and causes the legs to naturally angle out. Changing the angle of the flap and properly positioning the thigh roll can help. In a very straight flap your knee may come too close to the front of the flap in motion the leg will actually go over the flap. This can move the pelvis forward leading to back pain and discomfort.
