Dear Matt,  I use my partner's old mountain bike and, after
about 20 minutes, I have neckache that spoils most rides. The
problem seems to be the stretch to the handlebars once I have
the seat at the required height.I want to buy a new mountain
bike: would a women's bike be a better fit? I'm 5ft 10in, but
I'm wondering what other body measurements are useful when
trying to find the right-size bike  Charlie Stebbing  Your self-
diagnosis is definitely right: too much stretch would show up as
stiffness and soreness at one end of your spine or the other
(lower back pain is typical, too). Women tend to have longer
legs relative to torso than men, so women's bikes are designed
with a shorter reach for any given size.  But everyone is
different: inside leg, shoulder width, arm length etc, all have
a bearing on bike fitting. Ideally, you should buy from a shop
that will measure and fit you first, then tailor the bike
accordingly.  · Send your cycling queries to
bike.doctor@guardian.co.uk