Numbness caused by wrong saddle

over-the-hill

I've just read some scary articles about impotence and cycling. A Dr Goldstein even goes as far as to say men just should not cycle! I'm looking into a new saddle and wonder does the channel and hole found in some saddles such as Specialized really work? Also how do you find out what width to buy? The saddle on my Wilier is causing a certain amount of numbness; it is a rock hard Sella Italia which I can not find on any product list. I know saddles are personal but the centre channel idea either works or it doesn't.

dennisn

Worked for me. No numbness except when I was putting all I had into intervals and the
like. For long stuff - no problems. Right now I'm experimenting with a so called "sit bone"
saddle that doesn't have a cutout. Not getting much, if any, numbness from it either.

Dennis Noward

comsense

over-the-hill wrote:

Also how do you find out what width to buy?

Go to a speciaized dealer and they measure you with a gel pad. If this isn't practical then measure yourself.
No matter what shape, weigth, size or sex a person is there is one fact about saddles that applies to us all. Your sitbones must be supported by the saddle - if this isn't happening your are going to hurt yourself.
Use a piece of light carboard placed on a FLAT padded chair and sit on it. You will see two indents on the cardboard (or you can use play dough between two sheets of paper and place it on a flat hard surface, or a thick pile towel etc). Measure centre to centre between the indents and then buy the closest saddle to this.
But this is only half the story - if you want to save a lot of money then think carefully about what SHAPE saddle you like. Some people find that a flat saddle suits them, some like the hammock shape - some people cannot abide a rounded nose saddle. Just beware of people saying that such and such a saddle is the most comfortable - they are right in their experience but yours might differ. I went through many saddles ( most off ebay and they went back onto ebay thankfully) before I realised that the application of reason could save me money.

SteveR_100Milers

Ask how many cyclists have got kids.....if it goes numb then its common sense to shift around a bit to ease it, From my own experience it has had no long term ill effects

aracer

There's an awful lot of silly hype about this issue. Most studies seem to involve relatively unfit cyclists sitting rather more upright with more weight on the saddle than a typical racer. The other issue is that people buy soft saddles on the theory they will be more comfortable, but they simply don't support the bits you need supporting, so putting pressure on parts which aren't designed to take it - a firm saddle is far better in this regard. I'm just not convinced it's that big a deal - certainly didn't seem to be an issue for CB for instance!

SteveR_100Milers

I'd recommend a selle italia SLR T1 2008 model if
a) you're a big bggr i.e. over 6ft and 90 kgs
b) Into TT's
c) like shiny patent leather
d) like to enjoy the possibility of post ride erections
e) Fed up with absent mindedly fondling your dangly bits at traffic lights in between swigging HI5/Torq/SIS etc whilst waiting and posing directly behind and therefore in clear view of the blonde chick in the Clio Sport in front of you....

over-the-hill

aracer wrote:

There's an awful lot of silly hype about this issue. Most studies seem to involve relatively unfit cyclists sitting rather more upright with more weight on the saddle than a typical racer. The other issue is that people buy soft saddles on the theory they will be more comfortable, but they simply don't support the bits you need supporting, so putting pressure on parts which aren't designed to take it - a firm saddle is far better in this regard. I'm just not convinced it's that big a deal - certainly didn't seem to be an issue for CB for instance!

One article
http://www.bycycleinc.com/pages/article_MTJ.html
says that the racing position is worse than the upright position and its more than just the perineal area, it's just about every area in the body, especially the wrists. I have read other articles that say the opposite, that racing position is better for the back because there is more weight on the arms. I didn't realise cycling was so controversial in this regard.

dombo6

I had the same problem with the Bontrager saddle thatcame standard on my bike. Changed to a Specialized BG - measured in the shop - and problem disappeared. No more numbness.

dombo6

I had the same problem with the Bontrager saddle thatcame standard on my bike. Changed to a Specialized BG - measured in the shop - and problem disappeared. No more numbness.

Raph

To say one or other position or saddle is better or worse is a bit random - everybody's @rse is different, every saddle is different. On average, everybody's bolux are in roughly the same place so there's a little bit of consistency, but not much. I agree that when they try to get scientific about it they go very wrong very quickly.

I've generally found that getting sore nuts and a numb knob is followed by increased activity in that area later the same evening, far from any impotence. Yes fair enough there's impotence during the ride, but me and the missus haven't tried that particular circus trick yet so not much lost there.

I don't want to dismiss any real occurrences of impotence suffered by anyone, but I reckon it's pretty rare, and you have to experiment with lots of saddles and saddle positions/angles - it's not always obvious what will be best. E.g. tilting the nose down seems to make sense to get the narrow bit out of your goolies, but what happens in my case is I then slide forwards while riding and end up on the narrow bit. I tilt the saddle back a bit and slide it forwards as far as it will go, therefore stay on the wider rear section.

I recently got a Flite titanium with a gap in the middle - it's as hard as a slab of marble but the gap in the middle is quite effective in avoiding the soft stuff behind me balls, though the edges around the gap are so hard they cause almost as much of a problem as it solves.

As mentioned above, having more weight on the arms when leaning forwards can offset the fact that you're sitting on more sensitive bits. I find when I get unfit, I support less of my weight by pushing down on the pedals so I get more saddle-sore. Also when I'm unfit I'm usually heavier.

I'd recommend varying the tilt of the saddle (usually involves adjusting the height a bit too - e.g. if you sit further back you're further from the pedals so the post needs to come down to compensate). If there isn't a good position then borrow saddles and try as many as you can, giving them all a good go at various angles. It's a totally boring process but if you have problems it's worth finding one you're comfortable on.

One of the most comfortable saddles I've ever had was an ISCA - rock hard, more dome than hammock, no padding at all, so you sat on your bones and nothing soft of yer undercarriage ever touched it. As I said, it's not always obvious what's going to work best - it might feel like a brick when you first sit on it, but it might be the least painful after a few hours. I've found that sitting on your bones is usually the best way to keep the goolies uninvolved and survive long rides.

Whoops, ranting again...

liversedge

I suffered with numbness for a week after a training camp last year, on a bike I hired for the camp. And reglarly got a numb knob and blistered balls / perineum.

A good fitting saddle is obviously important - those who have noit suffered are either lucky to have a saddle that fits or just don't do enough miles for it to be a factor.

The hollow channel stuff may work for some but for me it's about adequate support for my sit bones and some clearance for the nerves running along the perineal area between scrotum and anus. i.e. between the horns of the saddle.

A favourable cycling position has also helped and tends to be more alert position rather than slouched on the bike.

JimmyK

Dombo6 wrote:

I had the same problem with the Bontrager saddle thatcame standard on my bike. Changed to a Specialized BG - measured in the shop - and problem disappeared. No more numbness.

the original saddle on my trek 1000 was a bontrager and it cut the @rse off me, I swapped it out for a gel saddle and its all been plain sailing ever since.

Jimmy