annoying pins & needles in hands

139sroberts

Hi Guys,

Had my Spesh Sirrus Sport a good few weeks now and done loads of miles. Am really happy with it, except for one thing.... the above.

I don't have to be riding long before i start to feel a numbness developing in my hands, usually starting (and is more intense) in my left.

It's not excruciating or overly painfull, just really annoying. I try and get round it by flapping my hands around every so often or change positions (i did get bar ends put on).

Curious, does anyone else suffer with this or have any remedies?

Thanks,

Steve

Christophe3967

Yes, its not unusual, as they say in Wales. Good gloves are what you need - also, if you're not already doing so, try and move your hands around on the bars on a ride rather than keeping them in the same position, although not so easy with flat bars,

Might be worth looking at changing your grips if all else fails, but don't ignore it or it'll get worse.

AllTheGear

Try lower front tyre pressure (vibration).

Too much weight on your arms? Move the saddle back. If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

You're using gel gloves hopefully?

139sroberts

AllTheGear wrote:

You're using gel gloves hopefully?

I am using these:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/spe ... s-ec011202

Deadeye Duck

AllTheGear wrote:

If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

DO you mean while leaning over or just sitting up? I think I may need to adjust my saddle then, because I'm pretty sure if I sat with my hands on the hoods then let go, I'd have a new set of teeth with compliments from my stem...

Road bikes are so much more complicated to set up

AllTheGear

Deadeye Duck wrote:

AllTheGear wrote:

If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

DO you mean while leaning over or just sitting up? I think I may need to adjust my saddle then, because I'm pretty sure if I sat with my hands on the hoods then let go, I'd have a new set of teeth with compliments from my stem...

Road bikes are so much more complicated to set up

I meant in a riding position. It's possible to adjust the position so that you are balanced and do not need to hold yourself up with your arms, the usual advice is to try letting go of the bars and see if you need any abdominal effort to avoid falling over.

You are putting a lot of pressure on the nerves in your hands by the sounds of it. You need to get it sorted as you can cause damage.

Edit: Read this, in particular the section on 'Fore-Aft Saddle Position': http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

R_T_A

It sounds like you're compressing the ulnar nerve:

http://www.hughston.com/hha/a_15_3_2.htm

I used to get the same, and added bar ends so I could move my hands about more. It's certainly helped me loads.

biondino

AllTheGear wrote:

Deadeye Duck wrote:

AllTheGear wrote:

If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

DO you mean while leaning over or just sitting up? I think I may need to adjust my saddle then, because I'm pretty sure if I sat with my hands on the hoods then let go, I'd have a new set of teeth with compliments from my stem...

Road bikes are so much more complicated to set up

I meant in a riding position. It's possible to adjust the position so that you are balanced and do not need to hold yourself up with your arms, the usual advice is to try letting go of the bars and see if you need any abdominal effort to avoid falling over.

You are putting a lot of pressure on the nerves in your hands by the sounds of it. You need to get it sorted as you can cause damage.

Edit: Read this, in particular the section on 'Fore-Aft Saddle Position': http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

Surely if, in the riding position, one's torso and head are leaning forward at an angle of, say, 45 degrees, you're always going to need a lot of core strength to hold that position without putting any weight on the bars?

Deadeye Duck

AllTheGear wrote:

Deadeye Duck wrote:

AllTheGear wrote:

If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

DO you mean while leaning over or just sitting up? I think I may need to adjust my saddle then, because I'm pretty sure if I sat with my hands on the hoods then let go, I'd have a new set of teeth with compliments from my stem...

Road bikes are so much more complicated to set up

I meant in a riding position. It's possible to adjust the position so that you are balanced and do not need to hold yourself up with your arms, the usual advice is to try letting go of the bars and see if you need any abdominal effort to avoid falling over.

You are putting a lot of pressure on the nerves in your hands by the sounds of it. You need to get it sorted as you can cause damage.

Edit: Read this, in particular the section on 'Fore-Aft Saddle Position': http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

Thanks, That link has cleared quite a few confusions I had. Especially considering I though fore-aft was to do with the tilt of the saddle, not the position on the rails. I'll have another blast through it tonight while I make changes to the set up.

ride_whenever

yup, but you need to be in a position to support yourself otherwise you're going to get pained hands...

OP, if you're still running the flat bars then fit a set or ergon grips. Really really good for this sort of thing but do take a little while to get the setup tweaked...

AllTheGear

biondino wrote:

AllTheGear wrote:

Deadeye Duck wrote:

AllTheGear wrote:

If you let go of the bars you should be able to sit in a riding position without effort.

DO you mean while leaning over or just sitting up? I think I may need to adjust my saddle then, because I'm pretty sure if I sat with my hands on the hoods then let go, I'd have a new set of teeth with compliments from my stem...

Road bikes are so much more complicated to set up

I meant in a riding position. It's possible to adjust the position so that you are balanced and do not need to hold yourself up with your arms, the usual advice is to try letting go of the bars and see if you need any abdominal effort to avoid falling over.

You are putting a lot of pressure on the nerves in your hands by the sounds of it. You need to get it sorted as you can cause damage.

Edit: Read this, in particular the section on 'Fore-Aft Saddle Position': http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

Surely if, in the riding position, one's torso and head are leaning forward at an angle of, say, 45 degrees, you're always going to need a lot of core strength to hold that position without putting any weight on the bars?

I think it's becuase you use different muscles. If your saddle is further back, you push down with your legs and this holds you up. If the saddle is forward, you need muscles higher up the abdomen to hold yourself up.

I just tried now, sitting on the edge of an office chair. I leaned forward. With my legs out in front of me, I can lean forward with very little effort. The muscles on the backs of my thighs were tense. If I bring my feet back so they are below me, leaning forward requires effort from the abdominal muscles. Moving the feet fore and aft changes the effort required from the abs. Try it!

Of course we're talking about hands. You can't support your weight with your abs for an hour, so will transfer the load to your arms. The point is if you can sit relaxed without any effort required from the abs/arms to hold yourself up, there will be no load on the hands.

As is the link above, the position you choose is a compromise between comfort, power, and aero.

itboffin

this thread has been OT (on topic) far too long, please stop now :P