Numbnuts.

Onan

WARNING: CONTAINS EXPLICIT REFERENCE TO MALE DANGLY PARTS.

This may be a sensitive issue, but does anyone else have problems with their particulars going all numb/tingly/disappearing back into their body?

Just me?

I'm currently riding in around the 10 mile region, and doing it on a road bike with no padded shorts, so it may just be down to that, but I was wondering if anyone else has similar problems, and what you do to deal with it.

I've heard all sorts of weird things recently about what cycling can do to a gentlemans lunchbox, ranging from infertility up to prostates the size of bowling balls. It's frankly terrifying. What are the chances my stuff is going to stop working, or fall off or something?

Share your cycling related experiences with your (insert genital euphemism of choice) here.

Rich158

Been there on a 100 miler, thought I'd never recover :shock:

The sollution was getting a properly fitted saddle, which has solved all the problems

and get yourself some padded shorts if you value your gentlemen vegetables at all :shock:

UndercoverElephant

Adjust your saddle position to make sure that your sit-bones are actually on the saddle most of the time. Make sure that the saddle is level.

Padded shorts may help, but so will just toughening up. I have articulated family jewels now. Grr.

il_principe

Dude get some padded shorts FFS!

Onan

It's the next purchase on my list, believe me.

Other things which I'm sure will help include losing some weight (the boys can't like my 17 stone bulk bearing down on them), and getting my setup sorted out (I think I'm too stretched out on the bike).

downfader

Onan wrote:

It's the next purchase on my list, believe me.

Other things which I'm sure will help include losing some weight (the boys can't like my 17 stone bulk bearing down on them), and getting my setup sorted out (I think I'm too stretched out on the bike).

Padded shorts aint always necessary. I've never used them, I ride 6 miles in and 6 out, cotton pants and ronhill running bottoms.

As said above check the saddle. Theres a coupld of good vids on how to adjust them on youtube and also here too iirc.

taz3611

Sitting too far forward with too much weight on the perineum will cause the numbness, as a lot of blood flow goes through this area. Compressing it will cause numb old feller. Difficult to get position sorted when you're trying to be nice & low and at the same time, sitting on the sit-bones. Experiment with different saddle positions of angle and forward/backward movement and even try mates' saddles if possible. One day you'll find that elusive holy-grail called comfort.

rhext

+1 for adjust saddle. I found that dropping the nose down and moving it forward a bit helped a lot, but it's very individual and what works for some won't work for others.

But the other thing is to stand out of the saddle every 10 minutes or so, even if just for a few turns of the pedals.

Rich158

before you even consider saddle position, measure the width of your sit bones and check that against your saddle. I know from painful experience that if the saddle is the wrong width no amount of adjustments will make it comfortable. Get the right saddle, and then adjust it to your position.

It's not unusual for the stock saddles on many bikes to be far to narrow, putting extra preasure in the wrong area leading to numbness :shock:

nwallace

Sit on your sit bones not your squidgy bits.

It doesn't just apply to men though, how often do you hear women complaining about a sore arse in the wrong places and then notice she is using a narrow male saddle.

One of my bikes has a WTB Rocket V (been meaning to bin it for ages) on it, it's a tad too narrow, and it seems to be normal width for standard male saddles.

WTB 2000 seems to be about right for me though.

always_tyred

Its is more interesting if give yourself a numb hand.

Flasheart

Never had it dissappear back in :shock: (thank goodness) but the wedding tackle does get very numb in cold weather, and that's with the correct kit on. Does sort of concern me that there is NO feeling there at all when it happens.

flicksta

Linked to another thread about shortening your stem, I had this problem when I was leaning too far forward and not sitting back enough. Shortened the stem to ease stretching my back and inadvertently fixed this too.

Bike fit and set up v important.

roger_merriman

Flasheart wrote:

Never had it dissappear back in :shock: (thank goodness) but the wedding tackle does get very numb in cold weather, and that's with the correct kit on. Does sort of concern me that there is NO feeling there at all when it happens.

thats more than likely just cold than any saddle interaction.

I used to have outside jobs and in cold wet wintery days things could get numb.

for the OP get some half decent padded shorts, where them under MTB baggies if the thought of skin tight doesn't appeal.

saddles can be a bit of lottery to be honest, could try it's postion, ie forward back etc. or try some of the ones with a cut out.

what i would say is change one thing at a time so you know what is and is not having any effect.

and be warned one persons perfect saddle is anothers torture device.

Fireblade96

Blatant hijack coming up, sorry:

I've (foolishly) agreed to ride support for the last few days of a friend's John O'Groats - Land's End, so will be doing 3 consecutive long days (anywhere from 60-100 miles a day) starting Sunday. And due to holidays I've barely sat on the bike for the last month.

Is it too late to consider getting a new saddle ?
Do I need to raid the B&B's stock of those little individual packets of Flora to rub onto my nether regions ?
Should I just MTFU and eat Nurofen for breakfast ?

roger_merriman

Fireblade96 wrote:

Blatant hijack coming up, sorry:

I've (foolishly) agreed to ride support for the last few days of a friend's John O'Groats - Land's End, so will be doing 3 consecutive long days (anywhere from 60-100 miles a day) starting Sunday. And due to holidays I've barely sat on the bike for the last month.

Is it too late to consider getting a new saddle ?
Do I need to raid the B&B's stock of those little individual packets of Flora to rub onto my nether regions ?
Should I just MTFU and eat Nurofen for breakfast ?

a saddle you couldn't know if it fitted you or not til the ride, which if not could be wince making. I go for sudocream and good padded shorts.

prawny

Fireblade96 wrote:

Blatant hijack coming up, sorry:

I've (foolishly) agreed to ride support for the last few days of a friend's John O'Groats - Land's End, so will be doing 3 consecutive long days (anywhere from 60-100 miles a day) starting Sunday. And due to holidays I've barely sat on the bike for the last month.

Is it too late to consider getting a new saddle ?
Do I need to raid the B&B's stock of those little individual packets of Flora to rub onto my nether regions ?
Should I just MTFU and eat Nurofen for breakfast ?

Get thee to any decent bike shop and get some chamois cream. I use it everyday for commuting now. I used to get very sore by the end of the week especially if it was raining.

oscarbudgie

People who can ride without padded shorts are in the 'smoked for 60 years never did me any harm' mould - rare and lucky.
Judging by your username are you sure though thats its the cycling doing the harm?

ex-pat scot

Numb nuts (we used to have "Team numb nuts" in the mid-90s in Sheffield) are usually caused by saddle pressure on the perineum and restriction to the blood supply vessels.
Too much pressure = low blood flow = loss of feeling = numb nuts.
Perineum is the area between your bottom and danglies.

I wouldn't worry about fertility: as the father of 4 children my important bits seem to have survived early adulthood cycling excesses (24hr time trials anyone?) relatively unscathed.


Padded shorts are really useful.

Also a number of different position tactics:
- try lowering the nose of the saddle slightly (worked for me just dropping the nose a fraction)
- if your bars are too far below the height of saddle then this can also aggravate. Solution is to raise the bar height a little
- if your saddle is quite far back then you will be too "folded up" when aero, so moving the saddle forward could help
- if the saddle is too high then dropping it slightly will also help.
- remember that small adjustments can have big effects
- change one variable at a time and re-try

Other tactics include:
- getting out of the saddle at intervals and standing for a few pedal strokes. This allows the blood to rush back to the nether regions. It's rather difficult to achieve on fixed wheel though if you are tanking along at a fair lick
- adjust your hand position on the bars regularly. Tops, hoods, drops, hooks are all positions that will give you a different aero crouch and hence different pressure on the sensitive regions.

Flasheart

Reckon I need a battery operated tackle-warmer for winter riding
*checks Ann Summers website

MonkeyMonster

If you got one of those saddles with a bit cut out where the testimonials can rest - get a little battery powered warmer and stick it into the hole...

A voila

nigeve

Still… On the positive side, if you ride around to your girlfriend having a numb Hampton means you can go like a porn star all night… Give her the ride of her life

ex-pat scot

I believe that your "Hampton" needs a decent supply of blood to work as you are intending. Numbness due to cut-off supply would thus lead to a seriously dischuffed gf

nigeve

Err… Sorry… Don’t you know anything about human anatomy..?
As long as you have not broken the bone that goes into your Hampton it’ll work just fine… There is a scene in the Brit Flick ‘Love Honour and Obey’ that explains it quite clearly

:shock:

ex-pat scot

nigeve wrote:

Err… Sorry… Don’t you know anything about human anatomy..?
As long as you have not broken the bone that goes into your Hampton it’ll work just fine… There is a scene in the Brit Flick ‘Love Honour and Obey’ that explains it quite clearly

:shock:

Not seen the film, but I remember o'level biology quite clearly...

There is no "bone"- the increase in size and strength is down to "turgidity"- an increase in blood supply to the affected region, causing dilation of capillaries.


Of course I could just be talking complete b@ll@cks!

MonkeyMonster

Its all to do with water pressure - if you've pinched the nerve and just numbed it fine - the main vessels that also do the water pressure are near the nerve however so wouldn't be to long a stretch to think it not working will go hand in hand (as it were) with numbness.

ex-pat scot

I think this thread is a contender for the "most euphemisms in a day" prize...


along with the double entendres.

Flasheart

That like a spitroast? :shock:

m0scs

After buying my bike I changed the standard Spec saddle, for a Selle Italia Max flight, supposed to be one of the most comfortable "racing" saddles. I think I saw someing saying that a lot of TdeF riders used them, so I was sold

I suffered from numb parts for almost a year before eventualy going to LBS and using their sit bone measuring pad. It was determined that my Selle Italia saddle was too wide.

I was a little sceptical but decided to go with the advice and purchased a Spec Toupe saddle, with much less padding.

Almost immediatly Numb Nuts were gone!

So the moral of the story is:

Even if you have a fat @rse doesnt mean you need a wide saddle.

Obviously padded shorts for any decent length of bike ride, are a must.

nigeve

I thought I’d follow this up as I decide to listen to some of the advice offered in this thread and put it into practice… On Saturday I brought two pairs of Endura 400 series cycle liners (the type that go into their excellent single track short, but I couldn’t afford the shorts just yet). Then I adjusted my saddle so it dips down about half and inch from where I had it previously… The difference was amazing… I think it’s a combination of the two but I this was my first journey in a month that didn’t leave me saddle sore. I can’t say enough about the Endura liners and I’ll be popping back into my LBS for an Endura waterproof at the end of the month…
Till then I’m still wearing my football shorts over the liners but I’m delighted with the results these two changes have bought about… I’m almost through the pain barrier now and really enjoying my daily 22 miles