pins and needles

loppy
loppy Posts: 14
edited December 2012 in Commuting general
Good evening, i am after a little guidance, i have just brought a new bike, its a hybrid with flat bars after only about 10 Min's i get pins and needles in both hands i did suffer with this also on an old mountain bike i had although put that down to it being to small i did look like a circus act on it too!!, i am hoping that i may need to adjust the seat to alter the weight on my arms, cant adjust the bars height although can alter the angle, and gloves do they help... any advice or personal experience greatly received
many thanks :?

Comments

  • corshamjim
    corshamjim Posts: 234
    I've not suffered with pins & needles myself, but have certainly found that fitting Ergon (or similar) grips can make a huge difference in comfort.

    The ones I have on the Charge are the GP1. http://www.avonvalleycyclery.co.uk/110/ ... t-bar.aspx

    Are you sure you can't flip the stem over to raise your handlebars a bit, or even fit a different stem? What kind of hybrid is it?
  • loppy
    loppy Posts: 14
    hi thanks for your comments, i have got a Cube cls ltd pro 2012 i am pretty sure they cant be adjusted , not the ones i used to have!!
  • corshamjim
    corshamjim Posts: 234
    You're right. It looks like flipping the stem wouldn't help much. You can raise or bring the handlebars in by fitting a higher and/or shorter stem. To give you an idea of some of the stems available see here:

    http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/stems-1-1-8- ... pt901_pg1/

    I replaced the stem on my Trek road bike with a shorter one with more rise, as without it I felt I could hardly reach the handlebars!

    An adjustable stem can be a good way to experiment. If you have a friendly local bike shop they might lend you one to help you find the stem type that's right for you.
  • loppy
    loppy Posts: 14
    thanks again for your advice, will look into it at the weekend!!
  • Kieran_Burns
    Kieran_Burns Posts: 9,757
    Generally pins and needles comes from collapsing your wrists so that there is pressure on the Ulna nerve.

    If your wrists aren't straight (in line) while cycling you will cause this problem, unfortunately for you it's one of the disadvantages of using a flat bar bike. You need to concentrate on keep your wrists straight and not have them bending back, or get yourself some bar ends and change your hand position while riding.
    Chunky Cyclists need your love too! :-)
    2009 Specialized Tricross Sport
    2011 Trek Madone 4.5
    2012 Felt F65X
    Proud CX Pervert and quiet roadie. 12 mile commuter
  • mudcow007
    mudcow007 Posts: 3,861
    Kieran_Burns wrote:
    Generally pins and needles comes from collapsing your wrists so that there is pressure on the Ulna nerve.

    If your wrists aren't straight (in line) while cycling you will cause this problem, unfortunately for you it's one of the disadvantages of using a flat bar bike. You need to concentrate on keep your wrists straight and not have them bending back, or get yourself some bar ends and change your hand position while riding.

    hes right you know......

    i get it occasionally in my left hand only pinky an ring finger is effected

    fecking annoying

    wearing gloves help

    Clicky
    Keeping it classy since '83
  • cyberknight
    cyberknight Posts: 1,238
    I found this helps, works for bar ends and flat bars if you replicate the angle, i know its a bit OTT but i think you get the idea
    HandPos3.png
    ArmShoulder2.jpg
    FCN 3/5/9
  • loppy
    loppy Posts: 14
    cyberknight wrote:
    I found this helps, works for bar ends and flat bars if you replicate the angle, i know its a bit OTT but i think you get the idea
    HandPos3.png
    ArmShoulder2.jpg
    HI Thanks for your info very interesting, the pins and needles has almost gone, have changed grips and pay more attention to my riding position and don't slump on the bars (so much) anymore
    so all's good many thanks again to you all :mrgreen:
  • alidaf
    alidaf Posts: 147
    The fore aft saddle position can have an effect, as well as the height. I'd tackle these before the handlebar.
  • pcb24
    pcb24 Posts: 98
    Some excellent advice. It is indeed as a result of compression on the ulna nerve at the wrist on the little finger side (Guyons canal). A lot of cyclists also get it because of rounded shoulder posture on the bike (called thoracic kyphosis) which increases the stretch on the nerves in the arm. Cyberknight where did you get the pics from? I could do with using these with some of my patients (I am a physio)
    Cervelo S2
    Langster for the winter
  • Blue Meanie
    Blue Meanie Posts: 495
    In CyberKnight's post; hasn't she got awfully hairy wrists?
    FCN16 - 1970 BSA Wayfarer

    FCN4 - Fixie Inc
  • Harry182
    Harry182 Posts: 1,170
    +1 for Ergons. I had the same issue with my hands getting pins and needles after 10-15 mins riding my commuting mtb; switched the grips to Ergon GA1s and it's completely solved the problem. Been using the Ergons for about 5 years now and still no issues.

    corshamjim wrote:
    I've not suffered with pins & needles myself, but have certainly found that fitting Ergon (or similar) grips can make a huge difference in comfort.

    The ones I have on the Charge are the GP1. http://www.avonvalleycyclery.co.uk/110/ ... t-bar.aspx

    Are you sure you can't flip the stem over to raise your handlebars a bit, or even fit a different stem? What kind of hybrid is it?

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