Numb hands

Mullet52
Mullet52 Posts: 45
edited April 2013 in Road beginners
I keep getting pins and needles in my hands. Been out on a ride today and it was cold but I dont think its the cold thats causing it. I had an experienced rider with me who had a look and we adjusted my seat height 1/2 inch higher and 1/2 forward which did feel better as I was over the front of the bike a bit more.

But still get a bit of pins and needles in the fingers. What is causing this?

Comments

  • Sprool
    Sprool Posts: 1,022
    not being a qualified doctor I would still guess its the pressure on your hands from the bar that is restricting blood flow. By changing your grip often while riding, and by gripping firmly but not too hard it should ease. Gel gloves may help pad out the contact area. If it persists, go check with your GP if it becomes too uncomfortable.
  • Wacky Racer
    Wacky Racer Posts: 638
    Grip position, saddle too high, gloves, technique, it could be a multitude of things causing the problem. Try to change your grip position a few times during the ride, wear decent gloves and it is worth looking at more cushioned bar tape. Best to start with your riding position first though, because if you are putting too much weight on your hands none of the above will help much.
    Ridley Orion
  • mbthegreat
    mbthegreat Posts: 179
    Think about how you hold the bars, you want to have a bit of bend in your elbow, are you locking your arms out at the moment? If so try to relax your shoulders and bring your elbows in a little bit.
  • Mullet52
    Mullet52 Posts: 45
    Ok bar tape is definitely needed as the one I have is very thin. Would you recommend just putting another layer of tape over my current one?

    Also decent gloves are in order as mine are just cheap crap ones. I'll do both these things and see how things are
  • Mullet52
    Mullet52 Posts: 45
    mbthegreat wrote:
    Think about how you hold the bars, you want to have a bit of bend in your elbow, are you locking your arms out at the moment? If so try to relax your shoulders and bring your elbows in a little bit.

    My arms were locked out but I brought my seat forward half an inch and which made it a lot better. Just trail and error I suppose
  • mbthegreat
    mbthegreat Posts: 179
    What helped me was thinking about the difference between a flat bar and road bar, flat bar your elbows tend to point out and your thumbs inward. When I started on a road bike I had to make a real conscious effort to rotate my arms so my thumbs were more upward and elbows down.
  • Wacky Racer
    Wacky Racer Posts: 638
    Mullet52 wrote:
    mbthegreat wrote:
    Think about how you hold the bars, you want to have a bit of bend in your elbow, are you locking your arms out at the moment? If so try to relax your shoulders and bring your elbows in a little bit.

    My arms were locked out but I brought my seat forward half an inch and which made it a lot better. Just trail and error I suppose

    This suggests that your position will be a little more upright since you moved the seat forward, which will mean a little less weight on your hands. Be careful about moving the seat forward, you are often better shortening the stem a touch, it can give you a better overall position on the bike with better weight distribution. A bike fit might help, but they don't come cheap. Alternatively, there are a number of youtube clips for bike set up, showing correct position for elbows.
    Ridley Orion
  • Kieran_Burns
    Kieran_Burns Posts: 9,757
    Previous post I made on this subject:

    viewtopic.php?f=40052&t=12892060&p=18013811&hilit=ulna#p18013811
    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
  • andy9964
    andy9964 Posts: 930
    Is there nothing available for road bikes that can be attached to the bars (even if it goes under the tape), to give similar support to this

    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ergon-gp1-handlebar-grips/

    I got the Aldi version, for my MTB, and found them a lot better than the round bar grips
  • crikey
    crikey Posts: 362
    You get numb hands when you support too much weight on them.

    You put more weight on your hands by moving your seat up.
    You put more weight on your hands by moving your seat forwards.

    You need to aim to get weight off your hands. You can do this by moving your saddle backwards and downwards, so more weight goes through your bum. This means that you will stretch out more to reach the bars, which you either get used to or end up getting a smaller stem.

    The 'experienced' rider you were with was attempting to sort the problem, but seems to have opted to move things the wrong way.
  • Jon_1976
    Jon_1976 Posts: 690
    Moving the saddle back will put more weight on your hands. A more forward position will take some of the weight off your hands but will also affect your legs muscles. I was recently getting very tired/burning quads very early on each ride, realised saddle was too far forward. A shorter stem might be a better starting point.
  • crikey
    crikey Posts: 362
    Moving the saddle back will put more weight on your hands

    No, it won't.

    The further forward you move your weight, the more is supported by your hands.
    Therefore, the further forward you move your saddle, the more weight will be on your hands.

    It's not rocket science; go try it.
  • Jon_1976
    Jon_1976 Posts: 690
    Jon_1976 wrote:
    Moving the saddle back will put more weight on your hands. A more forward position will take some of the weight off your hands but will also affect your legs muscles. I was recently getting very tired/burning quads very early on each ride, realised saddle was too far forward. A shorter stem might be a better starting point.

    My original post is bunk, I recall reading a good site about this and (by being a bit absent minded :oops: ) got the fore/aft affects reversed.
    Heres the site http://www.bike-manual.com/brands/trek/ ... itting.htm

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