Wrist pain while riding on hoods

iand-83
iand-83 Posts: 132
edited September 2013 in Road beginners
I am fairly new to the world of road cycling and in the last 2 weeks have so far managed to cover about 150 miles on my new road bike, but the same problem reoccurs everytime I ride I start getting pains and numbness in my wrists and hands when I try to ride on the hoods. I have spent ages getting my seat well positioned and to make sure I am leaning forwards not trying to ride sitting too upright but whatever I try to do the same problem reoccurs in my 5 mile commute to work after about 2 miles the pains will begin so I have to resort to riding on the drops or holding the bars in a conventional bike manner.

The bike is a defy 2 in a medium size as I am 5ft 9in. Will getting a picture of me on the bike be the best way to be advised? I have tried roatating the bars so there level or pointing up ever so slightly but this makes no difference. It's starting to put me off wanting to ride the bike.

Comments

  • MichaelW
    MichaelW Posts: 2,164
    Are you riding with relaxed shoulders and flexed elbows.
    I prefer my hood position to slope down a little towards me; if it is flat I slide forward.
    Where are your brake levers pointing? They can be straight ahead, canted out or inwards a little. Most bikes are setup with the levers dead-ahead but a little inwards cant provides a more neutral wrist position.

    You may want to limit the duration of your rides until you have sorted out the position and you have some conditioning.
  • iand-83
    iand-83 Posts: 132
    I am trying to be fairly relaxed and my elbows are definately relaxed but my shoulders always seem a bit tense.

    As you look down at the bars sitting on the bike(will double check this) the brake levers point outwards slightly, will get some pictures of it to show better.
  • andrewjoseph
    andrewjoseph Posts: 2,165
    You may be putting too much weight on your hands, but then moving to drops should make it worse. This all depends on wrist angle though.

    You can try moving the stem higher if possible, maybe even flip it so it points up.

    Rotate the bars up or down, shifters in or out, shifters up and down on the bars, ( though this may involve removing bar tape).

    Then you come to more expensive options like new stem, or bars or even shifters.
    --
    Burls Ti Tourer for Tarmac, Saracen aluminium full suss for trails
  • diamonddog
    diamonddog Posts: 3,426
    Not unusual for new riders to get this, just keep trying to relax your grip and keep a bit less weight on your hands as others have said. :)
  • iand-83
    iand-83 Posts: 132
    Well I have popped into my LBS to seek some advice (not where I brought the bike) and they have said if I pop in with the bike they will have a look and offer some advice on what I can do to improve the situation I am in, I know they do bike-fit but hopefully I won't need to get that far to improve things.

    I am wondering would good padded gloves help? I currently only got some XC mountain bike gloves to wear.
  • diamonddog
    diamonddog Posts: 3,426
    edited September 2013
    Definitely get some padded gloves they will soak up some of the road vibration and protect your hands if you have an off (hopefully you won't :) )
  • MichaelW
    MichaelW Posts: 2,164
    Gloves are essential in the event of a slide along the road but they wont solve a poor hand position.
    If your brake levers are canted outwards, rotate them inwards a few degrees and see how that goes. You may have to unwind the bar tape and reposition the cable outer.
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    It is likely your weight distribution between saddle and bar (hoods, etc) is a bit off. I had this on my bike and solved it by flipping the stem to raise the bar up, levelling the saddle and moving the saddle forward a bit as it was way too far back.

    It may just be you need to ride for a couple of weeks to build sone strength.
  • iand-83
    iand-83 Posts: 132
    Going to try moving my saddle about a bit more to see if I can get myself comfortable on it. Hopefully it will be something easily fixed.
  • styxd
    styxd Posts: 3,234
    Move your saddle back, this helps take weight off your hands. Your hands are not there to support your weight, they are there to steer the bike with.
  • MichaelW
    MichaelW Posts: 2,164
    styxd wrote:
    Move your saddle back, this helps take weight off your hands. Your hands are not there to support your weight, they are there to steer the bike with.

    A few things wrong with this. Firstly, you set the saddle in relation to your pedals to get the correct height and layback to fit your legs. The reach is altered by using the stem.

    Moving the saddle back will increase your reach, lower your back and increase the weight on your hands.

    If you want to asses your whole riding position, read up here.
  • styxd
    styxd Posts: 3,234
    MichaelW wrote:
    styxd wrote:
    Move your saddle back, this helps take weight off your hands. Your hands are not there to support your weight, they are there to steer the bike with.

    A few things wrong with this. Firstly, you set the saddle in relation to your pedals to get the correct height and layback to fit your legs. The reach is altered by using the stem.

    Moving the saddle back will increase your reach, lower your back and increase the weight on your hands.

    If you want to asses your whole riding position, read up here.

    No, there's nothing wrong with this. You seem to be talking nonsense. Moving your saddle back shifts the weight off your hands. I think it's safe to say it's probably worth a go in the OP's case.
  • styxd
    styxd Posts: 3,234
    Infact, if you even bothered to read the link you posted, it's explained quite well.
  • kajjal
    kajjal Posts: 3,380
    styxd wrote:
    MichaelW wrote:
    styxd wrote:
    Move your saddle back, this helps take weight off your hands. Your hands are not there to support your weight, they are there to steer the bike with.

    A few things wrong with this. Firstly, you set the saddle in relation to your pedals to get the correct height and layback to fit your legs. The reach is altered by using the stem.

    Moving the saddle back will increase your reach, lower your back and increase the weight on your hands.

    If you want to asses your whole riding position, read up here.

    No, there's nothing wrong with this. You seem to be talking nonsense. Moving your saddle back shifts the weight off your hands. I think it's safe to say it's probably worth a go in the OP's case.


    To be fair its all relative to your starting position. My saddle was too far back to begin with so moving it further back did not help. The angle of the saddle and how far foward / back it is influences the weight distribution. Especially If you are inflexible, have relatively sort arms or want a comfortable riding position reach / handle bar drop also influence weight distribution as well. The article linked to is very useful as it details the compromises in bike setup.

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