Numb hands/pins and needles

[Moby Jones]

I have had my new bike for about two months now but have only managed to get out on it in the last month. I have a pair of padded cycling gloves which i wear all the time. the problem is about after 20 - 25mins my hands feel quite uncomfortable, feel numb and get pins and needles in them.
My bike is a cannondale caad 8 size 54. I was recommended this size by the chap in evans and i took it out for a quick spin lasting about 10 - 15mins. The bike felt ok during this time.

I have been playing about with the saddle position, height, level and moving it forward. I feel i am putting too much weight on the handlebars, i have tried relaxing my arms, but i still feel my body position is not right. My lbs do not offer a bike fitting service, i really want to start doing some longer rides but i am starting to worry about doing some damage to my hands.

Can anyone give me some advice of what to try next, please.........

 

[gavroche]

Don't worry. I had this problem when I first started to ride. After a while, your hand/wrist will get used to the pressure/position and will adapt. Keep at it is the best thing to do.

 

[vickster]

Shorter stem? Compact bars? I would go back to Evans and see what they suggest? I may be naive but I'd ask to talk to the manager, should be fairly knowledgeable?

 

[Moby Jones]

How long should i give it before or if i go back to evans to see if they can help me out

 

[WychwoodTrev]

Why not find a decent race shop and get a bike fit done if this bike is a keeper its worth doing. I dont know where you are but my nearest is performane cycles cirencester.

 

[zacklaws]

Try and prevent resting your palms on the outer bends of your bars, its notorious for numbing your hands, use the hoods, the straight bit in front of the hoods, and the straight bits of the bars. And change hand position often.

But however you hold the bars, avoid the outer bends, reason being, there is only a small contact area in the palm of your hand that takes your weight, on the other parts of the bars its more spread evenly. Try leaning forward, resting your hand on the corner of a desk and see how long it is before you feel the pain, but that's an extreme example of what is happening.

But there again you may not rest on the bends so it may be something else, but do change hand position often to keep the circulation going and that may be enough to sort out your problem.

On a lot of occasions if its safe enough, I just hook my middle finger over the straights and the rest of my fingers behind the bars, its a solid hold and completely removes any pressure on your palms and gives them a good rest to get the circulation going

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

If I were you I would give this a go, at least to see if you are in the ballpark.

As you said you are probably putting too much weight on your hands due to poor fit. The other possibility is you are gripping the bar too tightly while running tyres at high pressure.

Apart from what Vickster suggested you might be able to move your stem and bar up if there are spacers above the stem, or flipping the stem upside down to increase the height of the bar. Another alternative is to get an adjustable stem so you can play around the bar position to find what works.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a possible result if the problem persists.

 

[vickster]

How long should i give it before or if i go back to evans to see if they can help me out

I'd go back now given you have been riding the bike for a month

 

[Moby Jones]

Thanks for all the info I will try varying my grip on the bars, I was resting my hands on the outside of the bar. If the problem persists in to next week I will give Evans a phone and see what they suggest.
Some days the problem is worse than others, the roads around here are not the best

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

Thanks for all the info I will try varying my grip on the bars, I was resting my hands on the outside of the bar. If the problem persists in to next week I will give Evans a phone and see what they suggest.
Some days the problem is worse than others, the roads around here are not the best

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

You might want to read this - hands on the outside of the bar could be the worst position for putting pressure on the ulnar nerves.

 

[al-fresco]

You might want to read this - hands on the outside of the bar could be the worst position for putting pressure on the ulnar nerves.

When gripping a flat bar my knuckles always point slightly downwards - so that any shock is transmitted straight though the wrist and is absorbed by my bent elbows. Just seems natural to me - with or without ergonomic grips. Does anyone ride with their hands in the 'wrong' position shown in that animation? Having your wrist cocked back like that looks most uncomfortable.

 

[Globalti]

Specialized do a padded bar tape that comes with gel strips that stick to the bars underneath. It' very comfortable.

 

[HLaB]

What size are you Moby ? I'm 5ft9 and my Kinesis is a 54cm and my Bianchi is a 55cm, a bike fit did suggest a 56cm though. A month of riding isn't too long though and it might be a case that your back muscles need to strengthen up to support you more, so your hands take less weight, it'll not happen overnight but keep an eye on your problem. Physical things to consider are raising your bars, shorter stem, adding padded gel. Another possibility to consider is lowering the psi in your front tyre, there's a good thread on this in know how. I'm experimenting on running my front at 75-80 psi, 100psi rear. Another thing think about changing your position more often, drops/hoods/flat. Good luck :-)

 

[TorchyTheBatteryBoy]

As a rough guide, when I change bikes or bars, I place my elbow against the nose of the saddle The tips of my fingers should be touching the bars and no more. From there I fiddle about with stem length 5mm or so either way depending on the shape of the bars.

 

[Moby Jones]

What size are you Moby ? I'm 5ft9 and my Kinesis is a 54cm and my Bianchi is a 55cm, a bike fit did suggest a 56cm though. A month of riding isn't too long though and it might be a case that your back muscles need to strengthen up to support you more, so your hands take less weight, it'll not happen overnight but keep an eye on your problem. Physical things to consider are raising your bars, shorter stem, adding padded gel. Another possibility to consider is lowering the psi in your front tyre, there's a good thread on this in know how. I'm experimenting on running my front at 75-80 psi, 100psi rear. Another thing think about changing your position more often, drops/hoods/flat. Good luck :-)

I am also 5ft 9, i have raised the bars slightly. I suspect i am just getting used to riding the bike, i think i need to make small adjustments to my riding position untill i get the sweet spot