Numbness or pins and needles in toes

[SalBo]

Hi

I'm new to cycling - a few months in to training for a ride from London to Paris in September. Everything is going well apart from I get a kind of burn in my toes, particularly in my right foot after about 15 miles. It goes as soon as I get off the bike, and it feels like pins and neddles and mild numbness. I have specialised bike shoes and inner soles as I have flat(ish) feet apparently. I've been back to the bike shop as I thought it might be something to do with my saddle or height. I've had all this checked and it doesn't make any difference.

I'm really loving the cycling and am really keen to find a solution for this annoying problem.

Be really glad to hear if anyone else has had this problem and how they solved it.

Thanks SalBo

 

[Moodyman]

Assuming you've got no underlying ailments, I'd look at your bike fitting.

There are 3 contacts points on a bike and if you have more weight on one it causes problems. Make sure weight is evenly spread on pedals, saddle and handlebars. Examples:

Saddle too high and too far forward, puts strain on wrists

Saddle too far back causes upper back / shoulder pain.

Saddle too low leads to knee pain.

Wrong angle of handlebar cause pressure on ulner nerve (Google it)

Take your hex key with you and play around whilst riding. When you can ride 10-15 miles with no pain, you've cracked it.

If, after finding your optimum position, you're still hurting, look at things like ergonomic handlebars grips/tape, less air in front tyre, slightly loose hand grip, gel padded gloves/ mitts.

BUT....these all make small differences when compared to bike fitting.

 

[zacklaws]

I used to get the pins and needles in my feet when I first started using SPD-L shoes, but after two or three long rides it never happened again, until I bought a pair of cycling socks from Aldi's or Lidl's which had the padding only under the heel and ball of the foot. I only resolved it by not wearing them socks again and only use fully padded socks or with no padding at all.

I think you will find that it may resolve itself when your feet get used to it, fundamentally though I think its caused by bad circulation and just wiggling your feet occasionally in your shoe will help a bit for a start. Is there a possibility, your shoes are two tight along with the insoles? maybe a change of insole may resolve it, or even no insole

 

[SalBo]

Assuming you've got no underlying ailments, I'd look at your bike fitting.

There are 3 contacts points on a bike and if you have more weight on one it causes problems. Make sure weight is evenly spread on pedals, saddle and handlebars. Examples:

Saddle too high and too far forward, puts strain on wrists

Saddle too far back causes upper back / shoulder pain.

Saddle too low leads to knee pain.

Wrong angle of handlebar cause pressure on ulner nerve (Google it)

Take your hex key with you and play around whilst riding. When you can ride 10-15 miles with no pain, you've cracked it.

If, after finding your optimum position, you're still hurting, look at things like ergonomic handlebars grips/tape, less air in front tyre, slightly loose hand grip, gel padded gloves/ mitts.

BUT....these all make small differences when compared to bike fitting.

 

[SalBo]

Hi, thanks for the tips, very helpful and I will check it all out. Much appreciated.