Numb!

[bandaddy1]

Hi,I'm new to this forum so you may have to bear with me! After riding for,say,20k I notice that I start to get numbness in my left hand and leg.I have a gel seat and mitts and position on the bike is comfortable.I have done everything I can think of to eradicate it but to no real effect.Any thoughts on how I can improve this please. Thanks.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

Hi,I'm new to this forum so you may have to bear with me! After riding for,say,20k I notice that I start to get numbness in my left hand and leg.I have a gel seat and mitts and position on the bike is comfortable.I have done everything I can think of to eradicate it but to no real effect.Any thoughts on how I can improve this please. Thanks.

numbness in left hand might be carpal tunnel syndrome, after some time the Median nerve gets squashed inside the carpal tunnel..(mittens often help with this though so it might not be this...) Where exactly do you feel numbness in the hand ?

Don't know about the leg, do you have lowerback pain as well ?


Maybe you should also get your bike properly fitted if you haven't done so already, it might help you with the leg problem
hope this helped

 

[bandaddy1]

The numbness is mainly in the little finger and along that edge.No lower back pain,but getting properly fitted is something I have been thinking about so I will go ahead and get that done. Thanks.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

The numbness is mainly in the little finger and along that edge.No lower back pain,but getting properly fitted is something I have been thinking about so I will go ahead and get that done. Thanks.

nope no Carpal tunnel syndrome then... but can't help you any further with that sorry

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Hi,I'm new to this forum so you may have to bear with me! After riding for,say,20k I notice that I start to get numbness in my left hand and leg.I have a gel seat and mitts and position on the bike is comfortable.I have done everything I can think of to eradicate it but to no real effect.Any thoughts on how I can improve this please. Thanks.

Gel saddle? Yech. I had a gel saddle when I started riding, thinking the extra cushion would be more comfortable. It didn't work out very well. My gel, not sure about yours, was a fair amount flabbier in the seat and nose. More material is not necessarily better. What I'm using now is something like this (not the exact model, but close):

It is much narrower in the nose than that old gel saddle and the groove down the center takes pressure off the nerve down there. I can still get a little numb if I stay seated a long time, so I make a point to get out of the saddle once in a while.

 

[Michielveedeebee]

Sorry to go OT, but onemanarmy I've thought about buying a saddle like that.. Are you happy with it? and is the hole still comfortable?

 

[Archibald]

The numbness is mainly in the little finger and along that edge.No lower back pain,but getting properly fitted is something I have been thinking about so I will go ahead and get that done. Thanks.

I used to get that a lot - here's some things that helped me:

- don't do your gloves up as "normal". just leave them bit loose
- when I start to feel it, I sit up and flex my shoulders and neck.
- flex your wrists (wrist circles, etc)
- have your postion/fit checked as your positioning may be puting pressure on nerves in other locations (like shoulders)
- move your hands about the bars. hoods, flats, in between those locations (on the bend), drops
- check your wrist positions, whether they're bent or straight

 

[Archibald]

Sorry to go OT, but onemanarmy I've thought about buying a saddle like that.. Are you happy with it? and is the hole still comfortable?

every saddle I have has the cutout - they're fine, very happy with them. The main issue is your sit bones fitting the saddle shape.
I have three sella italias: gelflow flight, gel flow xc slr and gelflow c2 (road bike, mtb and commuter)
Took quite a while of trial n error and several saddle purchases (ebay was good for this!! buy/sell and not lose much $$ in the process. buy second-hand then resell - I then purchased a new one once I worked out what I wanted)

 

[flyor64]

Gel saddle? Yech... More material is not necessarily better.

To the OP - I second on3m@n@army on this. In the case of saddles, more is not always better. The cushioning breaks down really fast and actually provides worse/less support than these "thinner" saddles you see out there.

Also, fit is key. A proper fit can possibly remove all the symptoms you describe. Check your LBS to be sure, but most will fit you, and re-fit you as needed for the one price, so that you find exactly what works best for you. The only true way to tell that the fit is good is to ride as much as you can with it and tweak it from there...

Sorry to go OT, but onemanarmy I've thought about buying a saddle like that.. Are you happy with it? and is the hole still comfortable?

I have this saddle as well. It's not as plush as my Brooks (for which I will always have a fondness for) but the cut-out has helped me quite a bit and it's light as a feather (compared to the Brooks of course)

 

[TheNJDevil]

Numbness in the little finger could be related to an elbow problem. I had that problem after a century ride a few years ago. Mine was much worse as it affected both the little and ring finger. Dr called it Cubital Tunnel Syndrome.
http://www.neurosurgery.ufl.edu/patients/cubital-tunnel-syndrome.shtml

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Sorry to go OT, but onemanarmy I've thought about buying a saddle like that.. Are you happy with it? and is the hole still comfortable?

Mine is a Specialized Toupe Ti/130 that I've had for 5 years now. It looks brand new. There is nothing to break down on it. At first glance it might look like a Btch to sit on, but surpisingly not. The top surface is slightly flexy. I'm really happy with it.

I have to add for the OP... don't fall for the first impression of a gel saddle if a shop lets you take one out for a trial. Before I had the Toupe I had some gel saddle (don't remember what, except it was forgettable). The gel felt really great the first 10 or 20 miles. But on its maiden voyage I did 60 miles, and the last 20 miles of that was excruciatingly painful. I had saddle sores, rasberry's that took several days to get over. Thank God the shop let me swap out the gel for the Toupe, and I've never had a problem with the Toupe.

 

[bandaddy1]

Lots of helpful advice here guys,thanks for that.I am going get a different saddle and a proper bike fitting and take it from there.Thanks.

 

[richwagmn]

The numbness is mainly in the little finger and along that edge.No lower back pain,but getting properly fitted is something I have been thinking about so I will go ahead and get that done. Thanks.

Numbness in the third and fourth fingers is from ulnar nerve compression. Different nerve than the one that cause carpal tunnel. Can be caused by lots of different things.

 

[mewmewmew13]

Regarding the finger/numb thing...my friend also had this prob, when she switched around her gloves she found that the location of the padding on the hand made a huge diff. There may be some weird pressure on your nerves, palm, medial area...

Bike fit for sure. Even a couple of cm can make a huge change in position/comfort. Have to agree with the saddle, too. Finally, I was measured (**** bones width) and have a great Specialized saddle similar to the pic.

good luck

 

[durianrider]

We got to remember to alternate our hand positions and keep a tight yet relaxed grip on the bars. Just enough to hold on but not so much that we are restricting blood flow.

Bike fit is CRUCIAL and as Ive said many times before Steve Hogg is a bike fit master mind. His easy to read/understand/apply ebooks are particularly helpful for non locals.