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Hands Going Numb While Climbing

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
Okay so I have been riding a new bike about 3-4 weeks now. For some reason this week on my Monday ride my hands went almost totally numb. They tingeled etc. and I stopped a few times and it got a bit better but returned quickly. I waited a bit at the top before the DH and it was fine on the 4-5 minute run going down. Then I had about 3 miles of road riding on flat to get back to work. About 1/2 way through it starting coming back...

Any hints on things I can do to help eliminate this issue?

I have good reach a slight bend in elbows when saddle is all the way up. I can move the stem up about 1/2" on the steer tube. I am running a 15mm rise bar on the front.
 

HAB

Chelsea from Seattle
Apr 28, 2007
11,580
2,005
Seattle
Probably too much weight on them. Bringing the nose of your saddle up, or actually (somewhat counterintuitively) sliding it backwards on the rails can really help.
 

kickstand

Turbo Monkey
Sep 18, 2009
3,441
392
Fenton, MI
Had the same problem last season and every now and again I get it this season (different bikes) I've always felt comfortable on the bike so I am not sure where or what I need to move as I'm sure both bikes fit slightly different.

If you find a solution post your findings, I am still trying to tweak my set up to get rid of the numb hands.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
Okay well the TT on The Following is a few inches shorter than the Mega. So I was more stretched out on the other bike. Maybe I will move it back a hair today see what happens then move it forward next time and see if either helps...
 

JD Risk

Chimp
Dec 27, 2007
10
0
Is the numbness mostly in your thumb, index, and middle fingers? Could be carpal tunnel. I get it in both hands when climbing or pedaling on flat, bumpy ground. DH is no problem. Try whatever works to take weight off of your hands. Running the bars higher helps and so does moving the nose of the saddle up but it can be rough on your taint.

Anybody have luck with grips? I need to replace mine and was thinking about trying the ESI foam grips. If all else fails I think I'll go with surgery. It's getting pretty bad. Good luck.
 

marshalolson

Turbo Monkey
May 25, 2006
1,770
519
Do you change your hand position while climbing? I have started moving my hands around a lot on the up, and it's really helped me... That plus slamming the seat all the way forward in the post.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
Its numb from almost the tip of fingers and all the way up to my elbows!

I change hand positions some. Not much I tried that yesterday but the climb was steep and loose so couldn't just rest them on the top of the bars...
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
Rolled bars forward about 4 degrees and slid seat back about half an inch. It is better but still there. My grips may be too thin....
 

StiHacka

Compensating for something
Jan 4, 2013
21,560
12,504
In hell. Welcome!
Try climbing without gloves once. I just had a very interesting experience with seemingly comfortable new "Endurooo" gloves that I bought at Highland (because I left my trusted gloves at home). They felt good when not riding, they were giving me excruciating pain when riding, especially in rough stuff. Must be pinching a nerve or something.
 

StiHacka

Compensating for something
Jan 4, 2013
21,560
12,504
In hell. Welcome!
Nah, the pain was on the back of the hand, middle finger knuckle. It was quite bizarre, I never experienced anything similar. I thought I was suffering from some form of tendinitis.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
Went for a ride today. It was there a bit I could tell just on the verge of happening. I think the grips are just too think. Will try fatter ones and see if it helps.
 

ianjenn

Turbo Monkey
Sep 12, 2006
2,998
702
SLO
The bike is a fair bit shorter than the Mega. I am running a longer stem to make up for some of that. Maybe I will slide saddle forward a few MM and see if it helps again....
 

ridea

Monkey
Oct 30, 2006
354
1
south west of England
Its numb from almost the tip of fingers and all the way up to my elbows!
It sounds a bit like your pinching a nerve.

The fact that this tracks all the way up to your elbow indicates that the problem is higher up, possibly around your shoulders or neck. Think of your nerves like a river, signal from your brain or water flows down them from the top, if there's a blockage at the top the lower down the river you get, the slower the flow, and therefore the less response you will get in terms of feeling. So although your hands go numb, its actually likely that its just that they are the last thing for the signal to reach and thus is is the weakest signal. The good thing is this is going away quickly, I have a condition that means this can happen to me then last for weeks, months or even years (yes that's a ball ache). Anyway, I'd like to say I'd recommend going to a doctor however in my experience they are useless, similar for physiotherapists, however they may be able to point out something bio-mechanically which is causing you to trap a nerve slightly somewhere.

Just out of interest do you feel numbness track over the top or bottom side of your arm more or is it pretty even all over? this may indicate where the nerve is being pinched.
 

ridea

Monkey
Oct 30, 2006
354
1
south west of England
My understanding is that the side starts on or is strongest tends to indicate the root problem as nerves serve different muscles, For instance if I lean on my funny bone my little finger goes numb. If you can get hold of a physio they may be able to shed some light. Is it like a numbness or a tingling? and do you get pins and needles when it comes back and how long does it take to come back? Pins and needles indicates blood flow to the best of my knowledge so it may not be nerve based if so.
 

kickstand

Turbo Monkey
Sep 18, 2009
3,441
392
Fenton, MI
swapped a shorter stem on my bike, seems to have helped, went from a 60 to a 40 (paid $10 to try it out) , 40 was too much, so I'm going to settle I believe on a 50mm
 

wydopen

Turbo Monkey
Jan 16, 2005
1,229
60
805
I had been having the same problem while climbing...turns out it was bar height being too low...I used to use my travel adjust the whole time I was climbing..now I just use it on the steep stuff and it seems to have helped..