Elbow and wrist/hand pain

[breeze]

I'm trying to figure out the cause(s) of this new pain. After about 20-30 minutes of riding, I've been experiencing pain in both elbows, as well as in my wrists/hands. I think the wrist/hand pain may be because I have to stretch to get my hands fully around the brake levers. I'm wondering if the elbow pain is also related to that, or to something else. I'm wondering if perhaps my arms/body are not used to the new position (road bike vs. hybrid) and I need to build up more strength in my core and arms to help alleviate some of this, too. Any suggestions welcomed.

Some info that may be useful: this is a new bike (Felt 2010 ZW5). I had two fittings at the LBS, and think it may be time to schedule a third adjustment now that I've been out on the bike over the past few weeks.

[OakLeaf]

Are you locking your elbows when you ride? Where in your elbows is the pain? When you're riding on the hoods, once your upper body fatigues, do your wrists tend to break to the inside or to the outside, or neither?

As far as reach to the levers, Shimano does make a short-reach set (model R700), but replacing the whole shifter set is pretty expensive. Your LBS *might* be willing to swap them out for you for less than what it would cost you to buy them outright, but that depends on the shop.

[marni]

short of having to get a whole new brake set, ask your bike shop if they can add some shims to your brake levers. This willshorten the grip somewhat. Ideally short of running up suddenly on a bike or stop light you shouldn't be using your brakes that much, However if you are riding with your hands wrapped around the brake levers this can lead to psin. As for the elbows, it may be a comination of any of these four factors, locking your elbows, the new position, fit and or lack of shoulder and upper body core strength. You can do a lot towards building up core strength by doing planks and pushups on a regular basisi.

hth

marni

[Velocivixen]

I'm no bike fit expert but here are some things I noticed about my bike. I have a 2011 Surly CC with stock handlebars (42 cm width, with drops that flare out to the side). I always knew something was wrong with the handlebars, but it wasn't until I paid for a bike fit that I knew what it was. The stem was too long, the bars too wide (I needed 38), reach too long, drop too deep and the levers were positioned in such a way that my wrists were bending up at an angle and elbows weren't quite "right". I got a 10 mm shorter stem, 38 width and "compact" handlebar (70 mm drop and 110 mm drop), as well as having the break levers positioned in such a way that my wrists felt better. I now love to ride my bike and things feel much more relaxed and "natural". I'm not suggesting that your bars need all these changes, but just giving you ideas to consider. Good luck.