Hands going numb...thoughts?

[just1more]

I had this problem too. I have Izip E3 metro; Trek hybrid (with straight bars) & road bike with drop bars. I have had bike fitting & all are adjusted properly. I find that I have to change my hand position on all 3 bikes during the ride. The straight bar bike has the least options due to not much space & I have ordered aerobars for that bike. I also have tried several different wrist/carpal tunnel supports by Carpal Mate. The one that worked best came from amazon & the simplest of all & best. It is kind of L shaped with velcro around the wrist. That prevents the pressure on palm/"heel of palm." Bought larger gloves then realized I can use original gloves & just put the wrist support over the top. I tried riding today without them & definitely noticed the difference. I also have been doing more sit ups & core strengthening exercises in order to lean on bike less. I also tried different gloves with the little palm cushioning. Wasted my $$. The Carpal Mate helped more than anything else. I recommend you buy 1 see if it helps & then buy the 2nd one if you like it.

[estronat]

I'm having this problem too. I have very very poor core strength and I carry a lot of excess weight in my abdomen (think Apple shape). I also am large busted and have neck problems (and yes I too am guilty of shoulders up around neck syndrome).

I use gel half gloves but the problem is the rider (me) and not the equipment. I'm going to have my LBS evaluate if an adjustment can be made to the riser bars or something to help me out since I can't magically be any different physically than what I am today. Being out of shape sucks in every possible way. Not that I was ever in good shape, but there was a time when I was a lot thinner and of course a whole lot younger, with a more forgiving body. And for the neck and back issues those are things I need to address separately, starting with some specific exercises to do stretches, cervical pillow and spine stretches too. It's not just core weakness, it's also specific muscle tightness that causes these issues.

[PamNY]

For me, weak core caused most of the "numb hands" problem. I simply wasn't strong enough to maintain proper position on the bike. Keeping shoulders down and relaxed, as described upthread, also helped.

At one point, I think I had my gloves fastened too tightly. It was winter and I had the gloves fastened over some number of layers. By the way, all these solutions came from TE folks.

[Crankin]

For me, it was glove size and no padding. I have gone from wearing an x-small to a medium. I cannot tolerate any padding. In this search for the cause of my hand pain, I discovered that while I have small-ish hands (not tiny, though), I have very long fingers. No wonder my gloves were strangling me. I actually had an argument with the owner of one of the LBS's that sold the unpadded Botranger gloves I loved (which they stopped making). He told me that mediums would be huge on me, and that I would probably get them caught in the shifter. Then he saw me try them on, and he shut his mouth.

[crc]

Have you considered changing your grips? I have ergon grips on my mountain bike and love them. They allow for a larger part of your hand to touch the surface of the grip and reducing pressure points.

http://www.ergon-bike.com/us/en/product/gp1