ridesabikeLA

Hi all--I've been experiencing ulnar nerve impingement in my right hand. I'm a commuter cyclist--ride about 15 miles per day round trip to work and back. Two and a half weeks ago, I rode about 100 miles over the course of the weekend--afterwards, my right hand was numb with severe motor impairment and weakness. I've been off the bike since then and the hand is slowly slowly improving, but still not 100%. Until that weekend ride, I had never experienced any pain/numbness/motor limitation in either of my hands. Anyone experience anything similar? How long was the recovery period / until you were back on the bike?

Thanks!

redlude97

go see a doctor. Seriously

Machka 

Yes ... I went to my Dr.

She wanted to perform carpel tunnel surgery. She wasn't known for being very good.

Then I went to a better Dr.

I don't think I spent any time off the bicycle, but I did buy a steel bicycle instead of the aluminum one I had been riding. I put the aluminum one on my trainer.

I also paid a lot of attention to my fit.

TimothyH

I had ulnar nerve damage from doing hill repeats on the local mountain. It is federal park land and the park police strictly enforce a 15 MPH speed limit which means riding the brakes the whole way down. Brake hoods jamming the palm of my hand did it. My index and middle finger felt like they were on fire and pain all the way to my shoulder.

It went away on its own. I was off the bike for a week or so and rode easy for a few weeks.

Now I use cushy tape and Giro Strade Dure Supergel gloves. I have several pair and they get replaced when they start to wear out.

I'm also conscious of jamming my hands into the brake hoods for long periods and try to keep the wrists straight when riding.

@Machka makes a good point. Pay attention to fit. My newer builds have less saddle to bar drop so there is less weight on my hands.

A wrist rest will help when using the computer.


-Tim-

Machka 

If your index and middle finger were in pain then it wasn't ulnar, it was median.

That was the mistake my first Dr made. The second Dr got it right.

Ulnar is your ring finger and baby finger.

Hondo Gravel

TimothyH

Thank you @Machka!

canklecat

Ditto, cushy tape as well as good gloves. It's not just the padding, it's the way it dampens vibration. That constant buzz really aggravates hands, and my old neck injury as well.

When I got a drop bar road bike last year, an '89 Centurion Ironman, I needed a lot of tweaking to get comfortable. Bike fit and improving my core strength and flexibility. The bike came with traditional thin bar tape, which was torture at the time -- numbness and tingling in the hands and wrists, with pain in the wrists, elbows, etc.

At first I wrapped thick spongy foam cannibalized from a BMX bike. Ugly but helped the first couple of months while I was working on core fitness. The thick foam messed up the overall fit.

A GCN video suggested using an old inner tube under more cosmetically appealing tape. I cut an inner tube into strips, wrapped it like any bar tape and... I'll be darned, it worked. It damped vibration and provided just enough padding without losing road feel or bike fit. I used that for months, as-is, no decorative bar tape. It left black smudges on my hands but it was comfortable and grippy even when wet with sweat or rain.

I switched to a better saddle (turns out my butt bones are much narrower than I'd realized, so a 131mm wide saddle was perfect for me). Switched from platform to Look clipless pedals/shoes. A C&V forum member sent me a shorter stem -- 80 or 90mm, I think, to replace the original 120-130mm stem which was somewhat more aero but way too stretched out, cramping my neck and putting too much weight on my hands. The shorter stem was a huge improvement. Overall my weight was better distributed and I had less discomfort in the hands.

While I was off the bike in May-June (hit by a car, shoulder injuries) I made little tweaks to the bike, including ditching the inner tube bar wrap and using some cheap but good quality padded tape from Jenson USA (just a filler to round out a minimum order for discounted shipping). I tried it on the indoor trainer first, then some outdoor rides. Even this inexpensive padded tape, about $5 for two rolls, was a huge improvement. I can ride barehanded, no gloves. No discomfort, although the gloves offer better grip with sweaty hands.

I also tweaked the drop bar angle and hood positions. These older style bikes are not nearly as ergonomically efficient and comfortable as newer bikes. Those 1980s aero hoods are just thin hooks. The traditional position was meant for very fit, young athletes, not creaky old guys like me. I tilted the bar back toward me just a bit, where the bottom of the drops aren't parallel with the ground, but not flipped up like a beach hobo wearing flip flops would do. And I slid the brake lever/hood assemblies up a bit so there was a more or less level place to ride the hoods. That necessitated adjusting the brake lever reach, easily done with a hex wrench, so I can still reach the brakes with my fingertips from the drops or tops. These aren't big adjustments, just an 1/8" here, 1/4" there, etc.

I settled on the handlebar being about 2" below saddle height. I can't do slammed, and I'm not strong enough anyway to gain enough aero advantage in exchange for the discomfort. It's pretty close to how the grand tour cyclists had their bars set up in the 1960s-'70s. Besides accommodating my neck comfort, it also seemed to suit my weight distribution. I'm not sitting back so heavily in the saddle that I get saddle sores. And I'm not leaning forward too much on the hands. The knees are happy too. I'm a little faster on familiar segments, or I can ride the same times I did before with less effort. Just little incremental stuff that makes riding more pleasurable.

Hondo Gravel

Carbonfiberboy 

Time for the Numb Hands post: https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycl...l#post12953035
That's how ya do it. It's not about padding, not about bar shape, it's about hand position, and to a certain amount, about gloves. I can wear either unpadded or padded gloves because I've learned my hand positions, but many folks have to have padded, with the ulnar relief channel. Bontrager gloves are well designed and well made. I always wear gloves, just in case. I've seen the gloveless go down and it didn't turn out that well. I know, not supposed to put our hands out, but some folks do.

Another big help is to move your saddle back until your hands are light on the bars. Here's an old post in my winter phase showing appropriate balance, reach, and hand positions: https://www.bikeforums.net/long-dist...l#post12207030

CliffordK

Another thing...

If a hand goes numb while riding.... CHANGE SOMETHING. Take the hand off the bars, shake and wiggle it some. Change hand position on the bars or bar ends. Try a lighter touch for a bit, etc.

Don't just ride through the pain.

Fortunately, most reports indicate the issue gets better in a few days to a month or so... but there is no need to let it just happen.

I like flat top bars (aero). I've experimented with extra padding in some cases.

wipekitty

The worst I experienced was after my first century ride - my training wasn't quite there, my bike did not fit well, and I rode without gloves.

I had numbness and problems gripping things with my right hand, which went away after about three weeks. In the meantime, it was interesting, as my job required a lot of writing on chalkboards, and I was unable to hold the chalk like a normal person...

About five years later, I started experiencing numbness again on longer rides. I got a pair of gloves and tried a longer stem. I've stuck with the gloves and have paid more attention to fit on newer bike purchases, and haven't had any problems since then.