customsound79

This has probably been beaten to death but I am pretty sure my upper body weight is the culprit. Usually starts after 30min and was really bad yesterday after 75. I couldn't go 5 min without having to shake the numbness out. I'm using padded gloves but it's not much padding. Has anyone had much luck with maybe more padding or flat carbon bars? It happens on my MTB also so I know it's not a fit issue.

TrojanHorse

Better core strength, higher (or lower, ironically) bars and maybe a larger surface to grip on your bars. You can buy gel pads to wrap under your bar tape that will damp out the vibration and will also make the gripping surface larger, that might provide some immediate relief. I always have trouble with gloves that aren't somewhat loose too, seems like they jam back between the fingers if they're too tight and cause numbness.

I think most people have to deal with numb hands, it's just an unfortunate side effect of leaning on your hands for hours. However, if the numbness persists more than a few seconds after you pick your hands off the bars, don't just treat it as a nuisance.

jetboy 

bars with various angled grip areas. so you can ride the tops, sides, hoods, drops etc. another thing is to make sure you are not tensing up (whole body not just hands). One trick is push your thumb and index finger together as hard as you can and then release. it allows you to pinpoint tension and then let it all go.

dr_lha

Padding in gloves causes my hands to go numb. Therefore I ride gloves with no padding (I use Pearl Izumi PRO Pittards). I'm not the only person who has this issue, just to point out that more padding might not be the answer you're looking for.

customsound79

I thought about that and went sans gloves the first 4 miles, but had to stop to put them on my hands were hurting so badly. So you might be right but for now the trade off is unbearable. I'm looking at these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01...A27KG7AUKC8S58

jsigone

use your phone leveling app and tilt up the nose of the saddle a degree or so. Keeps weight from wanting to slide into the bars and your wrist. Core strength will help too from getting your hands too heavy. Vary hand positions. Bring tools and rotate the bars, small adjustments at a time.

I don't use gloves unless cold or racing. And no padding as it increase angle to the wrist joints. I'd recommend padded bar tape. I like the Fizik padded performance tape.
Fizik Bar Tape Performance Colors from BikeBling.com

As far as MTB goes, more sweeping bar the better. 9* sweeps are nice and easy on the wrist.

79pmooney

If you said this to any coach in my day, the '70s, the first thing he would ask you is "how often do you change hand positions? What percentage of the time do you place you hands on the brake levers, behind the levers, in the drops and on the tops?" And if you answered 80% on the levers he would say that's your problem right there. We were taught to change often. Exception: more time could be spent in the drops because if set up right, it is such a natural hand and wrist position.

The straight handlebars of a MTB would probably create problems for me.

Ben

dim

I had the same problem when I cycled 30 miles on my hybrid with flat bars (got pains in my arms after approx 26 miles) ... mainly in my right forearm, but the wind was brisk and head on

you can get some bar ends which will give you more had positions:

dr_lha

This might just be me, but I would not personally ride on a $60 set of carbon fiber handlebars to try to solve my hand numbness.

jsigone

^^same here + cheap unknown carbon bars for that matter. Get some quality alum bars, padded grip, 28c tires. Stuff that won't snap if you take a pot hole or wind knocks over your bike when leaned of something.

customsound79

It's really about the extra surface area on the flat tops. I have no fear of Chinese carbon, or special desire for it. Most of the expensive carbon components are made in China or Taiwan. I'm am riding on the hoods most of the time but it doesn't matter where I put my hands. I may not be moving them enough though. If I'm going to be in the same gear for a little while I'll ride ride the tops of the bars. I'm still a little too fat to hit the drops comfortably. It may be something I just have to deal with until I lose all the extra weight.

alathIN

Be sure you aren't locking your elbows - keep some flex in them.

Dave Cutter

1. Stop shaking the numbness out! Your body parts weren't made to be "shaken". You could damage your nerves doing that.

2. Sure... better (pronounced: MORE) padding can be a little bit of help. But better cycling posture is likely the solution.

Every cyclist needs fit on their bicycle. Many... if not most cyclists... can accomplish this with some youtube videos and a cycling friend. But you sound like you need a professional intervention. Get a proper fit from someone who knows what they are doing.

TrojanHorse

I wouldn't ride on them period.

Try something like this under the bar tape - Bar gel

dr_lha

Firstly, there's a big difference between China and Taiwan when it comes to quality. Secondly, those "quality" parts are made to specification that they pass a minimum quality and safety limit, and being backed up with a warantee from a trusted company who's reputation is at stake. This is what you get when you buy a "Made in Taiwan" part from a reputable company. The "they're all made in the same factory" argument is a fallacy.

Who is guaranteeing the safety or quality control of a $60 carbon handbar off Amazon? I'm sorry, but I would not waste my money on substandard parts to fix an issue which is unlikely caused by your handlebars.

Quote:

I'm am riding on the hoods most of the time but it doesn't matter where I put my hands.

So what happens if you ride with your hands on the tops? Do they still go numb? If yes then I'm not sure how a flat top handlebar is going to help.

Have you tried double wrapping your handlebars? Gel inserts? There's a lot of stuff you could try before replacing your bars.

Your issue may be technique, locking elbows and gripping too hard will cause numbness.

dr_lha

Also, if you're set on getting these bars, you might as well only pay $41 for them:

Aliexpress.com : Buy 2015 Bicicleta Cycling Full Carbon Fiber UD Glossy Road Bike Bicycle Handlebar Handle Bent Drop Bar Parts 31.8mm*400/420/440mm from Reliable bicycle ladies suppliers on Shenzhen Codream Technology Co., Ltd. | Alibaba Group

Judging by the fact that the delivery date on Amazon is a month from now, the ones of Amazon are shipping from China.

customsound79

Good call. I was looking at gel, or thicker tape. It may be technique so I'll pay closer attention.

customsound79

I'm making an appointment to have professional intervention then. You are right, the shaking started to hurt after a while. I started dropping my hand and squeezing my fingers during the last 3 miles yesterday. That worked better.

kevindsingleton 

It's entirely possible that hand position isn't your problem, at all. It could be your arms and shoulders. If you are significantly overweight, you may be partially pinching off the blood supply to your arms and hands when riding in certain positions. The problem could be all the way up in your armpits, where the artery is closer to the surface. Try riding with your elbows bent, and slightly akimbo (I just won a bet!). See if that makes a difference. If so, I don't know the solution, except to lose some weight.

I always ride with gloves after seeing what happened to my brother when he went down and put his hands out to catch himself and ended up with gravel embedded in his hands.

PatrickR400

Padding is one factor but how tight the gloves are is another one. In my case I actually increased the padding and that helped but the gloves are also stretchier.

I believe blood flow has a lot to do with hand numbness. By analogy, you could have warm gloves but freeze because they are too tight and restrict blood flow.

travbikeman

I fixed my numbness issue by switching out the Crosstrails 6 degree stem for a Ritchey 30 degree stem:

Robot Check

So much more comfortable. Although I just recently did this and have only tested it with my bike on the trainer.

CliftonGK1

You'd likely benefit from hitting up your LBS and getting a proper fit done. Hand numbness can be attributed to many things, and without seeing your position on the bike while riding, it's difficult to tell what the solution will be.
Could need to raise or lower the bars, might need a different length stem in conjunction with moving the height, saddle position may be a factor.

MRT2

A couple of years ago when my son started mountain biking, his coach emphasized light hands, heavy feet. This seems like good advice to avoid hand numbness.

Leebo

Pic of bike wold really help discussion. My old man back like my bars 2" higher than my seat on the cross check. Yours? Taller stem?

customsound79