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Old 03-22-11, 07:33 PM
  #32  
esther-L
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Aveiro, Portugal
Posts: 255

Bikes: tandem, road bike, hybrid

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My commuter bike is a Specialized Sequoia, 54cm. I had numb hands when I rode it (after the free bike fit from the shop). When I compared it to my other road bike (women-specific bike), I realized that I needed to swap out the handlebars. I needed narrower drop handlebars, and a smaller women-oriented curve in the drops. The rule of thumb for drop handlebars is they should be about the same width as your shoulders.

And this was with a different stem on the bike, so that the top of handlebar was in the right place for me. The brifter levers were in the wrong place :-)

I don't know what size you are - maybe you need wider handlebars, or moustache bars. Maybe you need a different seatpost, to put your behind in the right place. A bike fitter can tell you.

I also have to remember to keep strengthening my trapezius muscles - they fatigue and give me hand numbness when they go into muscle spasms.

That said, my husband has a Lightning P-38 recumbent. He doesn't have carpal tunnel or RSI. He loves having no neck pain after 62-100 miles. We need a bigger garage.
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