Originally Posted by
JeePakXJ
So to report back on the progress, I bought those Ergon GC3 grips everyone suggested and, man, they really do make a difference. I felt no discomfort at all during this mornings commute or my rides over the weekend. My left hand was starting to get a little tingly but i found that attributed from my left shoulder strap from my backpack being too tight. Now i just need to get biking gloves because my sweat is causing me to lose grip on the handle bars haha
Ok, here's my take because IMO each post in this thread has elements of the problem addressed but miss the big picture... kind of like the blind men on the elephant metaphor. IMO and also backed up by recent research. Carpal Tunnel can be eliminated by building up arm strength. All of the seat raising, fore-aft positioning, wrist strapping, and Ergon gripping are compensations for a lack of back, arm and grip strength.
If you can't or won't implement a comprehensive upper body fitness program then the single most effective remedy for wrist pain is handlebar height. Period. Get the bars high enough and you will not, cannot, have any wrist pain or hand numbness from excessive weight on your hands. Your aerodynamics will suck and the amount of power you can put to the pedals will be limited by a very upright posture but your hands won't hurt.
Most people think they are upright on the bike and in fact are leaning forward at a considerable angle. If your bars are within two inches of your seat you are probably at ~45* back angle. That can hurt hands. When your bars are 4" to even 6" above seat height and back angle is 55*+ you are sitting 'upright'. Most of us are going to be sitting in that ~45 degree range and are going to experience some hand pain until we build up the necessary back, arm and grip strength to properly support our upper bodies when cycling. Its worth it to do.
H