Originally Posted by Mikefule

Personally, I'm a little sceptical about "bike fitters" as it sounds like Feng Shui to me. We all have different styles and preferences, and different body proportions. There are a few simple rules/guides and after that it's a combination of experimental adjustments and riding more until the problem goes away.

I used to have a big thing about pain in my hands and chose a bike with a frame that gave a high bar position, and I even flipped then stem. I found it was slow and that I got discomfort in other areas. I now have that bike set up with the bars as low as they'll go and prefer it. Yes, I get discomfort in the hands but I deal with that by changing my hand position between "on the tops", on the bends, on the hoods and, rarely, on the hooks.

If you're pedalling hard then the natural "equal and opposite reaction" to the pedalling action will tend to lift your upper body reducing the weight on your hands very slightly. Also, concentrate on having a bend in your elbows. It feels easier to let your elbows "lock out" so you can just flop your bodyweight onto them, but that slight bend reduces the transmission of shock to your hands and makes them less uncomfortable.

Most of all, the more you ride, the less you'll think about it.