How to avoid hand pain while biking?
12-14-20, 06:00 AM
#26
Zip tie Karen
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Here's another blind suggestion: the bike doesn't fit you. Learn about bike fit. Also, the hands are only the place where you "feel" or perceive the discomfort. They are not necessarily the proximal cause of the discomfort. Let that sink in...
02-01-21, 06:57 AM
#28
Junior Member
Like you, I used to be “fine” on the bike, without undue discomfort anywhere. Then, due to back issues and tennis elbows, I started trying various saddle positions, but each seemed to cause strain/discomfort of the sorts you describe. I eventually returned saddle to neutral and tried using my tennis elbow braces while cycling, and that helped a great deal. Because my arms were (artificially) stable, they could ride the bars as they ought to, and I didn’t need strange postures or a new saddle to create or compensate for forward momentum or backward tilt to alleviate arm strains. Maybe (in addition to the tips others have), elbow or forearm braces will work for you.
Last edited by Jno; 02-01-21 at 06:58 AM. Reason: Cut extra bit
02-01-21, 05:15 PM
#31
Drip, Drip.
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As I've mentioned in another post, you should be able to feel like you can easily bias your body weight fore or aft at any given moment of the ride. Wrist pain should primarily hint towards poor fit causing too much weight to hang over the front of the bike. However, a combination of the following factors are likely to be involved:
1. A combination of different stabilizer muscles in your body, including your core and lower back, failing to maintain good posture
2. A combination of incorrect stem length and saddle position attempting to compensate for an overly long top tube or reach, or an overly short stack.
3. if the pain is this significant, unless you simply rest too much weight on your wrists due to insufficient support from your core, usually this would simply point toward a poorly fitting frame, to which not even the shortest of stems could alleviate.
This means, that you are more than likely in need of a different fitting frame, or at the very least ditch the long stem and drop bars before attempting to address the issue of wrist pain from a secondary perspective, such as installing cushier grips, using wrist braces etc.
I would suggest focusing on full body toning and strength workouts (full core and spinal erector strengthening at the very minimum) so that you can engage more of your stabilizer muscles while centering your weight into the cranks, using these muscles to improve balance/stability while keeping weight off your saddle/hands, which should merely be contact points for the purpose of surveying road surfaces;specifically around corners, rather than simply resting the brunt of your weight into,
1. A combination of different stabilizer muscles in your body, including your core and lower back, failing to maintain good posture
2. A combination of incorrect stem length and saddle position attempting to compensate for an overly long top tube or reach, or an overly short stack.
3. if the pain is this significant, unless you simply rest too much weight on your wrists due to insufficient support from your core, usually this would simply point toward a poorly fitting frame, to which not even the shortest of stems could alleviate.
This means, that you are more than likely in need of a different fitting frame, or at the very least ditch the long stem and drop bars before attempting to address the issue of wrist pain from a secondary perspective, such as installing cushier grips, using wrist braces etc.
I would suggest focusing on full body toning and strength workouts (full core and spinal erector strengthening at the very minimum) so that you can engage more of your stabilizer muscles while centering your weight into the cranks, using these muscles to improve balance/stability while keeping weight off your saddle/hands, which should merely be contact points for the purpose of surveying road surfaces;specifically around corners, rather than simply resting the brunt of your weight into,
02-01-21, 05:18 PM
#32
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02-04-21, 04:15 PM
#33
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The nose of a conventional saddle keeps your weight from sliding forward. In my opinion, 'noseless' saddles (if you are referring to the type of saddle I think you are) are a false solution for comfort because they force you to adjust other parts of the bike into less-than-optimal positions. A properly adjusted conventional saddle centres your hips over the bike and holds most of your weight in one fore-aft position.
02-04-21, 05:49 PM
#34
Member
Assuming the bike fit is right, larger tires at lower pressure solved my hand issues.
02-04-21, 07:09 PM
#35
Senior Member
A recumbent bike or trike would absolutely cure hand pain. That was the main reason for me going that route. However, it's usually implied that the person asking wants to keep their current bike; so it becomes a question of what adjustments to make to help. Raising the handlebars, moving the saddle back, tilting the saddle's nose up slightly, extra padding, gloves, are all places to start.
