AnthonyG

If too much weight on her hands is a problem, then moving the saddle back on the rails is the best solution.
Now this depends on priorities.
Moving the saddle back may or may not be the best move for power and performance, but it will definitely take some weight off the hands and make it more comfortable.

One of the problems with gel is that it will make any numbing issues worse actually. Gel will take away the bruising but at the cost of exacerbating numbing.

Hypno Toad

Thank you for all the helpful posts.

This bike was professionally fitted when purchased in 2017, but things do change over time. We did some armature work on saddle position on yesterday's ride, and we will be seeing our LBS early next month to double-check my work. (for reference, I'm an ultra endurance gravel rider and I do a lot of research for my comfort for day-long on rough roads)

Again the issues are related to an old injury to the wrist and arthritis setting in. So standard bike fit issues help, but there are some unique issues here too. We might see a friend that his a physical therapist with a focus on bike fit/comfort.

Also, we agree that more squish is not best solution. We are both fans of Brooks saddles, firm support makes for better comfort. That said, we are interested in researching options.

As an update, yesterday's ride was longer (28 miles) than the week prior (21 miles) that caused bad numbness and pain. We took more frequent stops this week to allow recovery, she also shook out a hand often while riding. She's frustrated that her hands are limiting her rides, she's strong enough for much longer rides.

canklecat

BTW, Hypno Toad , while it won't help with degenerative joint conditions, I can recommend Ted's Pain Cream for chronic joint pain. Particularly for injuries that have healed but still ache for whatever reason. The website for Ted's has all the info on the theory and research (it was developed by neuroscientists), but basically their theory is that topical resveratrol seems to be effective at "resetting" nerves that are still stuck in pain mode long after an injury has healed. Worked on my old shoulder an neck injuries when nothing else worked.

It's also worked on more recent pain in my knees and hip from running with poor form because I was so out of shape for running. And I get pain in my wrists and bases of the thumb joints from amateur boxing injuries decades ago. Works for that too. It's a serious relief because I can't take NSAIDs for long at a time -- I have an autoimmune disorder that responds with psoriasis in my skin and psoriatic arthritis flare-ups if I use NSAIDs for more than a couple of days, and only very occasionally. I don't get any side effects from using Ted's.

The only active ingredients they can claim are those approved by the FDA or other organizations: wintergreen, menthol, etc., with MSM as a transdermal carrier. There are other topical analgesics with the same ingredients. But Ted's adds reseveratrol, and it worked for me while others didn't. (Incidentally, they started out investigating topical CBD and found it wasn't effective -- that was my experience as well using two or three different CBD balms from companies that do make very good quality orally ingested CBD.)

Be sure to use it as directed: three times a day for about two weeks. The theory is that it takes time for the resveratrol to build up. And it's not effective on new injuries or deep muscle pain, just on surface level joint and tissue pain.

BTW, a caution regarding some of the customer comments: I've read some comments claiming it's an effective replacement for opiates. That's ... I want to say nonsense but pain is very subjective so maybe some users do have that experience. I can say it's nowhere near as effective as prescription pain relievers for me. But it is the most effective topical analgesic I've tried. And roughly comparable to a course of NSAIDs, including diclofenac, and possibly as effective as my injections of anti-inflammatories. But way less painful that steroidal anti-inflammatory injections. And better for my system than oral NSAIDs. Just wanted to be sure I don't sound like a shill or hyping the stuff unrealistically. But I do like it well enough that I'm on my third tube in three years. It lasts awhile because I don't need it every day.

Lazyass

FYI the Zipp Service Course CX bar tape uses a strip of gel instead of regular sticky tape. It has pretty good cushion and when you remove the tape is doesn't leave any residue on the bars. Good grip as well. It's all I buy now.

tompbradley

good use of old tubes! worth a try

veganbikes

This thread was last active in 2021 just as an FYI folks!

urbanknight

Just one newbie responding and it's their first post, so I assume it's an effort to build post count to remove restrictions.

easyupbug 

Welcome. Tubes can help some, if you have serious issues like with my osteoarthritis I recommend anti-vibration gloves like all day jack hammer operators use as they are much more effective and as for under the tape chopping up shoe all gel insoles to fit your bars are more effective than the thin pads sold by Fizik and the others.