Biker's Palsy - advice needed

[jm2e]

gravitylover makes a good point. Most of the guys offering this service are probably working with ultra high end road & tri athletes looking to maximize power & efficiency. May be worth a call to see if they have a less extensive session geared toward health and comfort.


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[tgapp]

cool, i might also just ask around and see if i can find someone local to help in exchange for a nice bottle of whiskey. this isn't rocket science, but this hand deficiency thing sucks.

thanks everyone, i'll report back once i've tweaked my ride, installed Dee's baller grips, etc. really appreciate all the wisdom and help here.

[tgapp]

a few updates here - i'm doing a ton better, but i still have some lingering issues.

- Dee Hubbs' grips have made a huge difference. I no longer have to stop and shake out.
- been working a lot on staying seated in my saddle, weighting my hip bones, etc. that's helping.
- lowered my tire pressure significantly
- changed the position of brake levers (i think i need to change it again, honestly - brakes are still too close to the grips for me)

thanks for all your help - it would have taken me months on my own to figure this out.

[Boissal]

staying seated in my saddle, weighting my hip bones, etc

You mean while going downhill? Or am I missing something?
I think if you feel like you have to be in the saddle while going down because of your hands your setup still needs mucho tweaking.
Re: brakes, be careful with pushing them too far from the grips. Unless you have giant fingers (with your small hands it seems unlikely) it can force you to reach further inward into the curved part of the lever as the outside will be too far for you index to catch. That forces your wrists to rotate in a way that is going to piss them off.

[tgapp]

You mean while going downhill? Or am I missing something?
I think if you feel like you have to be in the saddle while going down because of your hands your setup still needs mucho tweaking.
Re: brakes, be careful with pushing them too far from the grips. Unless you have giant fingers (with your small hands it seems unlikely) it can force you to reach further inward into the curved part of the lever as the outside will be too far for you index to catch. That forces your wrists to rotate in a way that is going to piss them off.

oh no, while climbing - previously i had my weight too far forward, which, combined with a bad wrist angle, was causing all sorts of issues. i still lean in on really rough climbs, but with greater attention to posture, elbows, etc.

i thought i wanted my pointer and middle finger caught gently on the outside of the levers, no?

[Boissal]

oh no, while climbing - previously i had my weight too far forward, which, combined with a bad wrist angle, was causing all sorts of issues. i still lean in on really rough climbs, but with greater attention to posture, elbows, etc.

i thought i wanted my pointer and middle finger caught gently on the outside of the levers, no?

Oh I get it, you were leaning on your arms too much. I have the same problem (core made of melty cheese) and it's definitely a bit of effort to focus on remaining upright. My core gets shot to shit on long rides because of that.

Re: levers, index only, 2 fingers will teleport you into the stratosphere if you tap the front a bit too hard. If you try to get your index and middle finger on there your levers need to be way close to the grip or you'll have to turn your wrist inward a bunch (=pain).
Hope that makes sense, I'm in the throes of post-COVID#2 symptoms and not feeling particularly coherent.

[tgapp]

Oh I get it, you were leaning on your arms too much. I have the same problem (core made of melty cheese) and it's definitely a bit of effort to focus on remaining upright. My core gets shot to shit on long rides because of that.

Re: levers, index only, 2 fingers will teleport you into the stratosphere if you tap the front a bit too hard. If you try to get your index and middle finger on there your levers need to be way close to the grip or you'll have to turn your wrist inward a bunch (=pain).
Hope that makes sense, I'm in the throes of post-COVID#2 symptoms and not feeling particularly coherent.

yep, super helpful - just confirms that i need to move my brakes so that just my index is on the hook.

thanks man. feel better soon. btw your comments on lisa's shoulder on MP were spot on, though i did find that upper face to be a pretty exciting onsight.

[jakezee]

Not sure if this was mentioned: grip with the pinkies and let the other fingers be a bit loose.
Martial arts crossover technique

[jm2e]

Glad you’re making progress. I think two fingered braking is a huge area for improvement.
1. Modern brakes should be one finger, period. If they aren’t strong enough, you can do bigger rotors, 4 piston brakes, or simply any Shimano brake.
2. Part of “wrist growing pains” is your hand muscles remodeling. They need to get used to flexing with three fingers while extending with one. The hand doesn’t naturally do that, so everything is playing tug-o-war in your wrist. Eventually it’ll become subconsciously more comfortable to stick one finger out, but for now you can intermittently bring the index finger down to the grip (off the brake) when on boring terrain.
3. Keep tweaking lever tilt, distance inboard from grip, and lever pull. The goal is to have your hand as relaxed as possible while maintaining control.
4. As you become more rad, your braking/cockpit needs will change. Roll with it.


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[jm2e]

368643

[tgapp]

Glad you’re making progress. I think two fingered braking is a huge area for improvement.
1. Modern brakes should be one finger, period. If they aren’t strong enough, you can do bigger rotors, 4 piston brakes, or simply any Shimano brake.
2. Part of “wrist growing pains” is your hand muscles remodeling. They need to get used to flexing with three fingers while extending with one. The hand doesn’t naturally do that, so everything is playing tug-o-war in your wrist. Eventually it’ll become subconsciously more comfortable to stick one finger out, but for now you can intermittently bring the index finger down to the grip (off the brake) when on boring terrain.
3. Keep tweaking lever tilt, distance inboard from grip, and lever pull. The goal is to have your hand as relaxed as possible while maintaining control.
4. As you become more rad, your braking/cockpit needs will change. Roll with it.


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Thanks man. We're getting there. I need to get some decent wrist/hand stretches, but the improved brake position/better grips is definitely helping, as is 1-finger braking and generally overgripping less.

I am also sleeping with a wrist brace, using a ton of CBD, etc. Still a fair bit of wrist discomfort but that's getting better and better - averaging about 30 miles of riding a week, which seems healthy/balanced. Would do more but for the wrists.

[Benneke10]

Chiming in late but I've paid for several bike fits and $285 for 3hr is cheap if its a reputable fitter. Unless you know the fitter is good, a cheap fit will leave you wanting more.

As others have said, these fits are designed for road and triathlon cyclists where millimeters make a huge difference. They are also spending ~half the time working out the pedal/cleat/shoe/knee alignment which if you're using flat pedals is not something you can adjust. A lot of fitters offer a-la-carte services so you could probably approach a reputable fitter and see if they can do a quick look at your saddle and bar positioning. You are correct that if you're going thru the trouble of paying for a fit then you should buy the parts the fitter tells you to buy which is not usually cheap.

One thing to note is that many health insurance providers will cover a bike fit, especially if you have an injury.

[bagtagley]

I think it's already been said, but I'll reiterate that lock-on grips are shit if you have any hand/wrist issues. I was running the set that came on the new bike, and slowly the old pain and numbness came back. Put the ESIs on and it immediately started to feel better.

For stretches, I do these, though I just push my palms and the back of my hands together to do both wrists at once. These work for my issues, but there are other hand/wrist stretches you can do that may help you.

[jakezee]

OP, have you heard of RAD?

https://youtu.be/rHagRovHSYs