Numb hands

[Cannondale Lady]

A bike fit may help with your posture

 

[RichardB]

I tuck my hand behind my back when resting and flexing it.

Seems to be slightly more effective than flexing with the hand hovering above the bars.

However, I think what I do equates to some obscure peloton signal.

So don't blame me if a roadie behind you crashes while you are doing it,

Like the beach volleyball thing? I'll try that! The best way for me is to hang the arm down vertically and crunch the fingers a few times. That helps for a while. When I stop riding, my hands return to normal within a few minutes and I don't notice it in between rides, so I doubt if there is permanent damage.

See a doctor, given you say you've had CTS before

Simple exercise wise, you could try glute bridges squeezing a soft football between your legs for glutes and core activation. Lovely planks and sit ups other core options

The last time I saw the doctor about this was in about 2004, so things may have moved on since then. I was told the operation would mean six weeks without the use of the hand, and they would only do one hand at a time, for obvious reasons. I was working for a dodgy employer at the time, and I couldn't risk time off sick, and my judgement was that the cure seemed worse than the complaint. But a decade later there may be new developments, which I will look into.

I shall have to add glute bridges to my vocabulary - a completely new one on me. Planks and sit-ups I can do. Thanks.

A bike fit may help with your posture

I think I might have to travel for one of those, and I have read very mixed reports - ranging from brilliant to 'waste of money'. This is, I have both bikes set up so that they are very comfy when I start riding. The positions feel exactly right, and it's only well into the ride that the numbness starts. Because of that, I feel it is more to do with my fitness than the bike set-up. But I will review that anyway. Thanks.