I like riding my bicycle…its good exercise especially for my crapt knees. After riding for awhile, however, I notice a certain “numbage” in the family jewel department. After riding, this lasts for at least 5 minutes or so…This strikes me as not a good thing on many levels. I have one of those gel padded seat covers that is tied onto the original bike seat…Before I rush off to buy padded bicycle shorts…any advice from the teeming millions?
Anyone have success with bike shorts…any other ideas?
[hyjack] I heard on the radio that three men and one woman were arrested somewhere out west for attempting to bike cross country – nude. How the hell this is physically possible for those three fellows, I really don’t know. [/hyjack]
I had that problem on my unicycle. I suppose if you get a longer better seat it wouldn’t be as bad. Remember those dorky banana seats? Just like that. Hmmm. I think I will start a new thread.
It's pressure on blood vessels reducing circulation. (We weren't meant to support our body by the nads) Think it was Bicycling magazine a while back documenting increased impotency in road racers. Don't lean forward too much (weight shift is bad), some people find seats with strategically placed cutouts provide relief. Good news? Almost always returns to full function if you take steps to relieve the discomfort early.
Oh, this odesn’t apply to the 10 minute riders or non-racer seats.
Unicycle? Bwahahahahahaha!!! Sorry.
beagledave, I ride somewhat often and have experienced numb-crotch-pelvis-etc whatever quite a few times. They do sell contoured seats with a notch cut out below the package, but what I found helps most is where, exactly, you’re placing your ass on the seat. Try to get the bones right on the little humps on the rear of the saddle. Proper positioning should cure what ails ya. If it continues, though, try one of the ergonomic seats (gel don’t do squat!). Go to any cycling website for more info.
It’s actually due to pressure on a nerve that runs through the perineum (that area between the underside of a man’s scrotum and his anus - I believe the scientific name of the equivalent area on a woman is “the chin rest.”
I’ve been seriously bicycling for twenty years - long distance touring with full packs, back country mountain biking - I fear numb nads. You don’t want any nerve damage down there.
Democritus hit the nail on the head, it’s “exactly” where you position yourself. You’ve got to have some buttock muscle tone and support your weight so your delicates are protected. Rest your weight on your bones, your muscles, not on the more sensitive areas.
You, sitting there in the chair at your computer. Reach down with both hands and feel the middle of your buttocks. Feel that bone? Are people nearby looking at you funny? If you’re sitting your bike seat right, and you have an old fashioned leather seat, those two bones should make a permanent dent in your seat.
I used to have this problem a lot on long rides (anything over about an hour in the saddle). Cycling shorts are obviously an improvement over regular shorts, but as mentioned above the biggest factor is your seat and your seating position. My advice, for what it’s worth:
[list][li]Make sure the nose of your saddle isn’t angled upward. It should be flat or even pointed slightly downward (pointing it down will shift more of your weight to your handlebars, however).[/li][li]Make sure you aren’t sitting too far forward on your saddle. If you can’t sit back farther (so your sit bones bear your weight on the widest part of the saddle), try moving your saddle forward on its rails.[/li]If all else fails, buy a new saddle. I picked up a Specialized Body Geometry model a couple months ago (it has a deep valley between the two seat halves) and I love it. I haven’t been bothered with numb nads since.
Oddly enough if it is too low then you will suffer more pain.
One guideline is to put your heel on the pedal, while wearing flat soled shoes, and extend the leg down fully.
The right height is when the pedal is at its lowest and your leg is not quite locked out.
The problem is that some people do this and tilt their hips so you need to be careful.You should be able to back-pedal with your heels on the pedals and your hips stay still.
You might consider the forward reach to the bars, if it is too great you tilt your hips too far forward causing more grief.
A guideline here is to place your elbow on the beak of the saddle and with fingers extended you should be just touching the bars.Any further could be the source of your problem.
Note that I say guideline as you may need to have your hanldebars set higher or your saddle tilted slightly to fine tune things and everyone is unique.
I had a roommate in college who called that his “taincher,” because “it 'taincher butt and it 'taincher balls.”
I read the same Bicycling article lurkernomore did, and they suggested adjusting the seat to a slight downward angle. I think they said one or two degrees below horizontal.
And since the problem may be related to constricted blood flow, it’s possible the gel saddle is part of the problem, rather than the solution. If it’s bunching up, it could be blocking blood flow the same way that thick socks under ski boots can cause hot spots.
There’s a new seat out with a . . .um . . . gap in the front so nads and whatever else can rest comfortably. I haven’t been biking in about three years, so someone else will have to test it out.
As for numb nads/numbass, I’ve gotten both depending on how I sat and how long in between I got up . . .
Yeah, there’s such a thing as being too soft, so you sink down so much you end up with more friction and pressure than if you had a firmer saddle.
I can’t add much to the already good advice given about position and fit. I’d say start with checking out a different saddle before trying padded shorts. Having tried a number of saddles, I found that the one that fits my body best is the original Terry Men’s Liberator. But even with that I occasionally start feeling numb (on long climbs, sometimes).
If things start getting numb (or even before), drop down a few gears to get a lower pedaling cadence and crank standing for a while. Along with relieving pressure, you’ll also use different muscles. If numbness continues, stop right then and wait for feeling to return.
Once you’ve found a saddle that works, I’d say go for the padded shorts as well. Just remember not to wear underwear under bike shorts–you lose all the design benefits if you superimpose additional seams and fabric between your tush and the chamois.
I hope you find some combination of gear that makes your rides less problematic. So far this year I’ve put in 4161 miles (and 185,000 vertical feet) and have had only a few short-lived instances of numbness.
[hijack]Bulletin: This area is officially and scientifically known as the “taint,” on both genders. It taint one thing but it taint the other, either. If you get my drift.[/hijack]
