Carpal Tunnel

I had some grip strength issues last year where I would randomly drop something and when I started riding again in October I had the same issues you're having. I'm getting better and its come down to more cardio, grip strength increase from stretching my forearms and a stress ball and doing forearm exercises with a weight on a rope and rolling it up and down on a bar like this one https://www.bodybuilding.com/store/gofit/wrist-and-forearm-blaster.html?skuId=GOFIT1580026&PLASKU=GOFIT1580026&mcid=CG_PLA_US_OD_Segment_US_Returning_OD_Segment_US_Returning_Ad_Group_1&gclid=CjwKCAjwk9HWBRApEiwA6mKWae_W7ePwbdpHoUokZmZD3yFNjvM2tS3-_KaKetqVhS0sWUiJ3GlI7xoCwpEQAvD_BwE

Right there with ya buddy. I’m 51 years old, just got tested, but I work Construction. Doc said six weeks recovery and I simply can’t take the time off work. For me it started with hands going numb just holding a coffee mug. Now they go numb holding the steering wheel, an iPad, when I’m sleeping. I can go one lap and have no feeling in my hands. It’s worse when I ride my RM250, but if I get on my sons 125, I can go a little longer. Sucks cause I can pretty much rule out riding my bike this year. I’ll get the surgery next winter when things slow down for me.

I get that at the beginning of each season. Not sure if its carpal tunnel but it matches your description perfectly.

What i do is ride an easier track for a few weeks before going to a real track. What i mean by that is not starting out at your normal pace on a track with ruts and ripped dirt. Relearn to ride and lean into acceleration and against braking.

I still get cramps from using screwdrivers though. Not sure how to solve that one.

AJ565 wrote:

I had some grip strength issues last year where I would randomly drop something and when I started riding again in October I had the same issues you're having. I'm getting better and its come down to more cardio, grip strength increase from stretching my forearms and a stress ball and doing forearm exercises with a weight on a rope and rolling it up and down on a bar like this one https://www.bodybuilding.com/store/gofit/wrist-and-forearm-blaster.html?skuId=GOFIT1580026&PLASKU=GOFIT1580026&mcid=CG_PLA_US_OD_Segment_US_Returning_OD_Segment_US_Returning_Ad_Group_1&gclid=CjwKCAjwk9HWBRApEiwA6mKWae_W7ePwbdpHoUokZmZD3yFNjvM2tS3-_KaKetqVhS0sWUiJ3GlI7xoCwpEQAvD_BwE

That forearm exercise thing gave me some of the worst arm pump I've ever had. I swore that off a long time ago. For me my grip strength is fine, it just hurts to hold onto stuff.

downard254 wrote:

Right there with ya buddy. I’m 51 years old, just got tested, but I work Construction. Doc said six weeks recovery and I simply can’t take the time off work. For me it started with hands going numb just holding a coffee mug. Now they go numb holding the steering wheel, an iPad, when I’m sleeping. I can go one lap and have no feeling in my hands. It’s worse when I ride my RM250, but if I get on my sons 125, I can go a little longer. Sucks cause I can pretty much rule out riding my bike this year. I’ll get the surgery next winter when things slow down for me.

Man...I'm only making it a couple of laps on my 350, I would probably cramp riding through the pits on a two stroke!

What's crazy is that for me I work a desk job but I can still type really fast with no discomfort. Its like you said, the normal holding stuff and using my smart phone that's getting to me.

As I mentioned I've gained a lot of weight in the last couple of years so after this weekend I've decided to prioritize my health over riding for a while. Frankly riding isn't fun because I'm so heavy for my bike's suspension and I can't hang on...so I've decided to fix it. We have a 2 year old, and he's a damn handful...its difficult enough for two parents @ 100% to keep him in check let alone one losing the ability to use a hand for six weeks.

If your having nighttime symptoms, like waking up flicking your hand because it’s numb get a hand splint to help you sleep. Take something such as ibuprofen to help with the pain but the only fix is surgery. It’s my understanding that the surgery is straightforward and it’s very effective.

While weight loss won’t fix your carpal tunnel symptoms it will help your overall situation. I went in for a check when I turned 30 and had high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol and was up 20 lbs over my heaviest. My dad dropped dead at 51 so I’ve got risk factors. Did the paleo thing lost some weight and followed that with “the 21 day fix” which has gone on for about 2 1/2 years. I lost 55 lbs and have kept it off. Feel so much better. My BP is low 100s, blood sugar and cholesterol are great. I can chase my 6 year old around no problem. Being heavy takes a toll on your cardiovascular system, joints and mental health. You can fix a lot of problems by loosing weight. Keeping a healthy weight is like a bank account. Hard to earn money (staying a healthy weight) but so easy to end up in debt (loosing the weight). Good luck

Use the search, theres a few very good threads on here which I and others have posted their experiences. Your symptoms are those of CT and the fix is pretty easy and well worth it.

TJMX947 wrote:

That forearm exercise thing gave me some of the worst arm pump I've ever had. I swore that off a long time ago. For me my grip strength is fine, it just hurts to hold onto stuff.

Thats the whole point of it. Light weight and higher reps. When I started with it I could only roll it up one direction and partly the other direction (1 rep) and now I can do it a few times each way before I have to stop and let the blood flow out for a min or two. The goal is to get the fascia stretched out and more blood veins to develop so blood moves in and out instead of just in.