Why do my fingers often go numb when I ride?

The positioning of your hands puts pressure on your nerves and can subsequently lead to “handlebar palsy” (ulnar nerve irritation resulting in pinky and ring finger numbness) or, less frequently, carpal tunnel syndrome with numbness in your thumb and forefinger. Fortunately, this can usually be minimized by keeping your wrist in a neutral position, increasing handlebar padding, and wearing padded gloves. If these symptoms happen to persist, I highly recommend making an appointment with your therapist or physician sooner rather than later. These symptoms are relatively easy to treat conservatively early on but the longer you wait the more likely you are to potentially need surgical intervention.