numb legs & feet?

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ItsAsha
ItsAsha Posts: 78
in Fitness and Exercise
This may be a dumb questions, but does anybody else’s legs and feet go numb when you’re on the elliptical? I have had slight back problems before, but never had this happen. I can’t determine if it is the elliptical, maybe the stride isn’t right for me? Maybe it’s my shoes? Idk. I can hear a clicking sound in my back when I use the elliptical, but I can hear it when I walk sometimes too. I was ignoring it before, but it becomes painful sometimes (in my feet) and now I’m not getting runs in because of it.

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  • running_mom
    running_mom Posts: 204 Member
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    I've had that in my feet not legs. And it happens all the time. I've heard it's from not lifting your feet for such a long time. But not sure if it's true.
  • BigDaddyRonnie
    BigDaddyRonnie Posts: 506 Member
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    Not being smart or sarcastic, but this is where we all point to the "consult your physician when undertaking any physical activity as part of any diet regimen" statement.

    Numb legs and feet is not something I would ignore. Yes it could be simple but far more difficult to offer advice than the "my stomach gets upset when I eat pears" statement.

    I would hate for you to further implicate an issue, especially when you are trying to make yourself better. You might want to call your doctor.
  • marspec1maven
    marspec1maven Posts: 13
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    The elliptical in and of itself shouldn't create numbness but you refer to having had previous back problems. You may well be exacerbating a pinched nerve condition. I am in the 4th month of recovery from a surgical procedure on my cervical spine to correct pinched nerves. Be careful. See a neurosurgeon.
  • IrishChick71
    IrishChick71 Posts: 311 Member
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    Yep, my feet (especially my toes)start going numb about 30 minutes into my workout. It always has on the elliptical though. I know it's because I'm using the balls of my feet to push down hard and because it a repetitive motion, it doesn't give my feet a long enough pause to push the blood back through. When it gets bad, I usually jump off for a couple minutes and walk around then get back on to finish. Some people have said they changed their shoes and it helped them. I don't have the luxury to keep buying shoes to compare so I stick with what I have. I have never got numbness that reached my legs though

    Any back problems, I would definitely check with the doc before continuing....especially if it gets bad.

    Good Luck, hun!
  • skinnyjeanzbound
    skinnyjeanzbound Posts: 3,932 Member
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    It's absolutely normal to get numb toes/feet on the elliptical. I've found that with certain shoes it's worse than w/ others, so if you have a variety of workout shoes, try them all to see which are best. Also, when I do the crosstraining program which requires that I switch between pedaling backwards and forwards, I get less numbness than when I only pedal forwards.
  • wanttogetskinny
    wanttogetskinny Posts: 194
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    Does this ONLY happen on the elliptical? Have you talked to a doctor about possibly having neuropathy? (nerve damage)
  • cgavin77
    cgavin77 Posts: 219
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    I get numb feet/toes all the time on the elliptical-have for years. I normally change up the direction I go in and it passes for a while. I'm sure I should see my Dr and get it checked out- but I figure nothings fallen off yet...(might not be the best advice :ohwell: )
  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
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    i was about to post and ask the same thing - when i was on the elliptical the other day my right foot went a little bit numb. nothing drastic, and i do plan on asking my dr about it next time i go in. it just made me wonder if it was normal. i dont have a history of back problems or anything like that. i had been on the machine for about 25 minutes when i noticed the numbness
  • MissAllison
    MissAllison Posts: 33
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    Here's a previous thread about this topic that might help you.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/181354-kind-of-weird-question

    As for the popping in your back, that may be another issue...
  • Enigmatica
    Enigmatica Posts: 879 Member
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    Here's another previous thread with good info on this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/180114-darn-elliptical-causing-numb-toes
  • Dbow0207
    Dbow0207 Posts: 220 Member
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    Yes especially in my toes! But I've figured out is that my sock is pullling back against my toes, so once I fixed with my foot it stops, but you have to be on the elliptical for a long time for it to do that for me.

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