Elliptical Trainers

Happens to me all the time...are you a pronator? I have flat feet and pronate a bit...I always get numb in my big toes and feet when I do the eliptical. What sometimes helps is when I reverse the eliptical and start going backwards...it shifts my center of gravity and my heels push in more...Do you run? I also run and have the same issue. I did get some custom orthotics with special cut outs and cushions..but with limited results.
Cheers!

yeah i was wondering what that weird feeling was too.

Same thing happens here. I've tried 2 diffrent types of shoes.

Happens to me too after about 20 mins. Usually it is just my big toe and it goes away a couple mins after I stop.

I get that too, but after several minutes, it seems to go away on it's own.

I get the numbing of the toes also. It is caused by a nerve that is getting pinched. What was suggested to me was don't leave your feet in one position on the machines. Try just on the ball of your feet for a few minutes and then reg. then you might want to try the heels. Try having them more forward on the peddles and then farther back on the peddles, try to keep them in different postions. This way they won't go completly numb. Hope this helps

I've had this happen as well. My gym recently got new machines, and they don't do it anymore (which I find off, because there really isn't a noticable difference).

holy cow, your display pic is hilarious!

Have you ever been striding away on your elliptical trainer, getting into a great workout, and then realize that one of your feet has gone numb all of a sudden? It’s no fun and is a great way to break your concentration and ruin what was otherwise a terrific workout. Sometimes your foot throbs so much you need to cut your elliptical trainer workout short to walk off the numbness.

First, take heart in knowing that you are not alone. There are many people out there just like you who suffer from the same problem! This article will reveal why this happens and give you some tips for dealing with it.

It does seem unusual that your foot would fall asleep while you’re standing upright. This usually happens while either lying or sitting, but have you ever stood in the same position in a line that isn’t moving? This is the perfect condition for getting numb feet. The prolonged pressure on the nerves in your feet can cause what is known as paresthesia or as is commonly referred to as "pins and needles" or a tingling sensation.

Using an elliptical trainer is very similar to standing motionless in one place. The low impact nature of an elliptical trainer is the result of your feet never leaving the foot pedals. While great for your knees and other joints, it’s what can cause your feet to lose sensation.

It’s important to wear well-cushioned athletic footwear when exercising on an elliptical trainer, but this may not be enough. The root cause of the problem is the constant pressure of your body weight on the nerves in your feet.

The first thing to do is make sure that you don't have an underlying medical condition such as diabetes or Morton's neuroma that is causing your problem. So get checked out by your doctor to eliminate these possibilities. You should also evaluate your athletic footwear and be sure that it fits properly. There should be adequate room for your toes in the toe box of the shoe.

nothing to do with types of shoes guys its just because your feet arent moving easily fixed keep your shoes slightly lose and alternate forward and backward regulary and wiggle your toes every now and then. I also find if you really bust your gut and workout at 85% max hr your too busy workng hard for it to be a problem.

Yeah...i happens all the time...just try moving your feet alittle bit

This has not happened to me, but intrigued me nonetheless. Notice that when you are going foreward, your toes actually scrunch up as they dig in for more power. The tops of your toes many times are pressed tightly against the tops of your sneakers. Not so when in reverse pedal. This action and added pressure may be actually causing the numbness. Not sure, though...what do you think? Hey, give it a try tonight!

I talked to my Doctor about it and she mentioned the shoes but her bigger concern was that it is probably nerve related and I shouldn't do the ET for that reason.

But she did say it was better than the pounding on my knees and back from running.

so it is sort of a damned if I do and damned if I don't.

I just ignore it and push past the prickling. Good Luck.

It happens all the time to me running. Everyone says my shoes are too tight, but they aren't. I also suffer from incredibly tight calves and chronic shin-splints. I think they are all related. I just got back from a 4.5mile run & the toe next to the big toe (my pointer toe?) still hurts. The balls of my feet hurt too.

I bought these for my shin-splints (saw them in the USAT magazine this month - they are recommended for shin-splints) - I wear them after I run. http://www.zensah.com/men.html

The bad part - when my legs are sweaty - they are hard to get on. It rips the hair out of my legs. I ride a bike with a group & they always give me a hard time for NOT shaving my legs. After today - I just might start...

This used to happen a lot to me - I have very high arches, and I suspect I just wasn't getting the right shoes (I always got the cushioned arch support types - which I thought were ok). I finally found a model of shoe that really really works well with my arches - I wound up spending a day researching online to get a list of the best possibilities for me, then tracked down athletic shoe stores to find the models to try on - only 1 of them really worked. This of course makes me nervous because there's no guarantee that the next time I need to buy new shoes, I'll be able to find the right kind again, since specific models frequently get discontinued. With my current, optimum shoes, though my feet will eventually get kind of tingly on the elliptical, it's not even a fraction as bad as it used to be.