I recently purchased a Necky Looksha Sport and figured with the constant 30+ mph/winds we were having here yesterday that I’d go out for a cardio workout on our lake. Lots of fun, big winds in the face, great workout!
I have the Looksha with the new seat for 04. Tried pegs for rudder close to bod with bent legs, far from bod to stretch out, same result, my leg flat out falls asleep. By the time I had paddled about 1 1/2 miles yesterday my leg was about as numb as it could get. Any suggestions/advice is appreciated.
Dave
Try some support
Get some support right directly under your thighs right at the forward edge of the seat or perhaps even just beyond the seat. This is quite often the way to remedy all sorts of aches and pains that develop in the butt and legs.
You can give this a test by finding something temporary to try this with, then if you see results you can glue in some foam pads on the seat and/or get creative with other support in the cockpit area.
(I have assumed here that you have first fussed with the seat itself and foot pegs to work out the proper fit and posture necessary to paddle correctly.)
Give it a try. Bet it helps.
R.
sleep leg remidies
– Last Updated: Apr-29-04 12:32 PM EST –
I see that Cascade/SealLine makes a thigh/leg support. Ever tried it?
2) "Fussed with seat" This thing seems to be for the most part easy to move from its fixed (velcro) position. Do you have any seat fussing tips? You mentioned gluing foam. I assume under existing?
3) I'm somewhat new to this game. What is considered "proper fit"?
Support idea
Roger has hit it right on. I recently picked up an Arctic Hawk after many years in high performance OC-1s. Same problem, legs would go to sleep after about a mile or two. The advice offered here to me was to put a partially deflated rolled up therma rest under my thighs. Works like a dream - I’m nice and comfy now. Tried paddling without it the other day - no thank you. Not only do I not feel as connected to the boat, the numbness came right back.
Don’t need to buy the pad
I use a half-inflated paddlefloat under my thighs.
Get some
closed cell foam, or any kind of foam, and make a support. Mine is about 3-3 1/2" high and I keep it right in front of the thermarest seat to support the thighs. All problems went away immediately. I had some foam left over from some scavanging so my cost was glue. I have had it for 4 years. good ROI! For some other outfitting ideas go to www.kayakfit.com. There is no end to what you can do. On my Castine I made my own seat and built it up higher so that I don’t need the extra foam pad. It works great and probably cut 2-3 # out of the boat.
Joe
MSR water bladders work well
as does a roll o close cell foam ,cause ya always wind up ussin the water .
stretch stretch stretch
Since no one has said it yet, dont forget to work on stretching. When reading or watch TV at home, sit on the floor with your legs straight (or almost straight) and back straight. If your legs go numb after a while in this possition, it would be a good guess that they will eventually go numb when in a kayak.
Pool Noodle
I picked up one of those FAT Pool Noodles and cut it to the Width I needed. Works great !
Stretching AND thigh support
Good advice already given. I had exactly the same problem. As OHP suggested, I bought some more minicell foam and spent a whole afternoon shaping two pads for my thighs. The end result that works turned out to be elongated wedges, starting about 2 inches fore of the seat and same height as seat, and length of about 10 inches. So they are around 1 inch high at the rear and 3 inches high in the front, giving my thighs a comfortable place to rest. I have not tested them yet (waiting on warm water) for wet exits/reentry but will soon. They do not pose an entry problem as I have a big (CH17) boat and I decreased the radius for the front deck when I built her for my big feet. Made all the difference in the world. This year I’m going to do a new seat and get a better hip lock going on.
Good luck!
Had a similar problem. Turned out
that the cockpit supports were cutting into my thighs. I just moved my seat forward and solved the problem.
Self-inflating seat cushion / Position
Two thoughts:
- For those who are fairly certain it’s the shape of their kayak’s seat area, seatpad, or lack thereof that’s impeding the blood circulation or putting pressure on nerves … if typical kayak seats haven’t worked for you, you may want to look for one of the self-inflating (like Therma-rest camping pads) stadium seat cushions on the market. Seem to be pretty commonly sold as sports team logo stuff or for hunters (in camo).
- Both seating position and paddling technique/style can impact on leg numbness. Try to separate your upper body paddle stroke from your lower body i.e. relax your legs/knees when possible, I think that some paddlers try to “paddle with their legs” a bit more than ideal. Let the weight of your body transmit the power from the stroke to the kayak for forward momentum. The natural urge is to try to use your legs to do the same, a little more than necessary. The constant stressing of leg muscles while seated in a kayak can add to the onset of numbness. And, resting and stretching exercises should be used liberally on extended paddles. Anyone who’s ridden a century ride on a bike can tell you the value of rest stops and stretching! Paddling is no different. Listen to your body… happy paddling.