Question for Stair Masters...
 

I was just wondering if anyones toes went numb after being on the stair master for a while? I am talking like 25 minutes. Is there any thing you can do to prevent it?

Carrie

This happens to me on the elliptical. It generally means that I am leaning to far forward and putting too much weight on the ball of my foot. I try to focus on keeping my feet as flat as possible and pushing with my heels, rather than being up on the ball of my feet. I also try to make sure I am standing up straight, not leaning forward (when I'm doing it right, it actually feels like I'm leaning backwards slightly). All of this helps, but I still don't have it down perfectly because I still experience some numbness. Almost always in my left foot, which makes sense because that foot just does not want to stay flat. :shrug:

If you are working out in a gym, you could just limit yourself to 15 minutes on the stair master and try a different piece of cardio equipment for the last ten minutes. That's certainly my strategy on some days.

- Barbara

This question gets asked quite frequently, and the consensus is that numbness is pretty normal. It does settle down after a while. Barbara's suggestion of cross training is a good one, change it up, and that will help. It's pretty much nothing to worry about, but if the numbness creeps up your leg, or if you are feeling weak, or if your leg is threatening to give way, stop. I'd take good care on the stair master. On a treadmill or eliptical your are reasonably close to the ground, but if it's one of those stair masters that looks like a moving stair case, you really don't want to be in a falling situation off one of those.

Thanks girls!