Numb Foot

Pirahna

My shoes make my left foot go numb. I think it's down to a pressure point on the ball of my foot but I can't seem to fix it. I've tried various insoles without success, any suggestions before I go shopping tomorrow?

domtyler

Try putting the emphasis on the up stroke rather than the down stroke for a minute or two every half hour. That will relieve the pressure on your foot and allow the blood to get to where it needs to be again.

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Pirahna

Tried that. They're Ok for 20 to 30 miles and just get worse after that. maybe they're just the wrong shoe for my foot.

mazcp

Try loosening the straps/laces. I had a problem with the sole of my foot going numb, but this sorted it out.
Maybe wider shoes is the answer (?).

JWSurrey

I had similar problems with my early edition Shimano SPD touring shoes and my wide feet. The shoes had quite soft soles.
Loosening the straps helped.
I ended up buying a pair of Shimano EDIT: OOps - Specialized BG shoes, which are fabulous in comparison - instantly felt more comfortable - worth even just trying a pair on!
Lots of info. on their website as to how they're designed.

Pirahna

These are DMT Flash. I stood around in the shop for about half an hour before buying and wish I hadn't bought them now. I've given them a good go but I think they might get consigned to turbo duties.

The only Specialized ones that felt OK were the S Works and I almost bought them. I'll go shopping tomorrow I think.

JWSurrey

Hmm... The moment I put my feet in the Spez. they just felt right, so if you were a bit 50:50 to start with, maybe it's worth trying some Sidis, although I did speak to a guy at the weekend who'd moved from Sidis to Spez. and said the improvement was noticable!

Cyclefit in central London do two different types of footbeds, and analyse your feet, but they're not cheap.
I very nearly went there, however the cheaper "new shoes" option solved it. Also, I had a pair of custom footbeds made up for my ski boots, when overseas, and didn't rate them, so I was trying to steer clear of going down that route again for my cycling shoes.
Cyclefit do get good reviews and seem to know their stuff though.

Pirahna

I've just a paid fiver for a pair of gel inserts from Woolies so I'll see how I get on with those tonight (it's a 40 mile ride home from work).

I'll pop into Condor tomorrow and try some Sidi's. I used to wear Sidi all the time but havn't owned a pair for a few years now.

fuzzy29

Loosen the straps first. My Northwave shoes used to make my toes go numb after about 20 miles, but now they're like slippers. Start off with the straps a bit looser than you think is a good idea, you can always tighten them if it feels too loose.


<hr noshade size="1">If I had a baby elephant, I'd ask Banksy to paint it....

Pirahna

I've persevered with these for about 1500 miles and am getting a bit worried as I have the Dragon and London Etape coming up. In fact I've moved on from slightly worried to definately fretful. Shoes are not really a cheap item though.

Unknown

are the shoes you have at the mo the triple strap design??

at the start of a ride I sometimes tighten up the strpas too much and then as your foot gets warmer/swells slightly I loose the feeling at in my toes. Loosen up the lower straps if you've got them..

JWSurrey

Piranah - I bought mine in Condor from Karl - the more senior looking chap.
He sized my feet correctly, first time, by just taking a look at them!

Pirahna

The shoes are the two velcro and on ratchet ones. They came from Condor in the first place, I think just a bad buy on my part.