Pain in foot!!

wheeler585

Has anyone experienced like a hot pain in the pad of there feet when cycling? At the moment i have a pair of sidi ergo's and specialized bg,and always seem to get a pain on the pad of my feet. Dont think its the shoes,ive used both time and look cleats,but the pain is still there!! I use the grey look keo cleats which means there isnt much of a float and room to move around. Think this maybe the problem, as they have to be set up perfectly!! Has anybody else had this problem??

Roadbike

yeah, it's called hot spots or hot foot. Most common cause is shoes size too tight. Next most common is small pedals and/or bottoms of shoes not stiff enough.

Try wearing thinner socks and loosening your shoe straps. If you are cinching your shoes tight before you ride, stop doing that. Your feet swell as you ride - hot spots happen 'cause you compress (too much pressure) the pad or ball of your foot. If thinner socks/loosening the straps helps then your shoes are too small.

If the above doesn't help you can try one of the over the counter ("Dr Scholl's" type) in-sole. But be careful - If your shoe doesn't have room for a thicker "padded" insole you can make the problem worse. In that case, buy new shoes: bigger/stiffer soles.

Small percentage of people need custom orthodics to solve. . .but this is rare and a more costly fix. Try the above first.
- Roadbike


don't worry, I'm studying to be a podiatrist in my next life.

wheeler585

Thanks for that Roadbike,its funny as i really tighten my shoes up before a training ride!! So this must be the problem,i did try loosening them the other day but with no effect. But supose my pads are still sore from previous rides,so in a week or so it should cure itself!! Thanks for the advice! Rob

Roadbike

sure, no prob. Except if loosining the staps was going to make a dif, you should really feel it right away. (Unless you've done some short term damage to the bottoms of your feet. . .in which case you'd feel it just walking around in street shoes or barefoot.) Are your feet tender walking around the day after a bikeride?

Certainly the prob is not the soles of your shoes. Sidi ergos are pretty nice - stiff carbon soles. (missed that in the first post) I'd try again - run the shoes as loose as you think you can then make 'em a bit looser. And try it with a thinner pair of sock than you usually wear. (Like those really thin summer nylon or synthetic socks.)

Roadbike

Oh! (slaps forehead) shoulda added this to the last post. If it feels like there's room in your shoes (as in, if they are not already snug) you can try going the other direction. Drop some cash on over the counter gel insoles. Pull the sidi insoles out & use them as a pattern to cut the gels. Leave the sidi insoles out & stick the gels in. On the other hand, if the sidis are already snug, putting something thicker in will just compress your foot more.

hey, hope something helps you out.