Clipless pedal pain...

robthehungrymonkey

I've recently quit the Gym (less and less motivated) and pulled out the old bike to lose some weight and get back some fittness etc etc...

I've got some SPD SL pedals on the bike, but when i wear the specialized body geometry shoes that clip in, after about 12 minutes i get a pain on the outside of my feet. This gets progessively worse and then when i take the shoes off, really hurts!

Has anyone else had similiar problems? The shoes fit perfectly (or at least feel it) when not cycling and I don't want to spend money I don't have on more shoes that i then suffer a similiar problem in.

I can definitely feel the benefit of the clipless pedals too, so don't really want to give up on them either!

Any insoles available? or anything?!

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Roger_This

Rob - I had a similar issue (and started a thread on Sunday), but it was calf muscle and knee discomfort. In my case I think it was due to the cleats holding my feet straight, when previously I perhaps had my feet at a slight angle. So I'm taking it gently and trying to get my legs used to the new position. Otherwise it's eighty quid's worth of shoes and pedals down the tube

Nobody else had 'bedding in' problems with cleats?

robthehungrymonkey

Roger_This wrote:

Rob - I had a similar issue (and started a thread on Sunday), but it was calf muscle and knee discomfort. In my case I think it was due to the cleats holding my feet straight, when previously I perhaps had my feet at a slight angle. So I'm taking it gently and trying to get my legs used to the new position. Otherwise it's eighty quid's worth of shoes and pedals down the tube

Nobody else had 'bedding in' problems with cleats?

HI Roger, i did actually see your thread. I've heard similiar things to yours with Snowboarding with Students of mine having the bindings putting uneccesary pressure on joints by forcing them into unnatural angles.
I think there must be a way for you to solve your problems, have a look online as i've stumbled accross things mentioning knees when trying to solve my problems. http://www.bikefitting.com/English/Frame.aspx is maybe a good start? (under shoe cleat adjuster)

I think mine is more down to wide feet maybe?

Garry H

Roger_This wrote:

Rob - I had a similar issue (and started a thread on Sunday), but it was calf muscle and knee discomfort. In my case I think it was due to the cleats holding my feet straight, when previously I perhaps had my feet at a slight angle. So I'm taking it gently and trying to get my legs used to the new position. Otherwise it's eighty quid's worth of shoes and pedals down the tube

Nobody else had 'bedding in' problems with cleats?

Instead of forcing your joints into new positions, adjust the cleats so that they place your feet in the correct position, eg heels in, heels out etc. Your feet should more or less be aligned the same as they do when you walk.

Garry H

robthehungrymonkey wrote:

I've recently quit the Gym (less and less motivated) and pulled out the old bike to lose some weight and get back some fittness etc etc...

I've got some SPD SL pedals on the bike, but when i wear the specialized body geometry shoes that clip in, after about 12 minutes i get a pain on the outside of my feet. This gets progessively worse and then when i take the shoes off, really hurts!

Has anyone else had similiar problems? The shoes fit perfectly (or at least feel it) when not cycling and I don't want to spend money I don't have on more shoes that i then suffer a similiar problem in.

I can definitely feel the benefit of the clipless pedals too, so don't really want to give up on them either!

Any insoles available? or anything?!

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Sounds like your shoes don't fit properly, or they are not a good shape for your foot type, eg too narrow or too wide. I have exactly the same shoe/pedal combination and sometimes get minor pain on the outside edge of the right foot, near the little toe, after riding for about 4 hours. It's because this rubs against the inside of the shoe and causes a bunion of all things. I have wide feet.

robthehungrymonkey

thanks Gary,

I agree that it might be because of the fit (well, almost certainly). But I don't want to shell out another load of money to find i have the same problem with new ones. They really do feel like they fit perfectly!

The pain is more of an "aching" on the outside at the widest point.

Hopefully the shoes will bed in.

Am i the only one with wide feet?

Jez mon

Are you doing the shoes up too tight? Just loosen them off a bit and see if that helps.

myqul

Spinning is your friend!

I get hot foot if i mash due to the increased pressure of pressing on the pedals harder but dont get any hot foot if i spin

Have got the same shoes (mtb version) with speedplay frogs

Max_Man

Jez mon wrote:

Are you doing the shoes up too tight? Just loosen them off a bit and see if that helps.

I recently moved to SPD-SL, 105 pedals (yellow cleats) and Spesh S-Works carbon shoe with the red insole. Had exactly the same problem for the first few rides, really painful outside 3 toes that gets a lot worse when taking the shoe off, pain goes after 5 mins or so. After about the 3rd time I used them, I was ready to take them back to the shop an complain but I got talking to a fellow cyclist I ride with and he said to loosen the bottom velcro strap just slightly and do 1 turn less on the laceless system......no problems since, my feet must just swell a lot when I exercise. I can ride all day now in the same shoes/cleats/pedals.

robthehungrymonkey

Max_Man wrote:

Jez mon wrote:

Are you doing the shoes up too tight? Just loosen them off a bit and see if that helps.

I recently moved to SPD-SL, 105 pedals (yellow cleats) and Spesh S-Works carbon shoe with the red insole. Had exactly the same problem for the first few rides, really painful outside 3 toes that gets a lot worse when taking the shoe off, pain goes after 5 mins or so. After about the 3rd time I used them, I was ready to take them back to the shop an complain but I got talking to a fellow cyclist I ride with and he said to loosen the bottom velcro strap just slightly and do 1 turn less on the laceless system......no problems since, my feet must just swell a lot when I exercise. I can ride all day now in the same shoes/cleats/pedals.

Interesting, I have kind of experimented with loosening them, but haven't gone at it properly as I thought it was a lost cause on that front. I wouldn't say they're done up too tight, but i think I will experient with this.

Garry H

robthehungrymonkey wrote:

thanks Gary,

I agree that it might be because of the fit (well, almost certainly). But I don't want to shell out another load of money to find i have the same problem with new ones. They really do feel like they fit perfectly!

The pain is more of an "aching" on the outside at the widest point.

Hopefully the shoes will bed in.

Am i the only one with wide feet?

It sounds like exactly the same as me. I also have wide feet and have had the same problem with mountaineering boots in the past. Cycling shoes are a lot softer, so they may wear in eventually. I think that Specialized shoes are wider than european brands.

Roger_This

I would agree with that - I have wide feet and usually have trouble getting a good fit, but my Specialized Sonoma's are very comfortable, and also the lightest of the SPD shoes I tried.

I'll see if I can adjust my cleats or pedals for a bit of extra 'play'.

Cheers.

salsarider79

The specialized shoes have inserts that means that you can adjust the insides a bit. Go to a specialized dearler and they might be able to help. Thats what I had to do, now I ride in comfort...

robthehungrymonkey

I went for a ride last night and had the same problem, this was with the bottom 2 straps undone completely.

I hope that the shoes will just "wear in".

The pain is definitely on the outside on the furthest outward part of the feet.

salsarider79

If they don't wear in, or you wear out, try getting your feet checked. You may need an insert to support your feet.

Naz

try loosening the cleat tension on the SPD SL pedal. You can ride these pedals with your feet at an angle that feel comfortable (if you use the yellow floating cleats)

robthehungrymonkey

Anybody have any recomendations of where to go (or where to start looking) to get my feet checked out?

(i'm in East Sussex)

Thanks,

bomberharris72

I had exactly the same problem with my right foot. All it took was adjusting the cleats so they were in the proper position. There's a guide somewhere on this website that I used. I don't think you should get any pain, even with new shoes.

The bloke at (a well respected bike shop) where I bought my bike and shoes didn't even mention setting them up properly. He just whacked the cleats on and practically pushed me out of the shop. To be fair, all the other staff that I dealt with were spot on though.

Turns out my heel was slightly splayed out when it should have reflected my walking position which is heels in / toes out. Also the ball of my foot was too far back from the pedal axis which was probably stretching things. Simple (and free!) tweak to the cleats made riding much more pleasurable and efficient to boot.

LeighB

F.Y.I.
Pinched from Chainreaction site:-
Proper cleat placement is important, even though the new floating-cleat designs have made it far less critical. There are basically two things to set up- approximate cleat angle and fore/aft positioning.
For the angle, we generally set up the cleats so that, when the shoe is moved inwards, your ankle won't quite hit the crank. With this position, all the pedal systems we offer allow a significant outward angle from neutral (in line with the bike), meaning that your foot can go just about anyplace it wants to. The only reason for changing the cleat position so it allows less outward movement is for those who have difficulty moving their heels out far enough to exit the pedals.
For fore/aft, we start by positioning the cleat so the ball of your foot is centred over the pedal. This position generally results in high energy transfer from foot-to-pedal without undue stress on the knee. However, for those who've experienced knee problems, the first thing that should be tried is to move the cleat towards the back of the shoe, dramatically reducing the amount of leverage that the pedal can exert against your foot and knee.

punkypossum

Hmm...this pain on the outside of the foot sounds familiar. I only went clipless this week - couldn't believe how easy it was - but on my first 15miler I had exactly that, pain on the outside of my right foot (left was fine) that appeared to get worse once I got off the bike for some reason. Then, on the second 15miler the foot seemed a bit better, instead I got a pain in the muscle near the inside of my thigh, just above my right knee.

It's definitely not the shoes, as I used to wear them on my flat pedals, and I did the "sit on table with legs dangling test", according to which my feet are pretty much straight, right the slightest bit out, which is how the cleats are set up. My left leg and foot have been absolutely fine...

I also find that my whole body appears to be tensing up more than when using flat pedals, which makes it feel more hard work rather than easier...

I'm am rather puzzled by this, but am hoping that it might just be a case of getting used to spds, rather than a serious problem - would like it sorted tho, as I'm planning my first 100miler for the end of August and I really don't want to do it in pain!!!!

robthehungrymonkey

I have noticed the pain decreasing in the last few days, I think the shoes are softening up and stretching to accomodated my feet.

Fingers crossed.

chuckcork

Interesting to see this thread, I was using Specialized BG shoes until recently too, and moved to another brand because of exactly the same problem. My right foot would become increasingly sore, to the point where if I stood up on the pedals it would feel like I was about to break my foot in half.

I was using the M540 pedals which admittedly don't have a huge area of support, but I think it was that after 3 years the shoes were simply flexing too much, they weren't stiff enough to provide support for the whole foot in the shoe, so the shoe was flexing over the contact point of the pedal, like it was rolling off to one side.

New shoes are Adidas and much stiffer and I think lighter. Took a few goes to get them set up correctly to avoid knee pain, other than that only problem is a pinch point in the shoe on the foot, which for longer rides I deal with by simply taping over the point on my foot where it rubs. Never would have found that in fitting in the shop and not a problem on the average commute so I just live with it.

bobpzero

i use the Specialized Bg Sport Road 05 shoes, had them with single side spd and then changed to speedplay chromoly zeros (really expensive but really worth it) with zero float which im well used to. anyways my specialized road shoes r wide enough for me, tho i think my feet must hav shrunk in the wash. i use a bit of sportsbalm - pre sport hot balm for my ankles helps in the cold weather. all the best hope it works out.

bcdonati

I had identical problems (outside edge of right foot. hurt even more after I finished riding). My problem started after I I replaced a 4 year old pair of Specialized shoes with a new pair of Specialized BG Pro Carbon Road Shoes. To make a very long story shorter, the problem has been solved since I added a Specialized Body Geometry Shim to the right shoe (1.5mm +/varus shim). I later added the same shim to the left shoe so that I could pretend that I had at least some symetry (obviously I don't). End result... both feet are happy. I don't know why I didn't need the shims with the older shoes and did with the newer, just glad to find a solution.... it was really cutting down on my mileage.

Trickyupnorth

I too experience pain on the outside of my right foot when using my new clipless pedals and shoes.

Whilst riding on my hybrid to & from work (which has normal pedals) it seems that I apply more pressure on the right pedal with the outside of my foot, so my big toe doesn't have as much contact with the pedal.

It sounds like these wedge things might just solve the problem.

Does anyone know if they are brand specific? I've got Northwave shoes, but surely any wedge will do?

And are they of different thicknesses? How would I figure out which one to buy?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Richie

spleened

Hi, you could have a look at these pedals. http://www.flexiped.no :idea:

feel

foot pains eg tingling and numbness are often to do with trapped nerves - one of the causes which could be tight fitting shoes. Have you thought of getting the shoes stretched by a cobbler. It used to be quite a common job for them to do before the advent of wide fitting shoes.