Painfull shoes

dphb

Hi all,
I just made the jump from flats to spd's earlier today. Shop were very helpfull and made sure I knew how to clip in and out before I left the shop.
Cycled home without any problems.
However, my feet really hurt!! The cycle home was only about 1.5 miles.
The pain is on the outside (side of the foot) on the widest part of the foot.
Is this a cleat set-up issue? Or just that the shoes don't fit me properly?
If i'm going to return the shoes i'd rather do it now that they only have 1.5 miles in them.

Any help much appreciated.
Thanks
Dan

merak

Take them back, tell them they hurt after 1.5 miles, and ask their opinion. I would guess it's a shoe fit problem or overtightening the shoes, as pain caused by misaligned cleats tends to take longer than five minutes to develop. It might also be that you are subconsciously tensing your feet and cramping up. Anyway, the shop should be able to give you some more specific advice.

cougie

What shoes are they ? Some cycling shoes are narrow fitting - sounds like that's the issue.

blackpoolkev

Are your shoes Shimano?Their fit is narrower than other brands.I changed from Shimano to a pair of Specialized Sport touring shoes(spd compatible) and found they were much roomier across the wide part you mention.

dphb

Hi all,
thanks for the replies.
They are Lake mx85's. The fit actually feels fine, they don't feel tight.
Been back to the shop. They suggested not strapping them as tight. Doing a long ride in the morning, so see how they are then.

The shop suggested that i overpronate when i peddal, and so I am putting pressure on the ligament on the outside of the foot, however, to me the pain feels too localised and it is definately not ligament pain. It feels like pressure pain, but rather than being on the underside of the foot it is on the side of the foot.

The shop said I may need orthotics, which sounds very strange to me, as I've played sport to a national level for the last 8 years and have never had to wear orthotics in any of my footwear. It seems a bit odd that I would need orthotics for the sport I do casually on the side and as recovery...

marin_maniac

Search for Steve Hogg power to the pedal and then tell me you don't need orthotics.

sungod

as others suggest, watch out for overtightening or tensing, and check cleat position

but i wouldn't dismiss the suggestion that you might need footbeds...

i over pronate and i've got footbeds (and shims) for my cycling shoes, i need *far* more arch support cycling than for running

it's a different motion, unlike running, your foot position is constrained by the cleat, and cycling shoes have very little give

if you are over pronating, as the arch collapses on each pedal stroke, your foot can be repeatedly squashed into the shoe

btw, off the shelf, the specialized bg footbeds are good

dphb

Thanks for all the replies.
Did a longer ride today. Did the shoes up much looser like the shop suggested.
The pain went away, so that's great!
However after around 2 hours I had pins and needles in both feet. Is this my feet getting used to cycling with cleats? Or is it that the cleats aren't quite in the right position? Or could it even have something to do with my overpronantion?
Sorry about all the questions!!
Really appreciate all your help.
Thanks

MountainMonster

Try some footbeds, if the pain has gone away, sounds like you just had them too tight, but if the pins and needles come, you may need a little bit more support for your feet. I get pins and needles sometimes, and normally it is also because I have not good quality of socks on.