How should bike shoes "fit"?

secretsam

This may seem a daft question, but I know how regular shoes should fit, but am struggling with bike shoes. Most of the advice says "like slippers", etc but that's not terribly helpful!

I have relatively wide feet and high arches, currently using Specialized shoes but seem to find that my feet move around in them a bit. If I do up straps tighter then my feet start to hurt, particularly little toe.

So - how 'snug' should they be and how do I get comfy feet???

Sawilson

Are you near a Specialized concept store or are any of your local bike shops BG fit certified, they have a stand on thermal board which will determine the correct size insole. They come in three arch sizes to fill the void between the arch and shoe.
When I bought my Spesh I had a body fit and bought the correct insoles as I have an high arch, and guess what they fit like slippers. It feels like my feet are supported fully across the width.
The other more expensive alternative is to buy some shoes with a mouldable footbed, not sure if this would fill the arch void though.
Insoles about £20
Bont Riots with mouldable soles £80-£100.

Millidog

I agree with Sawilson. Bont Riots are good shoes but I could not get on with them and had to axe them in for some S-Works. Very expensive but "Fit like slippers". The BG fit stand works well and like all Spesh BG stuff always seems to do what it says it will

antfly

Agreed, never had the BG fit done but the right insoles made a huge difference for me, as have the wedges, two in the right shoe none in the left. It's like I was riding on one leg until I put them in.

me-109

Snug, but with wiggle room for your toes.

I'm using Mavics. Comfy as slippers but don't look right with lounge pants.

secretsam

Thanks all, sounds like some insole thingies might be the way to go

northpole

If it's your little toes that are being pinched when you tighten the adjustable straps, that suggests to me that the shoes are not a great fit for you. I suspect that you need a wider shoe and that changing footbeds/ insoles may not provide an acceptable solution. No harm trying, but as suggested above, if you have access to a decent shop I would ask them for a fitting.

Peter

jgsi

I know they are expensive but imo worth it... fyi.. my Spesh s works shoes have a green on the right and red on the left.... when initially bought and ridden (they come fitted with red as default), my right foot arch gave right gip after 10 mile ... that was 2 years ago.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Specialized-high-performance-BG-footbed/dp/B004ZCAKCW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1398011291&sr=8-2&keywords=bg+footbeds

Miles253

I got flouro Mavic Zxelliums for my birthday last year, I fear they might be a little wrong too, as they feel a little tight. I love them though, maybe I'll ask the guys at my lbs to BG fit my feet and see how far out I am.

sparklehedgehog

northpole wrote:

If it's your little toes that are being pinched when you tighten the adjustable straps, that suggests to me that the shoes are not a great fit for you. I suspect that you need a wider shoe and that changing footbeds/ insoles may not provide an acceptable solution. No harm trying, but as suggested above, if you have access to a decent shop I would ask them for a fitting.

Peter

+1

i was having the same issue till i bought specially wide fitting shoes and now no issues

vorsprung

I am fortunate that size 46 specialized comp mtb shoes fit my feet really well. They were tight to start with but after a few months of use they have a bit of give. For the winter I have size 48 Sidi boots. These are pretty loose if I don't wear very big socks. Also in the winter some wriggle room for toes is a good idea, keeps the circulation going. My other "general" shoes are some size 47 Shimano touring shoes. These are also good with big socks.

Some people don't like the way that Specialized shoes are contoured. When the ball of the foot part of the shoe is on the ground the heel is quite high up. This is true to some extent of all shoes but it is quite exaggerated on Specialized shoes. Doesn't bother me, but some friends have changed from Specialized due to this.

giant_man

Don't overthink this, they're just shoes. Like all shoes, they need to be comfortable without pinching or being too loose. What you do not want is shoes which are too tight, restricting airflow, particularly in the winter.

rafletcher

Sawilson wrote:

Bont Riots with mouldable soles £80-£100.

I'm not sure in fact if the insole is mouldable - the sole being carbon certainly isn't. The insole is I think memory foam type material so does "mould" to the foot with time, but the really mouldable part is the synthetic upper which you soften with warming in the oven, then wear as it cools, which should remove pinch points. Leisure Lakes have good stock availability at £89.00 at the moment. A cautionary note - I bought some Vaypor + in 45, and was so please with the fit I bought a second hand pair of Riots in the same size as back-up. I've just bought a pair of 46 Riots as they fit differently to the Vaypors - the toe box curves down as opposed to being flat on the Vaypor, and it pressed on my big toe nail in the 45's (which will be for sale soon as I get pics sorted")

For reference I rode Spesh 45's for several years before going for the Bonts, and before that Sidis, also a 45.