my feet hurt

[slbhswim]

Hello, this is my first post. I've just started riding seriously, which for me is about 40-50 miles per week. I use clipless pedals, and I had been really loving them, but now that I am adding more distance my feet hurt, especially my right foot! Mostly it is in the bottom on the ball of my right foot - feels almost like a stained muscle. Any ideas about what might be the problem??? Thanks so much!

[ayermail2]

sounds like hot foot!


1) check the bike's fit to you again

2) move the cleat back a little bit (no more than a centimeter) so that it's slightly behind the ball of your foot instead of directly under... you may want to check alignment again after this kind of an adjustment ( I had read about this in a book about mountain biking by Ned Overend, and it really worked for me! Seems I'm a bit lopsided - even with the cleats in the same position on both shoes, my left always felt bad until I did this!)

Also, check out this thread for similar advice...
http://www.teamestrogen.com/forums/s...=&threadid=192

3) really consider how your cycling shoes fit - or even if you're tying / strapping them up too tight, that is more of a problem than you might think!

[slbhswim]

Thanks, will try to move the cleat, also a suggestion from Susan Weaver's book. Today I put my orthotics that I use for walking, tennis, golf, etc, into my bike shoes and I think this also may have helped. Appreciate your response, susan

[abarensfeld7]

I have clipless pedals on my mountain bike, and used some pretty heavy Cannondale shoes, with big lugs and were very everyday "comfy." Every time I rode, past the 15-minute mark or so, my feet would start to hurt like you described. Ack! Hated it.
Now I have a road bike but decided to hold off on the clipless pedals until I could afford a new set of shoes -- I figured the shoes were the problem. I thought since they were just roomy enough, and not too tight around the top of the foot or the toes or anything, that they would be very comfy, but they're not!! I wonder now if my problem has to do with my cleat alignment and not the shoes?.....

Also -- anyone have any opinions on using MTB clipless pedals on a road bike? Sure, they are a little heavier and maybe have too much float, but I'm guessing I could get by OK if I finally decided to go with clipless on my road bike (I haven't been using my mountain bike that much).

[DeniseGoldberg]

Also -- anyone have any opinions on using MTB clipless pedals on a road bike? Sure, they are a little heavier and maybe have too much float, but I'm guessing I could get by OK if I finally decided to go with clipless on my road bike (I haven't been using my mountain bike that much).

I use mountain bike shoes and pedals on my road bikes because I want the recessed cleat. My biking shoes are very stiff - Sidi Dominators - so they aren't appropriate for walking long distances, but I really prefer them over road shoes with protruding cleats. I use Frog pedals, which work well for me. Both my shoes and my pedals are pretty light (from a weight standpoint).

My pedals are free-float pedals, but not all mountain pedals have that characteristic. What's important is that the shoes fit your feet, and that they fit your biking style. It's possible that your cleats aren't aligned properly on your shoes, but it's also possible that the sole is too soft to protect your feet from pressure from the pedals.

--- Denise

[CorsairMac]

Do you do a lot of climbing?.......I've noticed I start to have problems with my feet when I'm doing a lot of climbing - or at the end of a long ride where I may be balancing more weight on my feet than using my core.

I have both: MTB and Road shoes. I wear the MTB shoes on my road bikes when I commute to work coz - as Denise said- they're easier to walk in. I wear my road shoes for all my long rides where I'm not going to stop for any length of time and I'm not planning on walking very much.

I believe it was Bike Goddess recommended insoles for my shoes - which they sell at REI but I haven't had a chance to pick some up and try them yet. I did have to move my cleats around - don't be surprised if your cleats aren't the same on each foot - my left foot the cleat needed to be on the inside more, my right - the outside. Play with your cleats some and see if that helps too.


Thanks Denise - thems the ones!

[DeniseGoldberg]

I also use insoles in my shoes. I've been happy with Superfeet insoles that I bought at REI.

[RavenMyst]

I have mountain bike pedals on my road bike. I like them b/c they are easy to get into. I also have mountain bike shoes that are very lightweight but still have a slight bit of tread on the sides. They are easy to walk in so that makes it easy for me. I just bought these about a month or so ago and the folks at Richardson Bike Mart recommended them and said alot of the folks that work there wore them. Now if you are racing, I'm sure that things change - weight being a major concern. But for me, just building my base and putting in the miles, these are working great for me. This was my first attempt at clipless, so double sided pedals are very helpful. (I just have to keep reminding myself to unclip - one greatly skinned-up knee and a few bruises later)

I felt a bit of a hot spot on my Sunday ride for the first time - was not that great -- but it was kinda fleeting - right at the end of a 21 miler. Hoping that it was just a fluke, but if not, I will try adjusting my cleat to alleviate the discomfort.

[snapdragen]

What everyone else said! Check your cleats, if you can get a pro bike fit done. When I had mine done, he was glad to see I had already replaced the insoles in my shoes - Superfeet from REI. I guess the "stock" insoles are poop.

[JanT]

Hot foot. I can identify with that! I've been trying different things, but even with insoles, I still have problems after about 25 miles, especially if I've been climbing or working harder gears. The only thing that eases the pain for me is to unclip the foot that hurts the most, and pedal from behind the cleat. That helps very quickly, and after a few minutes, I clip back in and unclip the other for a few minutes. Then when I'm clipped in again on both sides, I concentrate on smooth spinning and emphasize the pulling back motion. The unclipping a side at a time also repositions me on the bike and helps keep other areas of my body happy.

[nicolezoie]

At first I thought the pain in my feet had to do with an old injury, but it ended up being the muscles in my feet simply getting stronger. After a couple months of adjusting, the soreness went away.