so, i rode my commute this morning clipped in, for the first time ever. i’ve always ridden on flat pedals, SPDs were just something i never considered to be what i needed/wanted to use but having been undecided about pedals on my SS roadrat for the 5 months or so i’ve been commuting daily on it, and also thinking i need all the help i can get for Hit the North, i took the plunge and bought some shimano M530 pedals from on one and a pair of mavic switchback shoes.
and… it felt pretty ace, to be fair! much easier to get power down, and clipping in/out is a doddle with the combo i went for.
the only thing is that i’m used to riding in either vans, etnies or a pair of salomon approach shoes and the move to a stiff soled shoe has left my feet aching quite a bit. does this go away? do the soles soften and flex a bit after a while, or should i maybe look at putting cushioned insoles in them for a bit, until i get used to wearing them?

Generally you toughen up first. It’s not selling out btw it’s just normal. You will also soon forget the desire to wave your feet round and just keep them on the pedals.

trick is to wriggle your toes a bit in the shoes.

I tend to get sore feet on road rides because you tend to sit and pedal for a lot longer at a time than you do on the mtb where you’re out the saddle, stopping at gates etc.

The soles won’t soften up, you want them to be as solid as possible, if your feet were flexing around the SPD that would cause you much more pain.

Never noticed pain in my feet from using SPDs, become second nature after a while.

Any specific ‘ache’? Using mtb shoes on my road bike gave me hotspots where the cleat was, never had it with the same shoes/pedals on the mtb. Change to road pedals and shoes stopped it.

? were they done up too tight or is the fit iffy, I’ve never had spd pain (*excluding some iffy falls)

I have troubles with sore feet with some cycling shoes – You may need to find ones that just fit your feet better – wider, narrower, etc.

I rode a mile on SPD’s with flat soled five tens once. Thought they were fairly stiff soled. They aren’t. Was in agony after that mile…. The stiffer the better (fnar fnar)

Also worth checking that the cleats are positioning your foot correctly..

Bugger.

I was hoping for a cheap pair of pedals…. 😆

oh, if you haven’t already done it, take the cleat bolts out, apply copaslip/equivalent and replace

Try moving your cleats back a touch (millimetres make a big difference here), this should be more supportive. Stiff shoes are good, if you stay on SPDs you’ll be looking for this in your future shoes and probably pay extra for it! Stiffer soles let your foot relax a bit as well as providing a more efficient pedal stroke. I’m back on flats but my carbon Shimano shoes (ebay bargain) were in another league to my nylon Spesh/Shimano MTB shoes.

Read up a bit on cleat placement, incorrect location can lead to injury. As you probably know a good starting point is central, so the axle is under the ball of the foot. Cushioned insoles relieve pressure to the sole and shock through the foot, aching arches are a more structural muscular thing.

My second ever pair were S-Works Carbon (when they were MUCH cheaper) still look at them every now and again…

cheers guys, it’s obviously still (very) early days and the aching was on the outer edge of my feet, but maybe just a teething thing as they’re fine now, i think it was only because the super stiff shoe is so new to me. i already put some copper grease on the bolts when i fitted the cleats last night, and i’m pretty happy with the positioning but i’ll experiment with moving them about a bit to see if it makes a difference.
no cheap pedals just yet Nick, i’m afraid!

+1 for checking the cleat position.

The ball of your foot needs to be more-or less central over the pedal spindle, give or take. You should have a bit of lateral float but make sure that the cleat positioning isn’t twisting your ankles unnaturally.

I’ll be doing the same thing when I start commuting on the bike.

I used to love SPD’s when my riding was more XC oriented, but then I got more into mucking about on jumps and DH runs so became a diehard flat user. I much prefer them off road, but figured I’d better off with SPD’s on road. And my Allez would look silly with a pair of Nano Techs on it.

I tend to find that the outside of my feet hurt a little if I have not ridden long distances for a while. After a few rides it seems to go away for me.

I certainly would not saying it is selling out to get some decent pedals and shoes. I can’t ride bike without, being able to pull as well as push on the pedals is a great advantage.

the “selling out” bit was a joke; it’s just that i’ve always said i didn’t want to ride clipped in but i figure it probably makes more sense even though my commute is only 4 miles each way.
i’ll be sticking with nano tech flats (or maybe dmr vaults) for my big playing in the hills and that bike though.

i think i got it sorted; i was clearly doing the shoes up much too tightly!
didn’t pull so hard on the laces today and my feet felt totally fine. what an idiot.

Fit’s really important on SPD shoes- you’re in one position so something that might have been fine with a little foot shifting ends up being constantly annoying. Worth a little time to get it right.

PS, beware of road rage- I went back to clipless briefly last year and it was all fine, apart from one occasion where I became so furious with a driver that nearly SMIDSY’d me that I forgot I was clipped in- OI YOU **** YOU NEARLY HAD ME OFF ****ING LOOK WHERE YOU’RE GO… UH OH… Clang. Enormously embarassing.

i did topple over in the middle of manchester during rush hour tonight, but no road rage was involved; just me being careless, a bloke on a motorbike asking if i was okay and both of us laughing at my stupidity…

You will soon be ‘trying’ them off road and then you’ll be clipped in all the time. I only really use flats when its gopping wet now. Or I want to try something stupid. Actually I’ve done a fair few stupid things clipped now so maybe i’m fully converted. I was a total no way never man until I had to commute.