Happy Feet
Louis Garneau Course Airlite XZ
There is as much foot morphology as there are fingerprints. My feet are very capricious: semi-flat feet and, as a bonus, I have two toes stuck together on both feet (this does not change anything to shoe comfort though). Feet are one of the most important contact points on the bike. This is where all the power goes, hence shoe comfort is an often overlooked and important part of the performance as well as the best investment to make your rides more enjoyable!
Over several cycling seasons and thousands of kilometers, I have experimented with various cycling shoe technologies. Here are some key tips to look for in your next purchase or to improve your current fit.
The shoe
Stiffness
The stiffness of the shoe defines how efficiently the power is transferred from your foot to the pedals. Generally (high-end) full-carbon soles are stiffer than other composites such as fiberglass (mid-level) and nylon (low-level). Depending on your needs and how experienced you are with cycling shoes a nylon sole might be a good fit for you, especially if you are looking for more flexibility or “comfort” in the shoe rather than power transfer performance.
For the cycling enthusiast, maximum power transfer is probably the most important feature. You want the shoe to help you transform your foot as a rigid lever on the pedal. There are various shoe stiffness index to help you with that going from 1 to 10. Shimano and Specialized even makes stiffness index going above 10. If you are confident with your foot comfort with your cleats and insoles, go with the highest stiffness index possible. If you want some tolerance in the shoe because your fit is not quite dialed in, go with a slightly lower stiffness index.
Weight
Weight weenie or not, we all want to save a few grams here and there to climb the hills faster. Why not save a little in the cycling shoes? Most high-end road shoes I own fall between 243 and 287 grams for one shoe (size 46) with a cleat installed, but without an insole. A light shoe feels fast, each pedal stroke is like a breeze in the clouds, while a heavier shoe can feel as if you are dragging an anvil. Choose wisely.
Garneau advertises 225g per shoe (size 42) for their lightest shoe the Course Air Lite, adding the Garmin/Look cleat (38g) and a 1.5 degree shim totals at 287g (size 46)
Other features
I really like laces for road and gravel (MTB) cycling shoes as the pressure is well spread around the feet and I generally get a more snug fit in the shoe. However, you do need some practice to find your perfect fit and you cannot adjust the laces mid-race as you would do with a Boa system. Despite these disadvantages, I still prefer the laces system for the extra comfort they provide. Comfort = speed.
Most road shoes have one or two-zone Boa system. The two zones give the possibility to tighten the front of the shoe separately from the top, near the ankle as shown on the Garneau Course Air Lite. Boa systems are easy, fast and precise to adjust by counting the number of clicks. Allowing for a quick mid-race comfort or maximum performance (tight) adjustment. The Boa wire can go through eyelets at various locations on the shoe, some designs are very well thought out to distribute the pressure points and optimize a snug fit.
Select a shoe that has more space for your toes. Don’t forget that your feet expand with heat and pressure on the pedals. Ideally, you want to be able to fit thicker merino wool socks for colder rides. Also, more volume means you can fit thicker insoles, adding more arch support. Garneau has the x-comfort zone which allows the foot to expand on the side for more comfort. Allowing to fit tighter shoes while maintaining comfort. However, if your toes hit the front of the shoe and you have to size up, you cannot really feel the effect of the x-comfort zone as the shoe has already more space.
For those with stinky feet, I guess it is also better to choose a more breathable shoe with vents to allow more airflow and reduce moisture build-up in the shoe.
Insoles
features
Most shoe manufacturers provide insoles with adjustable arch support (Garneau, Giro, etc.). However, these arch support are most of the time very soft and therefore do not provide much support. Which can be uncomfortable, especially with high stiffness index shoes. Plus, you may lose some precious watts through the insole as your foot moves in the shoe without transferring this movement straight to the pedals.
Orthopedic insoles with foot molds
Custom (orthopedic, etc) can be very expensive (200 - 500$ CAD) and provide no real advantage compared to non-custom insoles in my experience. My orthopedic insoles were not comfortable and did not provide sufficient arch support, while the specialized body geometry (BG) fit insoles do provide substantially more support as they are more rigid in specific areas and they have a metatarsal button that pushes against the middle of your metatarsal bones alleviating pressure on the ball of your foot for more comfort. You can choose 3 different arch support: low, medium and high arch support. Moreover, the orthopedic insoles are quite thick generally, I had mine specifically designed for cycling shoes and it was still quite thick.
positioning
The angle of the sole in the shoe affects pressure on your metatarsal bones. For example, if you tilt the insole higher on the side of the arch support you’ll end up with more pressure on the arch and less on the small toes. The insole position needs to be experimented with to find the sweet spot for comfort. It is always recommended to push the insole more towards the heel to position the arch correctly since you generally measure the cleat position relative to the heel and everything else is consequent.
Fitting cleats
Fitting your cleats properly will most definitely reduce knee pain and other lower body problems. You must take into account that every time you change your saddle height or your crank length you will likely be required to change the cleat angle on the shoe. Make sure to mark down the best cleat fit with a white marker on the outer sole to put a new cleat back in place once they wear out. A bike fitter such as Posivelo will help you to fit the most optimal position on the saddle and fit the cleats accordingly (and so much more). Generally for endurance riding, fitting the cleat further back of the shoe will offer the most comfort.
If you want to fine-tune your position you can do the pedal and wiggle technique shown in the video on the right. In this video I pedal a little with some power to “reset” the feet. I then stop and twist my ankle to the left. Then I repeat and twist to the right. If the play is about the same on both sides you are good. If not, adjust the cleat to give more play on the side you are the most restricted by the pedal spring. Repeat for second foot.
If you just bought new shoes and you still have your cleats well positioned on your old ones. You can copy a bike-fitted cleat position to a new shoe using 2 methods as described below
You can markdown the center of the heel position on a paper and align the cleat on the edge of a table to markdown on both sides of the cleat. So then you have the front-back offset relative to the heel and the angle of the cleat. Then simply repeat the process backwards for your new shoe.
Use floral foam to mold the current cleat position relative to the heel. Do not wet the floral foam it is not necessary and makes things more complicated. The steps to mold the current cleat position is presented below.
Floral foam method
Step 1 : push your old shoe into the floral foam. Make sure to put enough pressure to see the cleat and heel pad.
Step 2 : Fit new cleat (with wedge) on new shoe, do not screw fully to leave some room for adjustment in next step
Step 3 : Fit the cleat in the previously molded floral foam and position the heel to fit in the previous holes. Then put the allen key through the holes where the cleat is to reach the screws and tight them.
Shims
Cleat wedges (placed between the cleat and the shoe) or shims (placed in the shoe under the insole) can be used to correct your leg so that the knees do not fall towards the frame when pedaling. This is quite useful to prevent knee injury from repetitive torsion in the knee area. It can also help alleviate the pain at the metatarsal region by providing slightly more support closer to the big toes, relieving pressure closer to the smaller toes. Hence, spreading the pressure more evenly across the foot. Usually, for road shoes bike fitters put cleat wedges to provide the proper angle to the foot. For MTB style cleats, bike fitters usually go with the shim in the shoe as MTB cleat wedges are harder to find.
I found out through several kilometers and trial and error that I actually need a 1.5 degree cleat wedge. However, there is no commercially available shim between 1 and 2 degrees. Hence, I found out a 3D CAD of a cleat wedge for Look style cleats and I have asked my friend to adapt it to my needs to get a 1.5 degree wedge. You are welcome to use the file provided to customize yours ;)
Garneau Baryum shoe with Blue BG fit insole showing metatarsal button and arch support, in orange the varus shim of 1.5mm that is fitted inside the shoe under the insole
3D printed cleat wedge on left and right (black) compared to a commercially available cleat wedge in the middle (yellow). The 3D printed wedges have 1.5mm which is ideal for my feet and it is exactly what Specialized integrated in their shoes.
Cleat wedges for road bike shoes are fitted between the cleat and the shoe
Other Tools…
Your power meter is also your best friend. I know that some power meter pedals such as the Garmin and the Favero have cycling dynamics. The Garmin cycling dynamics can help you to know what is wrong with your cleat position by indicating the platform center offset (PCO). This helps you know where most power is applied on your pedal (like the example on the left where a slight offset of +4 and +2 is visible) and can therefore help you place your cleat to recenter the power output (0 offset, as shown on the right).
Garmin Cycling dynamics showing offset of the foot on the pedals
Garmin Cycling dynamics showing zero offset (good position) of the foot on the pedals
Conclusion
A bike fitter and a good pair of shoes are your best starting points. My friend Geoff Farnsworth at Posivelo is one of the best bike fitters in the province and will educate you on how to get you back on your feet. I would suggest starting with a good (medium-high) shoe stiffness and proper arch support as well. These are the pillars for straight leg movement that may prevent from injury and lead you to foot nirvana. Don’t wait and unleash your full POWA potential!
Disclaimer: I’d like to thank Garneau for providing me cycling shoes this season. There is no conflict of interest in this article as it is my sole opinion and experience with cycling shoes.
