Cleat placement

[SwissVan]

There is a chap by the name of Gotz Heine in Germany who makes them custom to your feet, he even does it via post. He sends you a procedure on how to map your foot and you send it back to him.

 

Unfortunately his website is not very user friendly

 

http://www.biomac.biz/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=1

[The_Break]

I would love to see how you will get a cleat underneath the ball of the big toe.

 

For an ultimate Hubber you never put much thought into that one did you?

[The_Break]

I moved mine back as far as possible and then elongated the cleat slots in the shoes a further 12 - 15mm to allow the cleats to be moved even further back.

 

Motivation was due to pressure on my metatarsals resulting in nerve related toe pain.

 

Funny enough I found this position to be quite comfortable and it also seems to place less physical stress on my calves, which helps if you also run i.e. triathlon.

 

I would guess the nerve pain is mostly in your small toes?

Once you get your ball of big toe directly over the pedal axle you are in a push neutral position. i.e. when you stand up your weight is directed directly downward into the pedal axle (laymans terms). Think of it like this. When you climb steps (similar to cycling action) you push off the ground from the balls of your foot. You dont push off your acrch or the tips of your toes. The power is in the balls of the foot as that is the solid base of your foot. Toes can move and your arch is not in contact with the ground. So your force comes from the balls. In cycling it is similar, the force comes from the balls. If your balls are in front off or behind the axle your foot will tend to want to rotate around the pedal axle in the direction your balls are offset from centre.

 

Toes wise if your foot rotates so that your toes want to dip down they will have pressure on them and the nerves will be irritated.

 

Also, if your feet are not facing forward but are rotating off line or rolling to the outside you will also have nerve pain.

 

To do away with all this you need a flat, non rotating foot with balls directly over axle.

[SwissVan]

I would guess the nerve pain is mostly in your small toes?

Once you get your ball of big toe directly over the pedal axle you are in a push neutral position. i.e. when you stand up your weight is directed directly downward into the pedal axle (laymans terms). Think of it like this. When you climb steps (similar to cycling action) you push off the ground from the balls of your foot. You dont push off your acrch or the tips of your toes. The power is in the balls of the foot as that is the solid base of your foot. Toes can move and your arch is not in contact with the ground. So your force comes from the balls. In cycling it is similar, the force comes from the balls. If your balls are in front off or behind the axle your foot will tend to want to rotate around the pedal axle in the direction your balls are offset from centre.

 

Toes wise if your foot rotates so that your toes want to dip down they will have pressure on them and the nerves will be irritated.

 

Also, if your feet are not facing forward but are rotating off line or rolling to the outside you will also have nerve pain.

 

To do away with all this you need a flat, non rotating foot with balls directly over axle.

 

 

No the pain is in my 2nd and 3rd toes (big toe being #1).

While I would agree with your analogy of the toe down / up movement related to cleat position and off line movement possibly contributing to toe pain in some cases.

 

However in my case the only relief I ever got after 20+ years of cycling was from moving my cleats as far back (plus 12 mm more) as possible. After doing this I noticed immediate relief in that I could cycle for much longer without pain and I also noticed that my calves seemed to be more relaxed (not getting tight or sore) after strenuous efforts.

 

You mentioned “To do away with all this you need a flat, non rotating foot with balls directly over axle”

Don’t you think that moving the cleats towards the centre of the foot is the best way to achieve this, instead towards the front of the foot?

Think of the foot operating as a lever with the cleats in the “standard” position, a lever which seems to be in most cases not necessary.

 

While trying to solve my issues a few years ago I came across this article from Steve Hogg, I only wish I had found it many years ago.

 

http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/04/power-to-the-pedal-cleat-position/

[Gareth1982]

just a question, when I cycle a long distance my toes go numb or get pins and needles in them is this because my cleats are to far forward?

I try to get them under the ball of my foot but I am not sure if this is the right placing.