fuixx

Hi all,

I went through a long stretch of time where I was riding SPD M520 pedals and clips and had pes anserine bursitis (medial knee tendons strained) and tried to adjust these cleats a dozen times by 6 different LBS. Eventually, I switched over to Speedplay Frogs and gradually the pain went away and have been pain free since.

I'm posting here because all of the spin bikes at my local Y naturally have SPD style clips. They recently got new bikes in house (Keiser M3), and, understandably, they won't allow me to switch out the pedals for classes anymore.

As a result, I decided to try the SPD cleats again, and the pain is coming back again.

Is there anyone out there who knows a way to get more float or at least less "centering" out of the SPD cleat so it doesn't continuously torque my knee or have any ideas on how to possibly adjust the cleat to reduce the strain on the medial knee? I'd like to continue with the spinning classes during the winter because I simply don't wish to ride outside in the winter and enjoy the classes and the people there.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Regards,
Steve

ShootingCoach

I also do spin classes to keep the legs and butt ready for next spring. I rode over 6K last season, and can't wait for Spring.

Having the cleats adjusted right will go a long way to solve your problem, but a road shoe with a stiff sole may help too.

The trainer, and folks in the class are great to be around. Also, I can redline pedal cadence to the blow up point and not have to crawl back to the car.

Getting out of the saddle for an extended period of time (one of the trainers is a butt kicker) will likely help me start out fast this spring. I have also gone in with the goal of increasing cadence to a significant degree.

Since I am old, thin, and diabetic, riding in very cold weather is agony which quickly goes into unsafe territory.

The spin class is what one makes of it.

gazzer

Hi Steve,
Did you ever get this solved. Having exact same problem at Y spin class with SPD pedals and SPD cleats and have the same bursitis. It has to be something with the angle of cleat and not the float. Seems like the float on the Y bikes is too much and even though I know how to do this adjustment but can never seem to affect the float on those pedals no matter which way I turn the screw--I don't ride SPDs outside but use the 3-hole cleat. I figure that they get so much use too that it is probably just worn. Anyway you problem and situation is exactly to mine so any info would be greatly appreciated.

Gazzer

fietsbob

saw a batch of shoes made for spinning , ridge built up around the edge ,
so a Look cleat had support around the edge of the shoe sole..
and a Heel.. to keep from falling on slick floors.

I'd say if the rig at the club uses 9/16 pedals, bringing a pedal wrench
and your own pedals , is an obvious thing to do.

tagaproject6

Do you really need to use cycling shoes and cleats for spin classes

itsmoot

With the pedal's binding tension set low, Shimano's SH56 "multi-release" cleats have a bit more float than the standard SH51's. At least they seem that way to me. They also don't self-center as forcefully.

I forget where I saw 'em but there are gizmos that convert SPD pedals to platforms, you could temporarily attach those to their trainer.

HappyStuffing

Though I would appreciate having cleats doing spin classes, I normally just use the cages. I find they work well enough for the 1 hour spin classes I do.

demoncyclist

[ It has to be something with the angle of cleat and not the float. Seems like the float on the Y bikes is too much and even though I know how to do this adjustment but can never seem to affect the float on those pedals no matter which way I turn the screw[/QUOTE]

SPD pedals do NOT have a float adjustment, merely release tension. Part of the issue may also be the wider Q-factor of the cranksets on the Spinning bikes. If you are using a different pedal system on your regular bike, you may want to spend some time adjusting the cleats on your shoes to correct for this, or simply use sneakers and the cage side of the pedal- you will have a little give there by default. The gym is well within its rights to not allow you to swap the pedals- the chance of you cross threading their cranks and putting a bike out of commission is certainly not fair to the other members. Every club I have ever coached at or done bike maintenance for has the same policy for the same reason.

itsmoot

True, the float is supposedly not adjustable. But the M520 pedals I have do give a little more float with SH56 cleats when the binding (release) tension is set low. Or at least both pairs of pedals and cleats I have do this. I'm using these on road bikes and have the tension set as low as it goes, so YMMV.

fuixx

As the OP, I can say that I was able to reduce the pes anserine bursitis by doing the following with the same MP520 cleats:
1. Changing the angle of the cleat on my shoe to very subtly "point" to the little toe on my foot
2. Sliding the cleat back a few mm from where it was positioned at my LBS.
3. Using orange varus BG shims (https://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/...jsp?spid=57642), to shim up my feel from inside the shoe. I was found to have a pretty significant "flat foot", so these helped prop up my foot and keep it from rolling over.
4. Stretching the hamstrings, hips, and glutes about about 5-10 minutes after each class (about a minute per leg per stretch).

That really has gotten me to the point where spinning doesn't hurt, and I am now certified to teach spinning classes, have been pain free for months, and am still using those, formerly, pesky SPD's for spinning.

I also second the post by demoncyclist as changing the pedals out often isn't an option, and even if they did allow you to swap them out (as they did at my gym before they got new keiser bikes), I was just getting tired of swapping them out all of the time.

Steve