Originally Posted by
Seattle Forrest
The reason you get SPD shoes ( and pedals, of course ) instead of SPD-SL or Look or whatever, is because you want to walk in them.
I got Shimano MTB shoes (the expensive $130 ones) and I can attest that once you remove the toe spikes (I didn't have the correct tool, so I did so destructively) they handle pretty well.
Originally Posted by
Seattle Forrest
You won't wear the cleats down, because they're recessed, unless you're walking on very uneven, rocky surfaces. Otherwise, they don't make contact with the ground. Also, the cleats are $20, and last a few years, so even if you do wear them down, it isn't the end of the world.
Grind the hell out of 'em on the sidewalk, though. Always uneven... mine still work.
Originally Posted by
Seattle Forrest
On some surfaces, like freshly cleaned smooth tile, the shoes can be a little slippery, probably because the contact area with the ground is small - those ridges along the edge that surround the cleat. I saw a cyclist slip and fall once in a restaurant in bike shoes.
Yoga, or some other stuff. I have such a sharpened sense of balance that I can walk on ice. Sometimes I don't look like I'm connected to the ground--because I'm not! On sheet ice, if my balance shifts because my foot slips out from under me, my core corrects without my notice. As a result, I'll float sideways while I walk: my movement is not correlated entirely with my steps. You have no idea how many times I've slipped in the bath tub, blind by soap, and snapped my body into a Johnny Bravo pose or something even more ridiculous to maintain balance; sometimes it just takes all of it.
The balance games on Wii Fit Plus, by the way, really do help. Not because they're good exercises, but more because they force you to balance. Snowball Fight is crude, but you're quicker if your balance is easier to snap around; the table tilt balance game though... the one where you're rolling balls around into holes by leaning your body to tilt the table, that one will teach you subtle core manipulation. You have to shift your weight underneath you to shift the pressure on the balance board; but your core and upper body have to shift opposite to keep you from falling on your ass. To actually pass all levels and navigate some of the more difficult, subtle twists, you have to do this with great precision; you can't just wobble and stay up, you have to move fluidly. If you can do that, you can wander freely on slick, slippery surfaces.
If you fall, you're doing it wrong. Learn2Balance