I commute ~30 miles round trip and use pedals with toe clips. I like riding with the clips tight, to the point where I need to reach down and loosen the clip to get my foot out. That's obviously extremely unsafe, but I've found that I pedal faster and more comfortably with the clips tight.

Do people generally ride with the clips looser? Maybe my clips are just too deep? (Shallower clips would bind around a wider part of my foot.)

Many thanks!