Originally Posted by
unterhausen
I have had swollen ankles after a couple of grand randonnees (1200 km in 4 days). It's pretty common for your heart to slow down during a ride like that, and one of the resulting symptoms is that there is water buildup in your lower legs. It goes away pretty fast. Hasn't happened to me recently, not sure what the difference is.
My feet swell up pretty regularly on brevets, especially on warm days. It caused really bad hot spots that moving my cleats backward didn't fix until a randonneuse friend suggested that my feet might be swelling, making my shoes effectively too small. Loosening up my shoelaces helped, sizing up my shoes, then eventually switching to sandals, fixed it.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is the real culprit behind a lot of other people's hot spots, too.