I have mountain bike flat pedals for my commuter and I stop at the gym to lift weights on the way to work. I prefer minimalist shoes (merrell bare access) for the gym but the soles are a bit flimsy on the bike.

If you aren't clipless, what shoes are you wearing for your commute?

Usually my last pair of athletic shoes, where the soles are a bit worn out for walking around in all day but fine when placed on pinned flat pedals.

What I find is that a softer rubber sole will grip the pins better, but will be more flexible so my feet can get worn out. In the cold, I'll deal with the muscle aches in my feet to get the extra grip that a harder sole won't have when cold.

Conversely a harder sole will grip okay in the summer. And be less flexible so better on my feet.

Right now I'm still using a softer rubber sole shoe because it's what I've got.

Like you though I like a more minimalist shoe, at least in terms of how thick the materials are (thicker sole would be fine). The smaller the shoe the less it rubs on the crank arm or something.

My office shoes.

I wear 'regular' sneakers, which I guess technically are running shoes.

When you say 'are a bit flimsy', do you mean you have pain or discomfort, or just that you feel the shape of the pedal more than usual, and think maybe that's a bad thing?

I've been wearing shoes with SPDs that are designed to be walkable. My pedals have SPDs on one side, and flat on the other.

For a while I used Chrome Truks. Looks like a casual sneaker, has stiffened soles below the ball of the foot.

I'm about to buy such a setup. I'm glad to know that it works.
Would you wear those shoes in a casual office?

My wife doesn't use cleats. She uses flat pedals. She happens to prefer to ride in shoes that are made for SPD pedals because of how the soles are optimized. She just doesn't install cleats in them.

If I got to the gym before work, or for quick errands, I wear my gym shoes.
If I commute to work only I wear my Keen sandals.

MTB shoes w/o cleats

Same here. It's just a three-mile commute though.

Just under 4 for me. If I ride my road bike, I"ll just treat the Ultegra pedals like platforms. Works fine.

I sometimes do but I feel a bit self-conscious when I do. My colleagues already think I'm a bit of an oddball for being bike commuter so this just adds to that.
Really depends on your workplace and your status in your office.

Pedals with a bigger platform?

Stiffer 3/4 length thru arch support insoles can make any shoe You like

into something you can stand all day wearing , then ride home again ..





...

I wear skateboard sneakers, sneakers with a stiffer sole. If not stiff enough I pop Dr Scholls arch support inserts in them.

[MENTION=74516]golftdi[/MENTION], that's weird. Lots of people commute by bike in Philly. Here in NYC, most people don't bat an eye, which is progress.

I guess maybe I stand out from my colleagues in a few ways, and I may have been exaggerating a bit for fun.
Seiously, the rather large company where I work is making progress. We built a brand new office tower that opened up 10 years ago, with initially woefully inadaquate outdoor bike racks, no indoor bike storage, and no shower facilities for employees unless they joined the gym. This year we opened a second new office tower, which has indoor bike storage and shower facilties separate from the gym. In fact, it was the newly available indoor bike storage that made me feel comfortable getting a nice new bike last week.

I do regularly get asked "Are you still riding your bike to work?"

I guess not many folks at your company bike commute. I think the rate of bike commuting is higher in Philly than in NYC. In NYC, it's something like 1%, but we are very visible, and it seems like most lanes have bike lanes. Now they're putting bike boxes in the intersections.

NYC has a newish law that requires workplaces to provide indoor bike parking, but I hear there are a lot of loopholes. I don't know the real deal.

Five Ten's. Special rubber compound that grips pedals with pins like they're attached (except for pulling up).

Here's their latest more stylish model: https://www.adidasoutdoor.com/five-t...men-bike-shoes

My wife loves her five10s for mountain biking. Now that adidas bought the company, they have issued some adidas shoes with five10 'stealth' rubber as well.

Anything with a stiff sole. Some sort of hiking shoe works well, and won't raise eyebrows at the office. During the winter, hiking boots.