What are your thoughts on these?

Do they give you more of a workout in that you pull up as well as push down?

There are a number of types of cycling shoes, it seems that your question seems to require more info.
Are you asking about road shoes or MBT shoes? Are you asking about shoes for commuting (one would guess), mountian biking or general riding?
Are you also asking about cleats and clipless pedals or just the shoes?
I can get more of a workout or less of a workout if I wear road shoes with cleats and clipless pedals, the choice is up to me. Going clipless does allow me the choice of using more muscles in my legs, but it also allows me to pedal more efficiantly if I want to, thereby using less power. Its up to me.

If you're thinking about going clipless on a commuter, I suggest the sneaker looking mountain bike shoes and pedals. They make more practical sense in that you can actually walk around when off the bike. No, they don't look as zoomy as road shoes and pedals, but I wish I had had the foresight to do this when I went clipless.

If this is your first time going clipless, I'd suggest EggBeaters (my personal choice) or SPD.
You can get into and out of EggBeaters very easily and they're 4 sided.
SPDs are two sided (usually) and are also easy to clip into and out of.
Ease of clipping in and out in traffic is a major concern to many commuters.

I second the idea of sneaker-like mountain bike shoes. They look better for commuting and you can walk on them like regular shoes.

Totally agree. I have LOOK pedals with carbon soled shoes on my road bike for a combined cost of probably near $400, but $60 MTB shoes with $25 SPD-style pedals on my commuter.

I've been slowly moving away from clipless pedals. I rode with them for the past two years. Then last summer I switched my commuter bike to toe clips because I was running more errands and social trips, so street shoes were more convienent. Since the holidays, I actually put platform pedals on my commuter. They were great for all the short trips I was making, though I haven't decided about keeping them permenently on the commuter. I understand all the advantages of attaching my feet to the pedals, but I've also found renewed enjoyment in the simple pleasure of unattached feet.

Thank you

*your replies are too advanced for me though

I commute then change into work shoes upon arrival.

I currently use normal running shoes and my pedals have one side normal and the flip side is a clip.

I can buy shoes which look normal and I can walk around with but that also have a clip for about $120 AUS.

Would they give me more of a workout? What are the advantages/disadvatages please?

sorry - new person here

I guess its more of a workout, but to me thats an odd way to look at it. its more like for every pound of effort you put into turning the pedals in a circle, being clipped in allows you to go faster for that same effort.

You can apply pressure thru more of the circle than just the downward stroke.

You also gain a lot of confidence in times like uphill, exhausted, in the rain. Normally your at risk of a foot slipping off, when clipped in you eliminate the risk, so you go harder knowing your not gonna slip.

The counterpoint is occasionally you may come to a stop, and fall over because you forgot yo unlip. Usually only once or twice though

normal looking mtb shoes are awful. they dont dry as quick as racing shoes, and the laces are dangerous. I would invest in a pair of reasonable mtb shoes with 1 buckle and 2 velcroes. Its a time tested design thats easy on and easy off. If you go with Sidi, make sure they are Lorica leather. This kind of leather dries really quick. I can come to work with wet shoes and they dry by the time i leave.

great point!

I use Shimano sandals. Can wear them year round. Can expand to hold 4 pair of socks or none. Really comfortable. Dry in 10 minutes. Can walk in them fine

I have two pairs of cycling shoes. One MTB (mine have laces and one strap) and one road. I mostly use the MTB ones since most of my riding is commuting. My commute is about 18 miles to work, and I feel like my cycling shoes keep me less fatigued than normal soled shoes would. I can still walk normally in them. I also have "campus pedals" on my commuter. They have SPD clips on one side and platforms on the other, so I can make short trips on my bike in any kind of shoes. I feel this combination is perfect for me, but it is a personal preference thing.

Dangerous?

If you're changing shoes already, you might as well use clipless.


This is a pretty good price. I spent roughly $80 US on my Time ATAC XE pedals. These are MTB pedals. My shoes were about $60 US and they are Specialized somethings.


Not necessarily, but if you work on technique you'll go much faster. And faster is always better.

Most bicycle equipment works towards the goal of REDUCING your effort not increasing your effort. If you want more of a workout, move further away from your job or go faster. Or you could take the aproach that some bike commuters take and bring everything you can think of (I'm waiting to hear from some rider who trailers his welder with him to work) with you and increase your weight and drag to make your workout harder. Or you could try not changing to an easier gear on hills, that will really give you a workout.
Clipping into clipless pedals spreads the effort through more muscles in your legs rather than (without clipless pedals) one set of muscles. This allows you to ride longer because you aren't using and quickly wearing down just one set of muscles. It also helps to tone all your leg muscles rather than just your thighs.
As far as road vs MBT shoes goes, my rule of thumb is if I don't plan on walking at all, I use road shoes.

Like Gear said, pedals and shoes won't increase your workout. In fact, the opposite is true, they will make your pedaling more efficient.

But if increasing the amount of work you're doing is what your looking for, you could always increase your mileage.

I think you should go with the SPD shoes. Not only does clipping-in make you safer from slipping off the pedals, you will build somewhat more balanced muscles in your legs, thus protecting you from injuries.

It sounds like you have similar pedals to mine, which have a lot of float (lateral play) so if you set the cleats in the shoes so you don't feel like your legs are getting twisted by the pedals, you should be able to avoid knee pain there.

At first, though, set the spring tension on your pedals fairly loose, so you can get in/out of them easily. Actually, I've never tightened mine back up, even after 6 years.

It really does only take once or twice falling over to learn how to unclip.

I only fell over once . It's no big deal, because you're always stopped when you do it. I've got the same kind of pedals, platform one side, SPD the other. I strongly recommend getting some clipless shoes and trying it out. I was amazed how much I like them.

Today I rode a short distance (half a block) in regular shoes. I kept pulling my feet off the pedals and stuff because I'm so used to the clipless now.

If you're changing shoes at work anyway, I highly recommend MTB-style shoes with SPD pedals. (Never tried any other pedals, though.) They make your cycling much much more efficient, and you can learn to use them in a few minutes. And you can walk in them for short errands. Yeah, I had one embarassing fall at a stop once (unclipped, saw light on cross street turn yellow, slowed and started to reclip, lost balance falling on the side that was clipped in), but that's okay.

Oh, as far as the workout goes, it's a lot easier if you're trying to go the same speed. But they do allow you to work harder since you don't have to worry about your foot falling off and since you can push forward, pull back, and pull up instead of just stomping down.

mountain clipless shoes are more walkable than you think. with spd they dont clipclop too much and they usually have a curved sole so you can walk ok. he first time i fell was in the winter in chicago 2nd time using it at an intersection where a road crew was working. it felt like time was slowing down, i was yanking on the pedal but it wouldnt release and i very very slowly toppled over. the workers were very nice and helped me up, but im sure they had a nice laugh.