Hot Foot
 

Hello,
I have been cycling for about 6 months. Daily rides range from 20 miles to 30 miles and 50 to 70 on weekend. My worst affliction is the dreaded "Hot Foot" with sore butt close behind. I am using SPD pedals with Pearl Izumi Vagabond shoes and wearing regular department store variety athletic socks which are rather thick. I am awaiting recently ordered cycling socks and cycling shorts from Hammer hoping this may help. I have loosened shoes up as much as possible to no avail. Bottom of both feet still feel squeezed and buring. I had been experiencing Hot Foot with Egg Beater pedals that I was using before. I switched to SPD's thinking it would help but, it has not.

I am just about to order one of the S! saddles from Neuvation while they are on sale. Could butt pain some how be causing foot pain?

My buddy and I are trying to get ready for upcoming Hotter 'N Hell Hundred so I need to get my problem areas resolved pretty soon.

Any suggestions please?

Steve

How big is the platform on your pedals?

Not sure about the actual size but, they are Shimano SPD platforms. I borrowed these from my buddy. They do cover larger area than the Egg Beaters which is why I thought they might help.

I forgot to ask about any of the gel insoles. Would these help?

Thanks,
Steve

I am having a similar problem. My feet have been going numb since I started riding. I took the advice of a few posters and switched to cycling socks (which helped a bit) and made sure that I was truly, pedaling in circles.

These changes helped a bit, but not completely.

Today, I plan to check the position of the pedal on my foot. I am afraid that it is sitting right on the ball of the foot and thus, a nerve.

If you want, I'll let you know what works for me. You might want to check out the post called "Numb Feet". There's some good advice in there.

Thank you Desert Tortoise. Yes. please let me know how your situation develops. You have already given me some ideas and I will check the thread that you suggested.

I am swithcing to SPD-SL pedals & cleats which should be here any day now. I loosened my shoes and rode without socks the other day and it seemed to help significantly. I am also working much more on pedaling technique (smooth, complete circle), keeping cadence closer to 90. Apperntly, I had been keeping too more pressure on my feet than necessary. My cycling shorts and socks arrived from Hammer and am looking forward to trying them out. Still waiting on S1 saddle from Neuvation Cycling.

I switched from SPD to SPD-SL and have had more foot problems since then so that is not always the solution. I have had some luck with very small adjustments in the cleat position (trial and error process).

Hey, first of all four things that you should never skimp on: 1) Bibs/shorts, 2) shoes, 3) saddle, 4) Fit of the bike.

The touch points between you and the bike are a big deal. Having a hot foot is not fun. Your foot and your chosen shoe are probably not a good match. The Shimano SPD pedal has a pretty wide platform, but that really should not matter with a good shoe. I have ridden Sidi's (genius 5) for many many years and have had great luck with them. There are other good shoes too, the key is to get a pair with a stiff lower sole and some sort of durable (cork) midsole buffer. The stiff lower sole and cleat should go a long way in dissipating the touch points to the pedals and the cork should make the shoe comfortable over the long miles.

hope this helped

zac

I've finally gotten a handle on my foot numbness after three pairs of shoes, several types of insoles, two bike fittings, and countless adjustments of the cleats. What finally has done the trick was moving the feet closer to the crankarms. I don't think spd pedals can do this but my spd-sl Ultegras can move side to side a decent amount. This latest adjustment has given me the best results. I will still get a bit of numbness but it's mild and scrunching the toes and pedalling "light" or slightly pulling up on the pedal all the way around the pedal stroke takes cares of that.

I also make sure the top ratchet strap on my shoes is tight enough to keep my foot from sliding and mashing the toes in the toe box. I have the Sidis 5.5's in the wide foot version(mega).

The black insoles from Superfeet also seem to have helped.

I finally beat my hot foot problems. You might want to try the following: larger shoes with more toe room; arch support (specialized has a foot measuring system with different inserts depending on your arch type) and/or moving the cleat contact point off the ball of your foot.