With temperatures falling a bit, it's time to break out the tights and undershirts. Booties and layered fleece will follow soon after...but I still haven't found a good way to keep my toes warm.

Perhaps warm toes are too wishful, but I need to stave off frostbite at the very least. I've definitely gotten frostbite on my toes before and I think I have poor circulation in my feet. A brisk autumn day is enough to make my toes numb and waxen.

All weather booties keep my feet from freezing solid, but 5 months a year my feet are never comfortable. During all of this time I've had the same (cheap) shoes. My theory is that layered socks and tight shoes restrict blood flow...then again all shoes are tight.

Any thoughts?

your shoes shouldnt be "tight", I use ratchet shoes that I can still ratchet down tight in summer with my regular socks for a big climb or whatever, but in Fall where I am riding in anywhere from 15c down to nearly freezing 0c (32f ) my rain booties and thicker wool socks do the trick.
I have had slight frostbite on myhands, and they are more sensitive now to cold (getting older too maybe a factor) but all in all, wool socks and a wind blocking bootie works for me.

Your bike shoes should not be so tight that you cant put thicker wool socks in them, as well as being fine for summer socks but tighter velcro, laces or ratchet. Without knowing if your shoes are perhaps a half a size too small for you, the only ohter thing is to go with wool and a wind break with booties.

I knew a guy cross-country skiing who had frostbitten his feet and they were always problematic afterwards, and he had to use ski boot covers with insulation for him not to have freezing feet.

Ummm. Toe warmers?

Already have windproof booties over the shoes (see above). My issue is less trivial.

those are cute

wool should do the job along with a good wind proof bootie

Wool socks are the best. I like having them just to wear around the house because they're super comfy in general.

Your shoes should have some breathing room, the only place it should be "tight" at all is the heel. Shoes are have velcro or ratchets or laces so adjust to fit.

For seriously cold weather, everything above plus this

just another thought, as everyones feet are diff, perhaps your shoes are tight in a certain area that does lead to less blood circulation. I know when i got my spesh mtn bike shoes 2 summers ago to replace my old shimano ones, I tried lots of diff brands and there was quite a diff in comfort, ie how they fit my feet. I ended up getting a pair that were perhaps 175$, and while there were many others at less, and more, these ones fit my feet really well.

this could be a factor. No use going into what shoes you have, as everyone is diff. You could for fun visit some stores and try on stuff just to see, comparing with yours that you could bring with you. I think this is your only option as you seem to have windproof booties, (and wool socks seem to be too tight in your shoes if I understand properly)

my guess is thats its the circulation due to tightness, either by size cause or specific fit issues.
also, at what temps do youstart to be cold?

oh, a very important thing for me is to have high socks, that go up higher and this makes a real diff in my foot comfort cold wise, I figure keeping the lower leg warm helps things along.

First, we do have a winter cycling forum for these sorts of discussions.

Second, I have a section on my website called, "What Works For Me" and I have written an article there called, "Cold Feet". It's all about keeping your feet warm when riding in everything from cool to very cold conditions:
https://www.machka.net/whatworks/coldfeet.htm

Get some looser shoes and start layering your socks.

And what kind of socks are you wearing anyway?

Cold toes means your core body temperature has gone down and you are shunting blood away from your extremeties. You don't need better footwear, you need better core body insulation and wind protection (including your head).

If you keep your body and head warm, you won't have to worry about your toes.

I doubt it.
While there may be some physiological basis to this, In practice, it's over-simplifified and optimistic at best.
I have been on rides where I my core/head were over-dressed and still had cold feet. (not to mention skiing, duck hunting, and just walking thru Chicago winters)

Whatever its due to– extremity, wind+spinning, circulation, shoe-fit....the reality is, feet need special attention to stay warm when cycling in the cold.

I just use wool socks from about 30-50 degrees. Under 30 I bust out the shoe covers.

Ignore this.

You can have cold toes and a good core body temperature. And it does seem to vary from person to person. Some seem to be incredibly lucky and only suffer cold extremities when their body temperature drops (maybe jrobe has that good fortune).


I've done various things but the things that help the most:
1. Good warm shoes (they make shoes for winter cycling).
2. Good warm socks (wool, as thick as can go in your shoe without making it tight.)
3. Never make your shoes too tight anywhere.
4. Chemical warmers (the iron based ones)
5. Keep your ankles warm
6. Keep your legs warm
7. Know your limits and don't go on super long rides. 2 hours might be all you get.
8. Shoe covers are great if it's above freezing.

Original Poster--there have been some very good, recurring suggestions here, these and some experimentation on your part will come up with much more comfortable cycling for you.

That said, we still dont know where you are, what temps you are having problems, what sort of shoes you are wearing, is it just your feet etc etc--its up to you to keep the dialogue going here, on our part we have put info out there for you.

This was me last night. First night time ride of new season. Low of 57 degrees out at 8:30pm. I'll have to get used to the routine again and experiment to find what works best at what temps. I'm 5' 7" 137lbs and get cold toes pretty easily on night rides once I get into the mountains.

Last night the outfit was:
Sugoi RS Bib knickers
Defeet Wool socks, medium thickness (not the wooly booley)
Northwave shoes with ghetto duck tape on the toes
Craft zero t-shirt base layer
Short sleeve jersey
Neon Yellow PI vest
Descente Arm Warmers
Assos early Winter gloves
Craft windstop beanie

I wish I could get away with just wool socks for the temps in the Bay Area but it usually ends up being a combo of that plus the toe warmers and some sort of shoe cover. My core was plenty warm last night but the toes started to get cold once I got higher up on my regular climbs.

#1 if your shoes aren't a perfect fit or are too tight, the pressure spots will impair circulation and cause cold toes.
#2 if your shoes have air vents/intakes on the bottom, plug them with blue-tack or cover them with black duct-tape (and don't forget the holes around the cleat bolts). Also consider booties that provide wrap-around coverage on the bottom if they don't already.
#3 if your shoes are heavily mesh-vented on the uppers, don't wear them in the winter. Get a pair of winter shoes.
#4 make sure your limbs and core stay warm. This is massively overlooked. When your core gets cold, the body begins decreasing blood flow to the extremities in a bid to preserve the organs and brain. Likewise, arms and legs have many veins/arteries close to the surface so heat is lost readily here. Insulate other areas and your feet and hands will stay warmer.

Of course you still need something warm on your feet, but if your core is cold, you will NEVER have warm feet.

My feet are never cold with this regimen(down to about 20 degrees) I don't ride when it is colder than that.

Windproof Booties
Smart Wool socks
Slightly roomy shoes
toe or full foot chemical warmers

But this is the key!
You MUST be sure the rest of your body is warm. Your body will shunt blood away from your extremities if you start to get chilled. If you keep your core plenty warm your feet will stay warmer. I don't mean, just comfortable, but actually toasty warm.