Hey guys! I was just wondering if there is a correct way to position cleats or if it depends on the person. I am having some pain in my right knee and I am pretty sure it is due to cleat positioning. Anyone have any tips?

BTW I am using Shimano SPD SL type cleats with Shimano 105 pedals.

I started getting the pain after my cleat went out of position once and after that I was never able to fix it.

It depends on the person. If you are getting knee pain, you might want to look into valgus wedges.

when i've had knee pain after a cleat replacement it was due to longitudinal alignent. As in: I tend to talk with splayed feet but if they aren't straight for cycling I'll get knee pain.

Then again sometimes wedges are the only solution for some folks.

Except that this pain only started happening recently, I rode over 4500 miles without pain.

i was in the same boat recently. I was having such bad knee pain that i could not ride and this is after many thousands of miles. Had my local shop check it and sure enough they put 2 shims in one shoe and 1 shim on the other..knee pain gone

I rode my first few thousand miles without knee issues either. As I got stronger and started putting more power to the pedals, climbing more, putting in more miles I began to have knee problems where none existed before. Everyone's feet, ankles, knees, and hips are connected differently and most in a less than a perfect manner. Getting the load balanced across your knees both anterior/posterior and lateral/medial is key to making the joints last as long as possible. I'd highly recommend seeing a good fitter as you are already experiencing pain. I was surprised at how dissimilar my leg lengths were and the amount of varus tilt in my feet under load that was discovered during my assessment. My results have been good so far and honestly I would have had to quit if not for getting my knee load and tracking "fixed"

Here is an article you may fine worthwhile: Cleat Positioning

my 2 cents - cleat position was a huge deal for me, clipless gave me knee pain when I first switched. Tried shoe shims and even angled cleats - no help. In the end through trial and error I learned that I need my cleats all the way at the front of the shoe, I guess I pedal more with my toes than my feet. Whatever the reason I've been pain free for a year. In my case I went back to toe clips for up to a month until the pain went away, then tried a new position. Took a while because everything I read said not to put the cleats forward

What about side-to-side positioning? I had my cleats so shoes were as close as possible to the cranks. This seemed to cause some "pulling" on he outside lower part of my knee. I'm now moving my feet away from the center of the bike and finding that it help.

I moved my cleats to the back position a couple of last season. Big (positive) difference in endurance, but my calves are smaller now.

You should ride the bike for a while without the cleats fitted. The back edge of the pedal will leave an impression in the leather/wooden sole of your shoe. That will show you where to position the cleat when you screw it on.

What century are you from?

Speedplay. Problem solved.

Wanna let me borrow a couple hundred dollars?

I went out and just randomly started setting my cleats, after each adjustment I rode about a mile, and I think I found a comfortable setting. I will go and get the cleats adjusted by my LBS, but I did not have time today.

Hopefully I will survive the century tomorrow....


Do you guys know about how much a shop charges for a cleat fitting? Will I have to get a complete fitting?

[sarcasm]Yes, Speedplay cleats magically align themselves onto the shoe to give the correct bio-mechanical positioning.[/sarcasm]

I think the OP had good cleat position, then one of the cleats moved, and he is trying to rediscover the position.
OP, I would start with putting the cleat center line (assuming that they are marked) underneath the ball of foot and aligning it in the center side to side and putting them straight.
Get the bike on the trainer and get pedaling about 5 minutes. If the cleat position is wrong you will be able to tell and also be able to tell which way the cleat needs to go.
The hardest for me is the side to side adjustment of the cleat (Q factor) and I normally go for a long ride and take my tools with me and adjust as necessary.
This is all assuming that your original setup was fine.

Good luck. And next time, mark the bottom of your shoes with a silver sharpie once you find a position that works for you.