Does anyone have problems with......
 

you feet going numb?

just my left toes go numb why is this .......

is it because my shoes are to tight or is it because the bike is not fitted right?

My toes go numb on long rides when it is cold. Otherwise, they are usually fine.

Maybe your saddle is cutting off circulation.

My feet will go numb when I use small platform pedals, Speedplay, when I use my Look or the new Time pedals I don't have the problem. I also think it is just like the rest of your body, your feet have to get use to being lock into a pedal.

Could be all sorts of factors, like:
-- cold weather
-- shoes too tight
-- insert not right for your foot
-- soles too weak
-- pedal/platform too small... tho really strong soles will likely compensate
-- bike fit

I'll throw out bike fit as a non issue and take another guess... i'd put dollars to donuts that it's about form more than anything else.

do you have a smooth spin? try pedaling with one foot and you'll find out real quick how smooth your spin is.

do you stand out of the saddle at least once an hour?

do you have too much weight on your hands? this usually happens when you let your core muscles go slack.

do you have high cadence spinning in your bag of tricks? it's not necessary to always spin a high cadence, but it will take the pressure off the feet.

ill try pedaling with one foot

yes i do stand out of the saddle when i need to

i dont know if i have to much weight on my hands...

If the numbness is on the outside of your foot the answer to your prayers are lemond wedges try googling or searching the forum.

can i interject in a friendly way here?

that's a dubious diagnosis IMO. numbness is more likely to be caused by irritation/pressure of a nerve or lack of blood flow. wedges don't correct either of those problems. wedges might correct biomechanical alignment of hip, knee and ankle for a more efficient pedal stroke and possibly reducing the chance of injury to one of those joints.

having said that, i do use wedges ...but not to address numbness.

i earlier made the comment about form to reduce pressure on the bottom of the foot. i'll also throw in my support for orthodics. if you find that you have pretty decent form, then maybe address an orthodic to correct the numbness. but the good money is still on your form.

i had numbness problems when i passed 150 miles for dbl centuries. i found out that pure fatique was the culprit. i was too tired to keep a smooth stroke and was being too quad specific and not enough hamstring. that put a lot of pressure on the foot ...there you have it... numbness. i was too tired to stand too so i had a numb butt too ...very weird when peeing.

Your foot may be swelling up after you have been riding awhile. Try adjusting your shoes that may just be the trick. Your left foot may be slightly larger than the right and thats why it's being affected more by the swelling.

Could be:
Shoes
Technique
Neuroma/Neuritis/Inflammation
Tarsal tunnel syndrome or a host of other nerve related problems

You might want to see a foot doc.. Keep track of when it begins to go numb - maybe check your toes to see if all of them are going numb or just a few. There are patterns.

WHen i had numbness wearing my old shoes and i told the guy that was making my orthotics, he said trhat the shoes were too small. Uween, do you have a wide foot? if so this could be a factor.

i dont know if you can say i have a wide foot i do wear a size 14.....

well im going to be doing about 30 or 40 miles tomorrow so ill see when it starts and see if its all me toes or not..... i know its not the cold thats doing it......i guess it has to be my shoes to tight or my form.......

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-mark

Check your clips. If you're riding clipless, are the clips on your shoes aligned correctly. If you're applying the bulk of your force in your downstroke too far forwards from the ball of your foot, over time, it could lead to numbness.

Koffee

thanks for the links

Off course numbness can be created by many factors but the wedges have helped me and many others with lateral numbness from applying force almost solely on the outside of the foot, if you step manily on the outside of the foot wedges or specialized BG shoes is well worth a try
IMHO

lemond wedges - foot pain :)

A well-known problem called Morton's neuroma. I've posted on this several times.

Wedges may be one of only several solutions. It may have provided relief for one person; not necessarily the next. From my reading (and I may be corrected here) wedges are meant to solve other problems related to knees and ankles.

There is a sequence of options to works through with Morton's neuroma. Shoe width and length, moving the cleats *back* (shock horror for the roadies), thickness of socks, tightness of shoes laces/straps.

One of the solutions is to look at Specialized's metatarsal insole that it is used on (most?) of their shoes. They seem to be the only shoe manufacturer to address this issue at the get-go -- in shoe design.

FWIW, long-distance cyclists can suffer badly from Morton's neuroma. It is trapping of the nerves servicing the toes in particular. Cutting off the feeling, if you like. It is caused by the metatarsals (or the small bones) in the front of the foot collapsing on the nerves.

Go see a foot specialist if your problem persists. It is evident from the posts here that few know much about this.

And yes, I am a long-distance cyclist who initially suffered severe problems in this area, and has explored several solutions. But the main one was the metatarsal button and moving the cleat back.

sorry, i don't have a clue about any of this really but my feet used to go numb too and i bought some neophrene covers for my shoes and now my feet are fine. i could feel the numbness was due to cold though, perhaps yours relates to technique etc.