Foot pain in Enduros

[cam-o]

I'm a fairly recent convert to the world of enduros so it's only in the last 6 months or so my rides have been longer than a couple of hours. I have noticed after about 2.5 - 3hrs my feet go numb, and then get painful. During the recent CORC 3hr it got so bad I had to stop and jump around in my socks for a few minutes before I could get back on the bike. The pain is primarily in the ball of the foot.
I have pretty short/wide feet and use Cannondale shoes (3 velcro closure model).
I am doing the Capital Punishment and am not overly keen on going 'ow ow ow" for 7-8 hours in the foot department.

Before the Cannondale's I used Nike and Carnac shoes and never had this problem, however I was also doing a lot less long rides so can't be sure it's the shoes.

Has anybody experienced this and have recommendations to fix? I read about inner soles in a recent Enduro mag but they seemed more aimed at correcting bad hip alignment than foot issues per se. I'm happy to consider all options including new shoes, so recommendations for good "duck feet" shoes and the best shoe range/fitters in Canberra are welcome.

Thanks

 

[perrone]

hey mate, I'm a Podiatrist and I would really recommend booking in to see one of us to get it sorted. The foot is so complicated that an appropriate diagnosis or treatment plan cant be made without seeing the foot dynamically. If you're in Canberra Id recommend The Foot Clinic in Corinna Street, Woden. My mate used to work their and they're a really good sports focused practice.

 

[HaroMary]

I've experienced the same with newish shoes. The pain you're experiencing is most likely due to your feet swelling during the ride as they heat up, putting pressure on the nerves in your foot around the area of your cleats.
As a first step make sure the velcro strap nearest your toes is not done up tightly and wear thinner socks than you might normally (this might not be possible if you already do), this will give your foot a little more space in the area where pain develops. You can do up the top strap as tight as you need and similarly with the middle strap. As you wear the shoe in you might find that the pain goes away completely, if not they might be just to narrow for your feet. If you are still experiencing pain you can also try insoles that disperse the pressure point but I would assume these are costly.
Good luck!

 

[gixer7]

Sounds to me like Plantar Fasciitis - something to which I have been rudely introduced this year. Is keeping me out of racing for some time.

The problem is the tendon that attaches to the heel is getting strained although the pain for me was in the ball of the foot as you describe. First time I suffered this about 2 hours into a 4hr solo I just ignored it and kept riding. After finishing I could not walk on my feet for 1/2 hour. Pain got more intense in the weeks after but always subsided fairly quickly after I stopped riding.

My feet pronate heavily but I never wore my orthotics while riding. I went and saw a podiatrist who confirmed the diganosis, gave me some new orthotics and banned me from not using them while doing practically anything that involved being in an upright position.

Ice will help reduce the inflammation - fill a plastic water bottle with water and freeze it and rolling it under the foot will help. I also do some one legged balancing exercises to strengthen my ankles.

There is plenty of good info on the web so do a search.

Upshot for me was that I had small tears in the tendons which was only getting worse by racing. Sticking my feet in a bucket of ice for 20 minutes prior to the race did help somewhat but was temporary only.

Good luck and hopefully your problem is not the above.

 

[DaGonz]

...or it could be just something as simple as the soles being too flexible. Pain in the ball, ie over the pedal...

if you didn't get it in your old Carnacs but do get it now, what's different? sole shape? sole stiffness? are your cleats in the same spot? are you using the same type of pedals? Can you switch back to the Carnacs?

Even if you do go see a Pod, might be an idea to have those sorts of answers already, or take both sets of shoes.

In my humble experience, I've found a flexible shoe and small platform will cause me foot pain and fatigue after many hours but be fine for anything sub 4hours or so. Apart from them failing, I'm about to throw a pair of expensive shoes out 'cause the flex in them just causes serious foot fatigue when standing on pedals. Bit of a trade off, because stiff soled shoes are crap to walk in if you need to (as seems to be common with australian marathons)

If in doubt, go see a pod or try a different shoe seems like wise advice to me... seeing a pod may save you hundreds in the future though since you'll know what sort of shoe to look for moving forward

*shrug*

Cheers
Spoonie

 

[easo78]

i have heard that placing the cleat too far forward can also be a cause of this sort of problem...

 

[spudatm]

Had the same problem when i first started doing some really long ride in preps for Marathons. i just don't do the straps up so tight to allow room for my feet to swell. I basically have them loose to the point os slipping when i walk at the start of the race and I also make sure i wear thin socks. I also make sure that i don't crank the ratchet too tight. It seems to have fixed my problems

 

[cam-o]

i have heard that placing the cleat too far forward can also be a cause of this sort of problem...

Hmm, that's interesting. i had noticed a couple of times that my heels drop a little more than i'd like when landing dropoffs etc. Had considered shifting the cleats further back.

Also checked the Cannondale's Vs the Nikes, there is definitely more flex in the sole of the 'Dales.

...if you didn't get it in your old Carnacs but do get it now, what's different? sole shape? sole stiffness? are your cleats in the same spot? are you using the same type of pedals? Can you switch back to the Carnacs?

The Carnacs were much stiffer, but alas are long dead, I tore the cleat mounts out in a big stack at Thredbo. It's entirely possible the problem existed back when I had the Carnacs, my idea of an XC ride back then was from the carpark to the shuttle bus.

 

[Boreit]

Had the same problem when i first started doing some really long ride in preps for Marathons. i just don't do the straps up so tight to allow room for my feet to swell. I basically have them loose to the point os slipping when i walk at the start of the race and I also make sure i wear thin socks. I also make sure that i don't crank the ratchet too tight. It seems to have fixed my problems

this has been my experience also, however i also find numbness can be more pronounced in my more expensive stiff soled shoes.... in saying that i can get away with the straps being someone "looser" in the more expensive shoes as they do fit the foot tighter..

So i would suggest try running your straps a little looser is worth a try.

 

[thecat]

...or it could be just something as simple as the soles being too flexible. Pain in the ball, ie over the pedal...

yeah I use to get this with cheaper shoes but only on a 2hr+ ride in the heat.

Better shoe with stiffer sole properly fitted fixed the issue.
Also worth looking into cleat position.

If symptoms persist see your . pod...podi... um, foot dr

 

[LordNikon]

I have recently swapped from cheap shoes ($1 - $200) to expensive stiff soled shoes ($500).

I will never go back.

It took me a good 5 hrs of riding and tweaking to get the cleat position right, but once I did that my feet haven't hurt once.

Thoroughly recommend good quality shoes with carbon soles.

However, if your current shoes are reasonably stiff and your previous shoes didn't do this, I would either play around with cleat position yourself, or have a professional bike fit focussing on cleat position.

Going to see a Podiatrist would probably be a good plan too. The infinite wisdom of random forum dwellers may not be the best option for this type of question in the end.

 

[spikenet]

Its all mostly been said, I'll add my own experience and solutions.

I've always had a bitch of a time with footwear, I like going barefoot so shoes generally are always less then ideal.

For my MTB, I got some specialized carbon sole shoes. I quickly found on hot days I get excruciating pain mid-foot. Obviously due to swelling. Simple solution was thin coolmax socks and keeping the straps/ratchet not to tight wehn I put them on. I mount my cleat as far rearwards as possible also. I still get some pain, but I can manage it much better now!
A tennis ball is kept handy for massaging my feet, this makes a huge difference and is more practical then ice etc!

good luck

 

[cog_nition]

Try insoles with forefoot support

Bought new shimano mtb shoes and at last years Angry Doc could barely walk afterwards. put old Body geometry insoles from old specialized shoes and haven't had a problem.

So try insoles with more support as a starter.
Mark

 

[Misplaced]

Similiar issues for me, but no fix yet.

I've tried various shoes including the Shimano custom fits ones. I still get hot/numb feet after 3-4 hours riding and takes 20-30mins of curling the toes to go away. main pain is around the toes area.

Is this the same as everyone else or different?

 

[wacko_jacko]

Go and see a Podiatrist

Rather than all this self diagnosis I would say go and see a good sports podiatrist who knows about cycling shoes; they are invaluable to anyone who rides a lot. I used to get occasional numb toes and soreness under the arch. The podiatrist I saw told me what sort of shoes to get for my foot shape and gave me orthotics to support my arch and correct my feet angle (ankles, knees and hips now all align better).

The guy I see (Jason Nichols) is a bit of an exception as he acutally does bike fits too - many pro roadies go and see him and his walls are covered with signed jerseys. The best way to fit people on the bike is starting with the feet in the shoes, then cleat position, then saddle relative to feet and finally bar reach/height. I cannot recommend Jason highly enough for Melb people.

AJ

 

[jean5614]

I have had foot pain for years at enduro events, but also walking for a long time. I have these neuromas in both feet, like a ball of nerve endings between the bones of the toes. When I have been riding for about four hours they get pretty painful. I had one removed but it's still a problem. I take Indisit and a number of codeine tabs over the course of a 24hr event and it eases it. of course your problem could be quite different. I have orthotics designed to open up that area of my foot but works only for so long. as others have said best to see a podiatrist.

 

[cam-o]

Thanks all - lots of good advice here.
I went to my LBS this morning (Onya Bike Civic) and had a chat to the guys there. I was pretty impressed with the guys there. They recommended adjusting the cleat first before looking at new shoes and I'm leaning towards that being a good start.

So - my plan in order:
1) cleat adjustment
2) podiatrist
3) depending on his/her recommendation - new shoes, insoles or bionic titanium feet

 

[easo78]

So - my plan in order:
1) cleat adjustment
2) podiatrist
3) depending on his/her recommendation - new shoes, insoles or bionic titanium feet

Go the titanium feet, much more impressive than some new insoles!!!

 

[el nico]

had the same problem. But used to get foot pain at 1-2 hrs. now am doing longer 3-5hr rides but
changed from old shimanos to specialised BG comps...no pain!!
The spec foot sole seems to be pretty good at stopping metatarsalgia (nerves and blood vessels getting squished in between metatarsals.)
You could try one of the BG inner soles (I think they have them at Lonsdale st) ??

 

[cam-o]

Given how many people have been helping me out in this thread, I figure I'll keep y'all posted as to progress.

I rode Majura on the weekend and moved the cleats in the Cannondale's 2 or 3 times. The result was that no matter where I put the cleat I could feel it pushing up against the sole. I guess the soles just aren't stiff enough. I bit the bullet yesterday and went the new shoe option. I know step 2 was meant to be the podiatrist but I figure a crappy shoe's a crappy shoe so I may as well go the replace option straight away. This was partly driven by the fact that I want the shoes broken in by the weekend but buying them as early as possible was important. I didn't want to get into a podiatrist on say Friday and have them say "dude - get some new shoes" too late.

So, tried Sidi, Louis Garneau, Northwave, Shimano, 661 and Specialized.
Decided on the Specialized BG Comp from Lonsdale St.

I've done an hour on the trainer last night, and thus far they are feeling pretty good. I was a tiny bit numb at first, particularly on the inside of the ball where the Varus Wedge is but I figure that's pretty normal for a brand spanking new shoe. It didn't get any worse over the hour and I felt pretty good at the end. Fingers crossed - these things are looking like they might be the goods