Advice on feet ache

[Andywinds]

This may also be advice on shoes. I've recently been trying out SPD-SL and so have a new pair of shoes. What has become apparent is that the outsides of my feet, just where the cleat fixes has been aching, and this is only after a couple of miles. I didn't really get this with the SPD's. I have heard that road shoes can be narrower than MTB shoes. I've also been wearing two pairs of socks like I would if I was on the MTB. Could it be that the socks are the problem? I will go out again tomorrow and try just the one pair and see. It might be that the cleats need adjusting?

 

[Yellow Saddle]

This may also be advice on shoes. I've recently been trying out SPD-SL and so have a new pair of shoes. What has become apparent is that the outsides of my feet, just where the cleat fixes has been aching, and this is only after a couple of miles. I didn't really get this with the SPD's. I have heard that road shoes can be narrower than MTB shoes. I've also been wearing two pairs of socks like I would if I was on the MTB. Could it be that the socks are the problem? I will go out again tomorrow and try just the one pair and see. It might be that the cleats need adjusting?

Andy, there is no rule of thumb that says road shoes and MTB shoes are of different width. Shimano for instance, uses the same last width on both.
Your description of "outside" is not clear but if you mean that your feet burn because they are squeezed across the width of the toes, then the socks must come off. Try one ride with one very thin sock (per foot, obviously). There are nerves that run between the metatarsals and they are easily irritated by foot squeezing through narrow shoes. This presents as a burning sensation yet the temperature is not elevated. Cooling it doesn't help. Eventually it leads to a condition known as Morton's Neuroma and it is bloody sore.

 

[fossyant]

Double check the cleat position is right, especially fore/aft.

 

[accountantpete]

I personally found that the width of spd-sl shoes is very tight - so try a single pair of very thin socks.

I ended up going up from size 8 to size 10 to get the right width.

 

[Andywinds]

Thanks all. Dropping a pair of socks helped a great deal. I don't know why I was using two pairs, probably because I did while MTB'ing and I fear change.