I recently started cycling on road and had the age old pedal dilema.
First off started as cheap as possible and went for a standard pedal with toe strap - felt dangerous couldnt get used to them. first time too tight and my foot got stuck. second time too loose and felt i was loosing too much power.
Had enough of these pretty quickly. I decided i wanted to be able to walk in my shoes so i bought some shimano m520 pedals. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shimano/m520-spd-pedals-ec005948
I matched these with some cheap shoes http://www.sportsdirect.com/muddyfox-tour-tbs100-mens-cycling-shoes-144018 these were nice and comfy but after about 120 miles they have split on the sole where the cleat attatches. I did feel good in these shoes but unfortunately they let me down. Whilst riding in them they seemed like they were helping performance. its only now after moving on i realise they lacked power.
I then decided to do it properly and bought some louis garneau shoes from evans http://www.evanscycles.com/products/louis-garneau/monte-mtb-shoe-ec034778 my first comment would be wow power! the acceleration difference felt huge. comfortable shoe and i love the ratchet.
I had heard hard soles increased power but the difference felt huge. I have a 15.8 mile circuit that i regulaly do and i smashed my pb by just over 2 mins its quite hilly little ride and my previous best was 13.9 mph but it jumped to 14.2 mph.
Im not claiming the shoes are magic and i may have just pushed harder than before but my reconmendation to beginners not looking to spend a fortune, if you are buying MTB pedals, go for a football boot style shoe rather than a walking shoe, you will not regret it.
First off started as cheap as possible and went for a standard pedal with toe strap - felt dangerous couldnt get used to them. first time too tight and my foot got stuck. second time too loose and felt i was loosing too much power.
Had enough of these pretty quickly. I decided i wanted to be able to walk in my shoes so i bought some shimano m520 pedals. http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shimano/m520-spd-pedals-ec005948
I matched these with some cheap shoes http://www.sportsdirect.com/muddyfox-tour-tbs100-mens-cycling-shoes-144018 these were nice and comfy but after about 120 miles they have split on the sole where the cleat attatches. I did feel good in these shoes but unfortunately they let me down. Whilst riding in them they seemed like they were helping performance. its only now after moving on i realise they lacked power.
I then decided to do it properly and bought some louis garneau shoes from evans http://www.evanscycles.com/products/louis-garneau/monte-mtb-shoe-ec034778 my first comment would be wow power! the acceleration difference felt huge. comfortable shoe and i love the ratchet.
I had heard hard soles increased power but the difference felt huge. I have a 15.8 mile circuit that i regulaly do and i smashed my pb by just over 2 mins its quite hilly little ride and my previous best was 13.9 mph but it jumped to 14.2 mph.
Im not claiming the shoes are magic and i may have just pushed harder than before but my reconmendation to beginners not looking to spend a fortune, if you are buying MTB pedals, go for a football boot style shoe rather than a walking shoe, you will not regret it.