The thickness of your cycling shoe should be an important consideration when you select your next pair for riding your bike.
Many clients during a retul bike fit have limited flexibility and this creates restriction when their knee approaches their chest at the top of the pedal stroke. This restriction results in a loss of power while the leg at the bottom of the stroke is effectively dragging the restricted leg through the top of the pedal stroke. It may also cause many secondary effects such as:
1. Knees tracking outwards to create space
2. Hips rocking from side to side to create space for the knee
3. Hips rocking backwards to create space for the knee
There are a few options that you can use to improve this restriction at the top of the pedal stroke
1. Shorten the crank
2. Reduce the thickness of the shoes
Replacing cycling shoes is often an easier (and cheaper) adjustment to make than shortening a crank and we recommend Bont Cycling Shoes as they are only 3.6mm thick. Most cycling shoes are around 10-14mm thick so a Bont cycling shoe allows you to gain the benefit of a shorter crank at the top of the pedal stroke but not affect the relationships between your knee and foot at other parts of the pedal stroke.
Before you consider changing cycling shoes, we would always recommend having a professional bike fit to help you select the best set up and brands available for you.
