Having just picked up a new pair of shoes I thought it would be interesting to try a new cleat position and jump on the trainer. I don’t have huge feet, but at 10.5-11 they are not small. My bike fit put my cleat all the way forward or in other words the screws are more towards my heel.
So I said let’s try all the way to the other end of the spectrum…WOW! I have so much more power it’s crazy and I’m able to get over the top of my stroke much more powerfully. For lack of a better term there are ‘no gaps’ on my pedal stroke where I’m losing contact with the crank. Don’t know if I described that well enough, but oh well.
I’m going to take it easy for a week or so to allow my joints time to adapt to such a big change, but this has been quite a revelation for me. Has anyone else ever pedaled with cleats in this position? I guess a more accurate way to describe would be that the ball of my foot is actually a bit forward of the spindle now
I’ve gone the same route, used to ride close to the front but got a pro fit which pushed the cleat as far back as possible and it’s great. No more Calf issues for me!
I ride my cleats all the way to the rear also. I have more power sprinting with the cleat forward but I am not a sprinter so I prefer the rear position in most cases. I am in a 44 sidi
I used to get insane knee pain when doing interval work at times and I always wondered if it was due to cleat position b/c I never felt I was getting the most out of my foot action/ankle. With this position I feel as though I’m engaging my quad immediately and that nagging Achilles tweak I have had for years didn’t bother me last time either. Hmmmmm…looks like I’m the last one to the party to figure this out!
Just in the 45 minutes last night I was shocked at how much better it feels. The sound coming from my Fluid2, which isn’t much granted, is just one long smooth tone indicating to me that I’m pedaling smoother. Definitely more powerful
Did anyone notice they felt they might want to lower the saddle a bit? I actually lowered almost a cm to get it feeling right. I’m sure I will make more little tweaks…feels great!
Having just picked up a new pair of shoes I thought it would be interesting to try a new cleat position and jump on the trainer. I don’t have huge feet, but at 10.5-11 they are not small. My bike fit put my cleat all the way forward or in other words the screws are more towards my heel.
So I said let’s try all the way to the other end of the spectrum…WOW! I have so much more power it’s crazy and I’m able to get over the top of my stroke much more powerfully. For lack of a better term there are ‘no gaps’ on my pedal stroke where I’m losing contact with the crank. Don’t know if I described that well enough, but oh well.
I’m going to take it easy for a week or so to allow my joints time to adapt to such a big change, but this has been quite a revelation for me. Has anyone else ever pedaled with cleats in this position? I guess a more accurate way to describe would be that the ball of my foot is actually a bit forward of the spindle now
My guess is that who ever did your bike fit, when they analyzed your stroke and riding style felt that you were not a little low on power but could spin well. By putting the cleats back, you get more power, but have a more difficult time spinning. If you are a rider who needs to or like to spin more, move the cleat slightly forward of neutral. Hope this helps?
I’m a mix of both I guess. I’m 6’1", but ride 170’s to facilitate an opened up hip angle. I typically ride at around 90-95, but had no issues keeping up the same cadence last night. To some that is fast, but to me it’s just normal. All I know is my power has gone up as has a new level of smoothness(is that a word??sorry)to my stroke. I guess it might be in contrast to what a fitter would say my new cleat position is for, but it feels better than anything I have every pedaled. Wow if I could dump this nagging Achilles injury I would be thrilled.
I started all the way forward and in toward the bike. Pro bike fit pushed cleat position back a bit and all the way out to the side. Fitter said, “I know I know, knees all the way in = fast, but try this.” Better on my hips for sure.
Cool. Quick question. Did you also lower your seat when you used the new shoes with the way back cleat position? If not, could some of the new found feelings of power be coming from effectively raising your seat? David K
Wow, 170’s that’s pretty short for someone 6’1" and on a TT/Tri bike. Unless you have short legs I would have put you on a 175. Your fitter may have moved your foot that far forward to make up for the short crankarms. 90-95 is normal RPM, spinners like 100+ mashers like the 80’s. You are in a good rpm range.
Lowered my seat by nearly 1cm. I had an instant LOSS of power when I jumped on with old saddle height I had used with the ball of my foot over the spindle. Dropped the saddle an sweeeeeeeeeeeeetnessssssssss.
No, the fitter had my pedaling with my cleat all the way forward using a ton of calf muscle. I took it upon myself to move the cleat back. I ride 175’s on my road bike, but not on a TT. My hip angle is too closed with 175’s and the 170’s gave me so much more comfort and I’m actually faster and stronger with 170’s in either cleat position…old or new.
I look at a guy like Jordan Rapp who is 2-3 inches taller than me using 172.5’s with the same leggy build…makes no sense to even consider 175’s for me. Everyone is different, but Mr. Rapp knows a thing or two about his craft.
Are you saying you think people should use longer and longer cranks on TT bikes? I’m just learning here, but everything I read on here says that by and large the TT position is better served with shorter crank arms than most ride…or have I misunderstood the threads?
I know everything was better when I dropped down to 170’s and now with the new cleat set up I’m REALLY excited.
For most TT riding you’ll move up one crank size for more power and leverage, since you are pushing larger gears. However, with a Tri fit your crank arm length should be about the same to longer depending on your riding style. Unless you like to spin say about 110 plus going shorter isn’t necessary unless you have flexibility/biomechanical issues or a large gut that gets in the way of your knees.
That said you can read 10 different articles written by different expert bike fitters and have 3-5 different opinions on this. I wrote a lengthy post (I think on this site) about this and crank length a few years ago. Do a search and you may find it.
that does not make any sense at all from a physics stand point.
it also doesn’t correspond with the ‘real world’, where many fitters using power meters find people make more power in the TT position when using shorter than standard crank arms.
this might be something you want to read up on some more.
For most TT riding you’ll move up one crank size for more power and leverage, since you are pushing larger gears. .
For most TT riding you’ll move up one crank size for more power and leverage, since you are pushing larger gears. However, with a Tri fit your crank arm length should be about the same to longer depending on your riding style. Unless you like to spin say about 110 plus going shorter isn’t necessary unless you have flexibility/biomechanical issues or a large gut that gets in the way of your knees.
That said you can read 10 different articles written by different expert bike fitters and have 3-5 different opinions on this. I wrote a lengthy post (I think on this site) about this and crank length a few years ago. Do a search and you may find it.
Well, I guess I’m the weird one that doesn’t fit that particular school of thought. Until I moved down to 170’s I was unable to stay in the aero position very long, had a loss of power and a choppy pedal stroke. Going shorter opened up my hip angle, increased my power, waaaaaay increased my comfort and I’m faster. Oh well, to each their own.
I do find it odd some of the fastest TT’ers I know, some bigger than me…ride really short cranks…
That’s great man! Doesn’t matter what any spec says you should be if it doesn’t work. As long as it works for YOU…that is what counts!
I agree and that is why there are many opinions on this topic.
Friel did this a few years ago, and still rides this way with the cleat to the rear of the slots.
If you go along with the theory that the majority of runners pick the pace/stride length that is best for them, and apply it to pedaling a bike, the majority of people you see pedaling a bike down the street sans clipins have the pedal spindle almost right in the middle of the foot, or at the very least behind the ball of the foot.
I moved mine back a few years ago to alleviate some achilles issues… I felt like having the cleats a little more forward facilitates a smoother, faster spin (perhaps the additional ankle flex helps ‘absorb’ minor irregularities further up in the stroke?), whereas with it further towards the rear I feel a bit more like I’m ‘mashing’; however, the trade-off is I feel I can maintain whatever power output for longer, with less joint pain, so I’ve kept it all the way back ever since.
I’d need to re-read these, but from what I remember a “cleat forward” is a better position if you are a toe pointer or want more immediate sprinting power, but for the longer IM types a cleat position aft is better for slightly less power but longer-term comfort (less calf strain?).