Bike Fit: How to Replace Cycling Cleats

Cycling cleats are an often overlooked part of bicycle and equipment maintenance. Learn how to check for signs of excess wear and the best way to replace cycling cleats without altering your cleat position or sacrificing a crucial point of contact in your bike fit.

Learn from Coach Brady Irwin best practices when you go to refresh your Shimano or Look cycling cleats.

Are you not comfortable or confident in your ability to install your own cycling cleats? Are unsure that the position of your cleats is correct?

Schedule a regional fitting with a Science of Speed bike fit specialist to perfect your cleat position.

Communication, The Pathway to Performance

Recently, in the facility where we host our morning cycling trainer classes, I noticed a new poster that was hung up. It was very simple, but made a valid point. The poster simply states, “Communication – the link between the world and you.” Communication is the foundation on which any relationship is formed, and, for a coach, it is the details that an athlete communicates to us that determines the success of a training.

Technology has advanced over the years to provide more accurate data such as sports computers, power meters and other measurement devices. A result, coaching has also become more finely tuned for each athlete. Though it is helpful, it is not the only tool needed for successful training. Even with the advent of sports technology and data, it can not be fully utilized without the addition of the athlete’s feedback.

Our coaches check in with athletes on a regular basis, some a little more often than others based on their coaching package level. When you chat with your coach, it’s important to touch on the following subjects to provide us with the details that your watch, heart rate monitor or tracking app can’t.

Health – Sickness has varying levels of severity. It can be as small as a cold, as severe as cancer, or anywhere in between. With these varying extremes comes different responses in what can and should be done with your training in the future. In some instances, light activity could be good for you.In others, it could be detrimental. Be sure to discuss training with both your doctor and your coach. With their advice, you can be mindful of your health. You only have one body. Goals and training are easily changed. Your health is worth making adjustments for!

Travel – It might seem like common sense to tell your coach about planned vacations, but sudden business trips or travel for other reasons also occur. Don’t hesitate to let us know. With some head notice and pre-planning (even if it is 12 hours head notice,) adjustments can be made to increase the efficacy of training. Be sure to note if you’ll have time to train and what equipment you might have available, if any, while you’re away.

Family Life – We are not just talking about the fact that you are married, have a family, or are going on a vacation. This refers to the more intricate inner workings of your family dynamics. For example, it might be important to discuss with your coach if your family supports your training, how you eat compared to them, if you are arguing with your spouse or if your teenage child “hates you.” Each of these impacts stress level, which can lead to less follow through on many of your sport specific activities. Give us a heads up that life is impacting your training, and we’ll do our best to update your plan and give you the encouragement you need.

Sleep Quality – Let’s be honest, there is a difference in your sleep if you are single, married, have young children, teenagers, are empty nesters or retired. Some of these stages are better and some are worse for sleep, but each has its implications on sleep and every person handles sleep differently. Sleep is key for your recovery process. Did your toddler keep you up all night? Were you lying awake thinking about that big project at work? Keep us posted on your rest and we can try to make the right recommendations and changes.

Actual feel after workouts or events – You nailed the workout based on power numbers, but, compared to last week’s workout, you felt terrible. Your legs were heavy. Your head hurt. Your knee ached. You wanted to quit more times than you could count. These are all details that are very important and impact your day’s workout, your week’s training and your mental and physical state for each consecutive workout. Talk to your coach about how tough the workout felt or didn’t feel, regardless of your numbers. We can help you get to the bottom of why the workout didn’t go as planned.

For a coached athlete, your communication between you and your coach needs to be open and honest. If you do not have a coach that you feel you can speak freely with, it is time to consider a transfer to a coach that you can trust. If you speak with your coach about details like these, but don’t see any changes to your training plan of action, it might also be time to seek new mentors in your sport.

First Time on a New Group Ride

Many people begin a hobby because of the social environment.  Golf, tennis, running and cycling are

great examples of this.  Riding is a social atmosphere that many people initially get into because of a friend, family member or colleague, but availability and ability levels can change and the need to search out others to ride with becomes a necessity.  If you have found yourself in this situation, here are three key steps in joining in on group rides.

Vet Your Ride

It sounds silly, but this is the most important part of selecting a group ride.  There are riders of so many ability levels that you could find yourself with a group that is too fast, too slow, or, even worse, on a ride distance that is above your current capability.  Trust us, nothing can make for a rougher day than being in shape for a 3 hour riding and finding out you chose a 6 hour loop with no shortcuts and with a fast group.  So, find out what the distance is, the average speed of the group, the course (in case you get separated), the tempo of the ride (steady effort vs. high intensity w/slow points), how many people usually ride (the fewer people the more work you will usually end up doing), and if the group stop or do you need to have everything on hand for the entirety.

15 minutes As a Fly on the Wall

Take the first 15 minutes of the ride to ride near the back and observe.  This will give you the opportunity to see what the group dynamic is, what pace the group sets, and the handling competency of the riders.

It may seem tedious or cautious, but a quick way to upset cyclists and a new potential group of friends is to go to the front of their relaxed Sunday morning ride and drill the pace.

Make a Friend(s)

Yes, you might be joining to make new friends, but this is a different kind of friend.  This is the one that will help you navigate the route.  It’s so simple, but a little heads up on a turn, a dog that normally chases the pack, the occasional heads up on a pothole or even the guys/gals we you definitely do not want to follow unless you like the taste of asphalt is nice to have.

Okay, so you have vetted the ride, been a fly on the wall and made at least one new friend — now, there is only one thing to do: Have some fun!

CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT ELSE AWAITS YOU IN GROUP RIDES AND WHAT YOU CAN LEARN TO MAKE THOSE FIRST RIDES MORE MANAGEABLE?  READ ON WITH OUR GROUP RIDING 101, 201 & 301 ARTICLES!

Power Meters

Investing in the Efficiency of Your Training

SRM Power meter 1980s

By now, you have probably heard of a cycling power meter.  With the dramatic decrease in average costs of power meters, they are becoming much more mainstream.  What might surprise you is that these devices have been used since the mid-1980’s.  Their first public appearance was at the 1988 Olympics in Calgary, Canada where the German National team used SRM’s first crank based system.  What then looked more like a medieval torture device (they might still be described as such) was attached to many of the track racers bikes.

Since their early introduction, a great deal has been learned about these devices and how we can better utilize the data that they provide to improve training efficiency.  Here are a handful of the ways you will find a power meter can improve your training if you chose to take the next step.

Accurate tracking of improvement – Unlike heart rate with its wide array of variables, power is much more consistent.  Where heart rate is your body’s response to the work that has been completed (delayed by up to 60 seconds), power is the actual amount of work that is being created.  This work-based response takes factors out of the equation to give more consistent verification of current improvement.

More precise training ranges – For those who have been using heart rate for years, your first workout with a power meter will immediately show you that your workouts just became harder!  Why is that you ask? As mentioned previously, heart rate is a response to the work that has been done.  With cardiac drift as a factor involved with sustained efforts, you will quickly notice that workload stays consistent but heart rate gradually increases.  Remember heart rate is a response to the work you have done — power is the actual work.

Caloric expenditure –  You might be ecstatic that you just went out for a ride and your Garmin paired with your heart rate monitor is telling you that you burned 1100 calories.  Now, it is time to go out and eat that 22oz steak, drink a bottle of wine or guzzle a bunch of amazing craft beer. It’s the perfect moment to eat that 1100 calorie dessert at your local go to restaurant, right?  NOT SO FAST!  Pair that same workout with a power meter and you might find that your Garmin has been calculating your calorie burn inaccurately —  150% inaccurately.  You’ll be dismayed to find out that you only clocked in at 650 calories in reality.  Why the difference?  Power measures work done and uses an equation that provides a more accurate gauge of calorie burn.

Gauging extended efforts – For many endurance events like time trials, triathlons, centuries or the popular gravel grinders, effort is everything! Getting from Point A to Point B as quickly and effectively as possible is what ultimately results in optimal performance.  With proper training using a cycling power meter, sufficient data can be collected and analyzed to calculate the best effort range for your optimal performance.

Now, the question is what brand do you go with. Our coaches have used many power meters over the years and we feel that several provide great data to help you reach your goals.  Consider a Stages Cycling Power meter, a SRM Power meter, Quarq Power meter, or one of the PowerTap line of power meters.  They each have their own benefits and drawbacks, but each of these will provide you with great data to improve your accuracy.

Pair your Science of Speed Coaching with a power meter and receive a discount!  You’ll receive the highest quality training and the top training devices on the market at a great price.

Selecting your next Cycling or Triathlon Short

For the Fashionista or Bike Snob a new pair of cycling or triathlon shorts is an exciting thing.  Accessorizing can be one of the most enjoyable for things for them to do with some spare money and some fun time.  For many though, the thought of spending $100 or more dollars on a pair of cycling shorts is a frightful thing but it is one of the largest parts to improving your comfort on your bike.  Here are a few key things to consider when you are debating whether your shorts are in need of replacement and what route you need to take when selecting your next cycling or triathlon short:

  1. Elasticity – A snug fitting short is imperative for comfort.  If they twist and shift while you ride you increase your susceptibility to chaffing and saddle sores.  If your shorts are baggy in the legs (unless you are a small child – hard to find sizes small enough) they are worn out! IMMEDIATELY walk over to a trash can,  throw them away and go buy a new pair of shorts now.
  2. Thickness of material – Cycling shorts are not supposed to be see through and honestly no one wants to stare at your crack for hours on a group ride.  Result: Go buy new shorts!
  3. Chamois – This is the padding in your cycling short. It is what gives you a great deal of comfort or discomfort if improperly selected. Over time this padding “packs” or compresses and because of this it does not offer the same level of comfort also. Be sure you find one with minimal seams and smooth stitching around the edges. The newer and higher quality chamois is actually made of one piece of foam with varying thicknesses throughout. They are seamless and very comfortable.

Bibs or shorts – Consider bibs. We can almost guarantee that if you go to bib shorts you will never return to a standard short. They might look a bit like a wrestling singlet but the comfort they offer is worth it! For the ladies they can be more difficult for nature breaks but the newer “drop tail” bibs help reduce this challenge.

  1. Quantity/number of weekly rides – If you ride more than twice weekly you need to have more than one pair of shorts. Save yourself the hassle of having to wash your shorts for every ride and take the chance at trying out several different shorts/chamois.
  2. Don’t Skimp! Cycling shorts can be expensive but are worth the money. Higher priced shorts typically result in a longer lasting short and a higher quality chamois.

Ultimately know that a pair of shorts, dependent upon quality, can last anywhere from 2,500 to 5,000 miles. Keep in mind they are an investment in your body’s comfort.  Higher priced shorts have greater technology including the chamois, shaping, quality of material and the shorts effectiveness at keeping your bodies temperature at more normal levels.

Athlete Spotlight: Davis Bell

Davis Bell is a great example of what the spirit of an athlete can do to help people acheive.  At one point Davis weighed over 280lbs and had smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for nearly 10 years.  In 2007 he made the decision that he was going to change his life by beginning to walk and run. Setting a goal was one of the biggest motivators for him in his initial success. “Once I reached 200 pounds I would buy a bike and start riding with a friend.”  So, Davis worked out consistently, watched his diet and began to shed weight until he was able to meet his goal to purchase his bike. Coach Brady met Davis the summer of 2012 after the purchase of his new bike. After years of Brady helping Davis with on bike nutrition and tips for modifying his training, Davis made the leap to coaching. One year after winning his first ever cycling road race.  The stressors of life had played a roll on Davis’ fitness and he had found a little bit of his previously lost weight.  Quoted saying “Just have fun it’s only cycling,” you might believe that on first impression, once you learn his personality better you will realize he is extremely driven and competitive. After 6 months of training Davis raced his final goal of the season the Pensacola cycling classic.  With an amazing start to the 3 day stage race, Davis cranked out 400+ watts in his time trial to set a new personal best.  He follow that up with a well executed road race and then smashed the field in the criterium by attacking with over 20 minutes to go holding off the field and subsequently producing his highest 20 minute power output ever “Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back everything is different.” Said Davis.  Certainly his day to day changes in his diet and training have lead to some extraordinary outcomes! Athletes like Davis are the reason we exist at Science of Speed.  He has fought to overcome his routine habits and make a healthier life for himself as well as pushed his body to greater levels of fitness than he thought possible.  The constant philosophy that, “You don’t have to prove anything if you believe in yourself,” has brought Davis to where he is today and will continue to push him through the winter months of training and into an very strong 2016 race season. Sign up for the same program that has led to Davis’ great success and maybe one day you can be in our Athlete Spotlight!

Athlete Spotlight: Pete Butler

In May of 2014, nearly one year from his goal event, Pete came to SoS for help with his training. With a lofty goal of winning a Senior National Championship bike race in 2015 he knew that there was no time to waste.  A plan was laid out with his coach and Pete’s diligence, hard work and motivation to attain his goal kept him on track.  With early results included an 18% improvement in power in the first 3 months of training and continued progress in power output through the next nine months Pete was becoming sure of his ability. 

Cycling National Champion

On June 8th & 9th Pete was in Minneapolis, Minnesota and was excited to compete in his 40k and 20k road races.  He had his strategy for both days, he was excited and confident in his fitness from the training that he had done to get to this point.  Day one Pete attacked in the final meters of the race gapping the field and powering in to the finish line ultimately winning by several bike lengths.  Day two was so incredibly close that it ended up having to be reviewed by the race officials.  With several different types of records being consulted it was determined that Pete pipped his competitor at the line! He not only accomplished his goal of a National Championship but came away from his racing having received TWO National Championships. 

Cycling National Champion

When asked what his biggest challenge was in accomplishing his goal, Pete’s response was “balancing life and cycling.” To help maintain this balance Pete put a cap on his training of 12 hours per week.  This stipulation made it crucial to turn every minute of Pete’s training into quality training time.  There was no fluff training, no LSD training but there was the fun of racing and group rides and ultimately quality time with his wife, Karen, and daughter and son, Anna Grace & Paul. Keep your eyes peeled for Pete on your next group ride, event or race.  He will be the guy with the ear to ear smile, encouraging others, helping the local junior team foster new up and coming athletes and at times putting others in the hurt locker!   Congratulations Pete, we are very proud of you and all you have accomplished!  Very few athletes have the opportunity to put on the stars and bars in cycling and you have achieved an amazing accomplishment!   Are you interested in achieving goals like Pete?  Learn more about our coaching packagesWhat is the Athlete Spotlight?

The Myth of the Life Long Fit

The level at which an individual can meld physiology, biomechanics, ergonomics and art is what makes a bike fit specialist either good or amazing. As you may know from personal experience this can make your riding experience pleasurable or painful.  No matter your level of cycling ability, you are an athlete.  You push your body, you train yourself to do more and more mileage or you push yourself to ride faster and faster.  With this in mind, an athlete is constantly changing and because of that your bike fit changes as well. This might be hard for some to imagine but that position that was set up for you two years ago, that you have been comfortable to ride, train and race with might not be optimal for you any longer.  There are a multitude of things that can change this position the three most common changes that we see are: Variability in adiposity:  Let’s be honest, many of us get on a bike to either lose weight or maintain weight and this is a large factor in fitting.  Changes as little as five pounds in adipose tissue can result in a change in position.  This little change can make a saddle more or less comfortable, change hand pressure, allow for positional changes of handlebars and smooth the pedal stroke. Changes in core strength:  Core strength does not only refer to that shredded six pack abs.  The core strength that this is referring to is the entire region between your chest and pelvis.  This is your stabilizing platform on a bike and helps you to generate power, support yourself on the bike and can have a big impact on your comfort as the ride gets longer and muscles begin to fatigue.  Changes in core strength can mean saddle position changes to a more powerful position that we were not able to support previously and handlebar changes for improved aerodynamics. An athlete’s fitness: As we become more fit cardiovascularly and gain bike specific strength we are able to modify our position.  This added strength can result in changes in flexibility which can alter position. The important part is assessing your changes since you last had a bike fit.  Have you increased your saddle time by 10-20% a week or more?  Has your event specificity changed (i.e. 20 mile rides to century rides)?  Has your weight fluctuated by 10lbs or more?  Have you done our core workout or another one for several months?  Are you having discomfort on the bike? If you answered yes to 2 or more of the above questions you should seriously consider updating your fitting to optimize your position.   Schedule your Fitting Online or via Phone

An Eye Opening RedEye Velo Junior Team Spring Camp

This was my second year to have been privileged to be a part of the Redeye Velo Junior Team spring cycling camp in North Georgia. Unlike our summer camp, this one is designed specifically for their more experienced riders. The mountain passes, cold weather, possibility of rain and or snow coupled with the fun 40+mph descents is enough to elicit this. This year was a different year for me and an eye opening one to say the least. In previous years I have had a moderate amount of fitness this time of year and I have felt good on nearly every ride.  I have slacked off considerably in the past 6 months and this weekend as I was climbing up several of the passes and in the pain cave I realized that is not the case this season.  This would not be a problem if it weren’t for the fact that in less than 10 weeks I have a 200 mile gravel road race (Dirty Kanza 200) that I will be participating in and my competitive side will not let me go in and simply participate. So…what does that mean?  It means now is time to ramp it up and ramp it up considerably.  So, I have taken the steps that I recommend many athletes do but not be as dense as I am and wait until so close to time.  Call and get a coach.  I called my close friend and co-worker, Patrick Valentine, and he has constructed a bomb proof training plan for me!  You might be thinking, “Brady, you are a coach.  Why would you get another coach?” and that is a great question!  I get a coach for my events because it is an unbiased eye.  I know another person will push me when I might not want to push and tell me to not be an idiot if I am over thinking things. 

The training is covered, the goals are laid out and now it is on me.  With Patrick’s help and watchful eye over the next 10 weeks I know that things will come together nicely. So, in the coming weeks you will see me.  Riding the pavement, logging miles on the red clay roads and fine tuning my body to be prepared for the Flint Hills of Kansas.

written by:

Coach Brady Irwin

Bike Fit: Cleat Replacement

The most commonly neglected piece of equipment in cycling that we see during our Retul bike fits are cleats.  When riding we frequently clip in and out wearing the engagement points, walk on them, drag them across the ground as stopping (don’t do that!) and quite frankly I believe we forget they even exist.  Whether you are riding 10 miles at a time or hundreds of miles at a time these little pieces of plastic and metal play a much more important role than you might know.

Look Cleats
 Cleat on Right shows excessive wear with a broken off tab that holds the clean in the pedal

In bike fitting we focus on decreasing the risk of injury while trying to balance the ability to produce power and optimize a rider’s position for aerodynamics.  These factors might not all be important to you but for everyone who rides we know that injury prevention is a priority.  This injury prevention is directly correlated to position and quality of your points of contact with your bike.  Your first point of contact with the bike is the pedals and with cleats these are not able to be changed while pedaling.  With this being the case it becomes more important to make sure your first point of contact with the bike is at its best.

Even with a proper bike fitting riders with overly worn cleats can begin to notice signs of discomfort including, but not limited to, foot numbness, knee pain and hip pain.  If this becomes severe enough it could ultimately lead to time off the bike and away from training.  A newer set of cleats increases the stability of the foot’s positioning with the pedal which provides a solid foundation for a fitting to be based on.

Look bicycle cleats worn
 The nose of the left cleat is worn and can be a hazard for un-clipping under load

There are many factors that play into cleat wear with include how much you walk on them, the quantity of training and if you have any pedaling irregularities which create greater friction. There are several signs though that you can look for to verify the state of urgency.

Shimano Cleats –  With a very simple colored marker on the cleat (typically yellow), you can tell when these cleats are worn by the changes in the cleat.

Look Style Cleats – These are very common cleats and are frequently under maintained.  There is no clear marker on these.  With the “gripper” style cleats once the rubber is gone you need to replace them.  Non-gripper cleats do not have an indicator so you will need to pay closer attention to and replace once they begin to get roughed up.

SpeedPlay Cleats – The metal plate does not make these invincible!  These cleats hold  up a bit better than either of the other styles, however, if you wait too long you increase the risk of not being able to get the screws out.  Once these begin to wear or once you notice visible wear on the inner circle of the cleat it is time to replace the cleat.

If you are unsure of whether you need to purchase new cleats you can bring them in to Science of Speed or take the to your LBS for a knowledgeable opinion.

– On Resin based pedals, without a metal plate where the cleat contacts, it becomes even more important to regularly replace your cleats.  Any wear or roughness of the cleat acts like sandpaper and can create grooves in the surface of your pedal forcing you to buy new pedals sooner than you might have hoped.– Not replacing your cleats frequently enough can result to unclipping under higher loads whether sprinting or pedaling hard.

Do you need to get your bike fit?  Schedule a fitting with a Science of Speed fit professional today to make sure you are in the optimal position for your goals.