# Help from those with fit issues



## DIRT BOY (Aug 22, 2002)

I had a pro fitting years ago and it went great. I found out at the time I have a shorter right leg and Varus issues with both feet. I have been tweaking things slowly over the years but I am now having a small issue.

On the shorter leg, I am shimming my speedplay pedals by 3mm form measuring my leg and playing with heel lifts in my running shoes. It appears I am around 2-3mm shorter on my right leg.

But I have been having some numbs and foot placement issues as the same leg/foot.
My cleats are set back behind the metatarsal bones and feel fine there. But I feel like my short leg is forward on the pedals weight wise. But the cleats are in the exact same spot. 

I am thinking that I need to lower the shims down form 3mm to 2 mm. Does this seem right? By lowering the shim height, this should get my foot feeling in the right position, correct? It feels like I was to slide my foot back when pedaling.

Any thoughts?

thanks


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## vo2maxcarbon (Feb 19, 2007)

It is really hard to tell what you are asking. I have dealt with many fit issues over the years and that difference does not seem that great. I am also not a huge fan of shimming to make up for a leg length difference as it makes the pedal stroke further out of round. If you can do a better job of describing what the issue is possibly myself or someone could help

Thanks


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## peabody (Oct 17, 2005)

2-3mm u wouldnt even notice....it is more than that. u need more of a shim. cleat feals further forward because the short leg is toe'ing down at the bottom of the pedal stroke. shim it till the reach of both legs feels equal.


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## DIRT BOY (Aug 22, 2002)

vo2maxcarbon said:


> It is really hard to tell what you are asking. I have dealt with many fit issues over the years and that difference does not seem that great. I am also not a huge fan of shimming to make up for a leg length difference as it makes the pedal stroke further out of round. If you can do a better job of describing what the issue is possibly myself or someone could help
> 
> Thanks


The cleats (speedplay) are mounted in the exact same spot on the shoes. But on my shorter leg, it feel like my foot is is further behind the spindle than my left foot.


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## alexp247365 (Dec 29, 2009)

on your short leg, move the cleat towards the front of the shoe. This pushes your shoe back a bit, and should help alleviate that short feeling. Shimming your cleats work better if the bottom half of your leg is short. If the top half of your leg is short (femur,) then moving the cleat forward(which pushes the shoe backward) is more helpful.

I have a leg length discrepancy where 4.5mm of shims and pushing the cleat all the way forward on the shoe was the only way I could ride pain free.


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## duz10s (Aug 5, 2011)

what the best way to measure leg length correct, standing or lying? and from where to where?


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## MattSoutherden (Jun 24, 2009)

The thing about measuring leg length difference is that there's no one answer. The one that probably matters to you is 'functional length on the bike'.

You might have one leg that is 4mm shorter in the tibia than the other, so you think that you'd want to shim the difference. But in all likelihood, as you've been compensating for the difference all your life by say, slightly dropping one hip, or the foot on the longer leg has a slightly more collapsed arch and pronates more, then if you shim 4mm you'll probably overcompensate and ride on the skew.

The best way to measure the absolute leg length difference is to have a standing x-ray. The best way to get square and balanced on the bike is to have an expert fit from someone who really understands what they're doing.


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