The Mid Foot Cleat Position

MIDFOOT CLEAT POSITIONING, how can it help? Cleat position, in terms of fore-aft placement of the cleat relative to the rider’s foot, is one of the least understood biomechanical components of a rider’s position. In years gone by, the centre of the cleat was placed directly under the first metatarsal joint (the ball of the foot) as it was assumed that the best possible power transfer would come from this placement. This overly simplistic view of pedalling mechanics was ingrained into conventional bike fitting wisdom through repetition, and became the industry standard for many years. In more recent times, there has been a shift to begin moving the cleat position more rearward on the shoes in order to stabilise the rider’s foot more on the pedal downstroke, a move which has almost universally helped