Five Ten Contact shoes making my right foot numb

Got these five ten contacts that are helping me climb much better/stronger and better grip on pedals. But my right foot has fallen asleep 3 times now. I replaced the long laces with lock laces and tried to loosen those. Anybody else had this experience? I used to wear Adidas trail shoes and never happened (not nearly as stiff/tight as five tens).

How popular are five tens compared to those SIDI expensive clipped in shoes?

 

How old are you? I ask because older ppl are more subject to plantar fasciitis or falling arches, which can manifest itself in odd ways. Check the arch support compared to your old shoes. If the support seems less in the new ones, try wrapping that foot under the arch and over top with athletic tape. If that helps, get a velcro PF support from the drug store. Try some thinner socks to ease the squeeze.

I started getting PF symptoms after spending a lot of time in Impact Lows. No problem anymore. Hugely popular shoe; can't say how popular compared to something else.

 

I'm 40.

I wear thin Saucony atheltic socks. I've never had PF and hope not to, I have too many other physical issues right now. I'm going to remove the laces and put back the old laces, it didn't happen with the original laces in 2 rides. I guess I must have made the lock laces way too tight and now I've cut them....

 

All I can say is the shoe is extremely rigid/tough and it's hard to move around the tongue and put on the shoe. I'll need to mess around with it. They seem to fit ok, it's just this right foot numbing issue manifesting by the time I need to descend from 3000'.

 

Gotcha. How does the arch support seem in the new shoes? I have pretty high arches, or had...so a shoe that really supports it is rare to find. For some shoes/activities I run Superfeet footbeds in place of the stock inserts, but those do take up a little more room in the shoe.

 

So honestly I don't even know, haven't noticed but I did have the green Superfeet in an Adidas Trail shoe and I did feel that definitely. Maybe this Contact shoe has limited arch support but not really sure. And I need to see if the insole is removable or what.

But I'll tell ya, I have way more climbing strength/efficiency with these shoes vs the Adidas trail shoes. Much less (or zero?) torsion compared to running shoes. I seem to not be having my lower back pain either, so maybe I was pedaling too hard with the running shoes. LBS noted that with real biking shoes it may help my knee issues but that was the bike fit and new saddle that fixed the knee pains (I was dx'd with ITBFS by my knee doc a couple months ago). Apparently that was an invalid dx (he said root cause "weak hips") but I guess I have been biking less than back then.

 

http://www.zappos.com/five-ten-freerider-contact

zappos states moderate arch support for this shoe

 

Roger, verd.

I suspect that the stiffness which makes the new shoes good climbers/grippers may have a neg effect on your foot. It's easy enough to try taping the foot; almost any tape will do just to check it out. I would try that first, along with whatever adjustments to the shoes to make them overall more comfy.

Maybe you can create enough room in there to try one of your footbeds. Sock liners are super thin. I've used a shoe tree to stretch out one shoe to accomm my larger foot. I'm pretty sure you'll be able to pull out your existing inserts.

Let us know the findings...

 

So I replaced the lock laces with the original laces (looser installed this time). I'm going to be riding today or tomorrow, stay tuned...

btw, the insole is removable but I'm not going to replace it unless I really have to.

 

So it was definitely the lock laces. With the original laces (laced up slightly loose on purpose), the numbness is not reproducing. Maybe it's ok to use the lock laces, just don't lace them up super tight as they seem to be elastic and hold the tightness very well.

 

Hi, I know this is a year ago. But... Verdugist, did the shoes 'break in' after a while? I had the exact same issue happen to me. I've been riding clipless and these are my first 'flat shoes'. And also, my right foot goes numb. (Haven't been riding on them yet, just trying to break them in inside the house). I've tried both the standard laces and I bought "Xpand" laces, and no matter how lose I tie them (still providing a secure fit) the instep takes a ton of pressure.
I know some people have one foot bigger than the other. But I've never encounter this in ANY type of shoe, dress, sports, skiing, etc... and after finding this post, maybe there's a manufacturing defect?... the left foot fits perfectly.
I'd appreciate further feedback because I need to decide if I should keep these or return them and look for something else.

Thank you!

 

@verdugist is out to lunch with some other MTB website. I have no other useful information for you. Good luck with your shoes and numb foot.

 

Well first off, thanks for joining in with us on imtbtrails @MaxManiac.

I would be curious to know the answer as well not for my sake but for Cathy. She prefers flats because with clip in shoes she would get some serious "hot spots" on the bottom of her feet which went away once she went to flats yet I know she is not getting the support out of the shoes (tennis shoes) she uses now. She makes comments that lead me to believes so.

I have never rode flats, so I have never wore flats related shoes. There are a lot of guys on here that do. I want to get her some 5 10's but concerned hearing things like this.

Anyone got some input?

 

If memory serves... And there's a good chance it's faulty, @mike and @herzalot have both used those shoes and commented on them previously.

 

I do not have this issue. Make sure they fit properly. Just cause shoes look good don't mean they fit good.

 

I've got a couple pair of Impact Lows, not the current version, so I'm not up on what sort of insoles you have, @MaxManiac.

But, I would ask you the same question about fallen arch. I didn't know I had one until I started getting a dead sensation in one foot while on a milti-day bike ride. It's very easy to sleuth: wrap some athletic tape around your foot and see what happens. I would try a different sock as well; thinner or a little thicker. Pay mind to the lace tension too, sometimes the toe-ward loops of lace require attention to get right (sometimes hard to tighten). I hope it works out for the positive. Welcome to IMTBT!

 

I'll find that my foot will get numb if I tighten them too much. Feels like if your shoes are cinched too tight...circulation could be cut off at the instep area.

The other thing I have found myself doing is scrunching the toes. That would cause my toes to go numb.

 

Wow... thank you for all the replies.
Here's a quick update... after doing some more research I read about how runners use different lacing techniques to accommodate for a good fit. And found this video that covers the most common 'problems' (look at around 2:50 for the hotspot lacing) - that's what I tried today (combined with the xpand laces) and I've been wearing these 5-10's for 3 hours and so far no numbness, in fact, like normal shoes, I stopped noticing they were there.

I probably won't get to ride until Saturday, but as soon as I do I'll come back an update.

As far as flats vs clipless, I have no opinion yet. I've only been riding for one season and I started from day 1 with clipless (I wear a pair of Bontraeger MTB shoes, and I equipped one of my bikes with CB "Double Shot" pedals and I absolutely love them. After all the reviews I read about how horrible clipless can be, I think they're the best thing in the world. After the first ride clipping in and out felt natural, I've not once 'unclipped' without wanting to, and the one time I went OTB I landed without being attached to my bike (did fracture my wrist and elbow, but that wasn't the pedal's fault )

This is my first attempt at flats. I ordered a set of Race Face "Chester" pedals as my guinea pig for riding with flat shoes. I'm really curious how that will go.

 

I have been running the 5-10 Falcons for the last 2 years and I also have had some issues with numbness, especially during longer rides like the Rwanda 50 mile event. Then my 5-10 Falcons snapped in half, it was the plate that runs through the sole to give the shoe its stiffness. I went out and bought the Specialized 2FO shoes and I have NEVER had shoes so comfortable in my ENTIRE riding career. What seemed like a disappointing experience with my 5-10's snapping in half turned into the greatest blessing....discovering the Specialized 2FO Shoes!!!!!!

 

That's a great story and good to know.
I wonder if the sole insert could have something to do with it for numbness on 5-10's. I changed out my inserts based on the recommendation of my Foot Dude and life became grand as well. If your feet aint happy... aint nothin' happy on a bike ride.
Thanks @Mike.the.Spike !