True, true. If I go with my gut feeling, then I will put the pedals in neutral and take small pedaling skill/drill rides to allow my body to adjust without trying to outride my ability and pull something out of whack.

I’m concerned how q-factor affects foot lateral tilt & foot position. I have bow legs from what I believe is a rotational issue mostly- and is correcting itself with proper hip range of motion and spine position (versus anterior pelvic tilt/overextended & tight hip flexors/quads) I still have space between the knees form q-factor though. I’m just happy my legs are working better and I don’t want pedaling to mess that up.

I ride flat pedals on my mtb and I have such a different experience, including the more upright position.

To add to the mess, my right leg is what I would like to call “gimpy”. It fatigues differently, it seems to be weaker and gets more of a pump, but is smaller than the left leg, I get toe numbness in the right leg but not left, I cannot pedal one legged smooth circles with the right leg like the left either. My bike fitter said my right leg is different from the left and had a separate cleat fit. I’m not interested in enabling my asymmetry so I say put both cleats the same and work on the weakness and causes. I also get the same problems with I ride flat pedals but I believe that because it’s forced to work harder.

My right leg has a seperate set of limitations with mobility off the bikes too. I have trouble contracting my vmo on my right when it’s not under load, it fatigues differently when I run, etc. I think this comes down to driving a car alot. I’m much more aware of what my legs, hips, feet, and shoulders are doing when I drive now and it seems to be helping.

I feel much more comfortable with a more upright position compared to other cyclists that are hunched over like a racer. My hips stay better aligned and my shoulders and t spine feel better. I presume this is directly related to lack of hamstring flex. or strength of my posterior chain? I’d like to get lower as long as it’s correct- or maybe that’s not needed at all. Better breathing room, right?

Here’s an interesting thought- Does cleat position create torque during the pedal stroke? Should it? Could it? Bad or good?