We’ve gotten a lot of comments on our YouTube channel for my wife’s accomplishment of cycling 200km to Osaka from Nagoya on flat pedals with regular shoes. Many people have told me to get her a pair of cycling shoes, and we finally did that! Today, Thuong will be trying out her new cycling shoes and Shimano SPD pedals for the very first time!

I actually bought her these shoes a couple months ago, but we were lacking cleats for her to use, and then she had to go back to Vietnam for a few weeks. After arriving back in Japan, we had some rides already planned, and didn’t want to risk learning on the main roads, so we decided to wait..

Diadora X Trivex Plus II Womens cycling shoes

We also ordered her some new Shimano SPD pedals, which came with some new cleats.

For her first attempt at using the new cycling shoes and SPD pedals, we went to Morikoro Park’s Cycling Course.

This cycling course is a closed off 5km course that is specific for cycling only. This means that we are safe from cars, making this a perfect place to practice out using the new cycling shoes and SPD pedals.

Trying the new shoes on!

Time to try them on!

She actually rode over with her regular shoes, so this was her first time every trying out the new cycling shoes with her new pedals.

Attempting to Clip In

As with any beginner to new cycling shoes, the first time clipping in can be the biggest hurdle. We spent a few minutes fumbling around trying to get her clipped in, and for a while things were looking hopeless..

But after a while, she finally was able to clip in!

I taught her the strategy of holding only a pole/wall and sitting down while clipping in. After a bit of practice, she started to get the hang of it!

Starting to Ride

Now comes the easy part, just pedal!

She instantly felt a big difference and was telling me how light the pedals felt now. She couldn’t believe how big of a difference it made.

After finishing our lap of the 5km course, she was able to clip out (just twist) and stop safely!

For good measure, she practiced clipping in again and we did another lap, but faster this time. She beat her goal of 10 minutes on the course, and was feeling pretty exhausted, but proud and confident with using her new shoes and clipping into the SPD pedals.

All in all, it was a great success and hopefully these new cycling shoes will help take her/us to many new awesome places going forward. See you in the next cycling VLOG!