Slight heel lift in carbon shoes

Hello,
I got a pair of Lake cx218 for Christmas, they were bought online, but I made sure the size would be correct. They fit really well, but when walking on them I feel my heels slipping a bit. I never had carbon soled shoes before, is this normal, or does the heel cup just not fit me correctly? Also, with the stock lake insoles the lift is really small, but when I put in specialized insoles (had them in my old shoes for arch support) the heels start feeling unstable.
Thanks for help!

Stiffer sole = more heel slip generally in my experience. Not a deal breaker, I don’t walk in them much

I had the same thing with my Lake MX237, especially with the stock insoles. I wanted insoles with more arch support, and tried to find some that cup the heel a bit more, to try to minimize the loose feeling while riding. I went with some insoles from SQlab, and it definitely helped with securing my heel a bit more. The next Lake model up has a heat-moldable heel cup, might try those next time.

Had this problem before with other shoes . One cause may be that you re using a arch support that too much for your foot and as a result you’re heel is pivoting in the arch support .

I had to run medium to low support which is fine since my arches are basically flat

I think I’ve always had very slight heel lift walking around but that’s not truly indicative of what I’ve noticed pedaling.

If you haven’t mounted cleats on them or know the shop well enough they came from you could return them for a model with a heat moldable heel cup. I like the CX 241 I have and the heel cup grabs nicely but there are less forgiving uppers on the market that may feel more efficient.

Hi

I also went from specialized to lake and had that feeling but that happens only when you are walking and when pedaling everything is much better then in specialized…

I used to be fussy about heel lift in shoes as well. It is not intrinsic to the sole type. You can get heel lift if the heel cup is relatively large. Some companies, like Specialized with their S-Works 6 and 7 shoes, make pretty tight heel cups. I’m not sure about Lake’s design philosophy, but I know they have a race last that’s narrow and tight fitting, and two less race-oriented lasts. I bet their race last has a tighter heel cup. Or Shimano and some other companies put a cat’s tongue-like material in their heel cup to make it grip around your heel better.

As already stated on this thread, when you are sitting and pedaling, that heel grip may not be such a big deal. Maybe it’s more of a deal if you road race, and you expect to be doing all-out sprints or 1-min efforts frequently. I find that with my current shoes, I do get heel lift when I stand and lift my heels or when I walk around, but it’s not an issue on the bike.

I’m not sure how the insoles would affect heel grip as I’m not that familiar with insole design. I know different insoles might cup the bottom of your heel differently. Also, I think the Specialized insoles are relatively thin. If they’re thinner than the stock Lake insoles, that could be part of why - you just have more space in the shoe.

If someone is doing this, Lake shoes are not the brand that I would want on my feet based on my experience.

Some of my road shoes have heel slip when walking, others don’t. I haven’t noticed any difference (slipping issues) on the bike. For me, this is a non-issue.

If your not 100% satisfied with the fit of the shoe, that’s different and maybe something else will be better, kind of like saddles and backsides,

Generally, I minimize the amount of walking in road shoes.

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Are you satisfied with the shoes so far?
I can’t really tell if the stepup to the 238s is worth is it the 218 are totally fine.

I have Lake - CX 241 wide, the best comfort in the forefoot, but as you said hill slippage is awful. On the long rides it really started to stress my fascia plantaris. The shoe heel is even moldable carbon but still even after molding it is just too much space. I am planning to bring the shoe to a shoe repair shop to install some extra cushion on the heel since I don’t think I will find anything more comfortable in the forefoot part.

Reviving this… Does the slipping bother you riding? I just ordered CX 241 wide and CX 238 wide. No heel slippage with the 241 at all, but the toe section feels a little tight. 238 are roomier and feel like slippers, but my heels slip a bit as I walk. Ugh. I haven’t mounted cleats so I can return one or both.

In my n=1 experience…the heel lift isn’t an issue on the bike. I have some heel lift in my Bont shoes when walking but they’ve been great on the bike.

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I have 238 wide and also have heal slippering while walking but when on bike everything is fine

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