Cycling shoes with cleats and so-called clipless pedals, which unite in an interface not unlike a ski binding, will drastically increase your pedaling efficiency, allowing you to pull on the upstroke as well as push on the downstroke. If this sounds complicated, relax – it isn’t.

It’s as natural as breathing (especially when riding up hills) and once you’ve mastered clipping in and out (a simple skill, best practiced on a firm but forgiving surface like a playing field), you’ll wonder how you ever lived without them.

LOOK and Shimano dominate the market for clipless road pedals, with the latter also offering an “SPD” option, in which the cleat is recessed in the sole of the shoe, making walking easier.

SPDs are becoming increasingly popular, but ‘roadies’ with an eye on performance are more likely to use shoes with an unrecessed cleat and their accompanying pedals, which typically offer greater power transfer from their stiffer, unbendable soles.