Pain in the right calf after every ride

Hi everyone,

I’ve recently bought a road bike and started going out on longer rides. After a few rides I started to feel really bad pain in the upper part of my right (only right) calf. I stayed away from the bike for two weeks, adjusted my bike height, pushed the seat forward and tried riding out again, but today I can barely walk. I can feel the pain is in the muscle and I can feel it every time I tense my leg. The last time it took like 2-3 days before it got better.

FYI, I don’t have clip-in shoes, as the bike did not have them when I bought it and I planned to invest in them once I get more secure on the bike. The guy who owned the bike before me also put on these straps on the bike that I use sometimes, and I thought they would be helpful in imitating that clip in feeling, but can they be causing that pain after every ride? Or is it something to do with my biking technique? I try to keep my feet relatively flat throughout the ride, but maybe there’s something else I should be doing…?

I would appreciate any help! I’m really enjoying my bike so far, but that problem is a real pain in the ass and stops me from training as much as I would like 😅