trying to learn to skate + foot pain

[Ducati1098VII]

So I can balance and move on ice but cant stop and so forth. I do receive pain on the bottom of my feet ( I am not a flat-foot) and its very unbearable. Now since i'm learning I would accustom it to it being just my muscles not being very used to balancing on a small point.

My question is, if it is the muscles how long would that last? I mean i go skating every once in a while, and it always happens. One day I had it not happen but the next time i went out on the ice bam again.

What could the cause be, and what methods should i try to fix this problem. All advice will be taken.

Should I try and get on the ice multiple times a week see if it lightens, should I go thorugh the pain one time see if it gets easier.

Could it be my skates just not fitting me well (Vapor X:20) if its skates the problem is seeing which alternative there are because I mean really the pain happens on the ice.

Could it be my form, if so how do I fix it? Could it be that my muscles on the bottom of the foot just aren't used to balancing that is required with ice skates?

I have also tried yellow superfeet there was no difference. this has been a re-occurring issue for a few years, as I did go not as often back in the past?

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[1Knee1T]

When I first started skating, I didn't get my skates baked and I had the same pain you have. Eventually it went away - either because the skates broke in or because I got used to it, I wish I could tell you why.

I've gotten every pair since then baked and the pain hasn't been back, but I'm also used to skating now obviously.

 

[kr580]

How tight are you tying your skates? Try tying them barely snug (not tight at all) all the way up and only go tight on the top 1 or 2 eyelets.

Are you hydrated decently? I find when I play hockey without being hydrated properly my feet are the first thing to scream in pain.

Also, do you have wide feet? It could be that the skates are too narrow for your feet.

There could be a number of things causing the pain. Those are the first three questions that come to mind. I've dealt with this before and the three questions above were my problem, collectively. A deeper knee bend helps my pain as well for whatever reason. Test out the easy solutions first before going out and buying things to attempt to fix the problem.

 

[Khabby]

I found I had some arch pain when I started skating, The pain went away after my skate broke in more and my feet got used to my skates. But what I used to do to relive some pain, Was before I would be skating or playing hockey, I would do some calf raises on the edge of a step to stretch out the tendons in the arch of my foot. It seemed to reduce the pain on my feet while I worked in my skates.

I had to have my skates baked twice, and even after that it probably took 15-25 hours on my skates to completely have them worked in comfortably.

 

[thedonger]

were your skates fitted properly by a competent hockey shop worker? if they weren't, then that will always be the wildcard without anyone seeing you skate or how your feet fit in the boot.

if they were fitted properly, then it could a combination of things including your muscles becoming acclimated to skating or your arches just not lining up properly on the inner sole of the boot(this can be remedied by aftermarket insoles) to how you're tying your skates like was already stated.

another thing that i've been seeing lately though that seems to be overlooked is the type of footwear you're wearing on any given day prior to skating. i've experienced this myself where if i wear something without any arch support, like slippers or flip flops all day, then i'll get a pressure right in my arches when i go to skate.

 

[Defgarden]

My feet ALWAYS hurt while skating, but I've learned to deal with it. I do have some insoles, and my skates are baked, and the pain lessens over time, but it still hurts. Be scientific about your changes though. Make a mental note, or even write down what you do different everytime you're on the ice, so when your feet finally stop hurting, you know exactly how you tied your skates, etc.

 

[jmichael7753*]

it could be that you need a wider boot. Ive played with guys that had that problem and they went and got a wide size instead of the normal size.

 

[UpGoesRupp]

Peter Forsberg? is that you?

but otherwise, what he^^ said

 

[Pedagogue]

I really feel bad for guys who skate with pain. It's not fair. As per previous posts you need to get your skates fitted properly. Go to a hockey specialty store where they know what they are doing. I had a pair of skates where the pain was unbearable and I had to ditch them. If the pain doesn't go away after about 4 weeks of skating you may need to get another pair. Have you tried putting in the SuperFeet insoles? Graf makes a good skate for people with odd shaped feet as different models are made for different foot shapes. Good luck.

 

[macgyverthatshiz]

Buy Graf skates, that problem will go away immediately. They are so comfortable and right now they have some good deals on the entry/intermediate level skates. Trust me on this.

 

[Fleuryoutside29]

If you're looking to get new properly fitting skates look into MLX. They are the most comfortable skates and you bake them at your house. They literally feel as comfortable as sneakers. Will get rid of any foot pain you have while skating. I love them

 

[macgyverthatshiz]

For the record, you can bake any skates at your house. Place skates on cookie sheet with aluminum foil, Preheat oven to 150, TURN OVEN OFF once heated, place skates in oven, set timer for 7-8 minutes, remove skates, lace em' up for 30 minutes.

 

[Badger36]

Make sure you skates are fitted properly, make sure you only the last 4 eyelets are tied tightly (the ankle is where you really need the support of tight laces anyways) and do exercises to build up the muscles of your feet (single leg squats and balancing on 1 foot are great exercises for this).
I used to get pain in my arches, but since I started lacing my skates as I described above and started doing exercises to strengthen my legs/ankles the pain has for the most part gone away.

 

[Fleuryoutside29]

now i was just on the site and they are having a sale on their blemished skates. $499 now. I should have waited lol. the blemishes don't really look that bad either.

 

[Skraut]

I just got fitted for new skates, and went from RBK skates to Graf. The RBK skates were for a much shallower foot/arch. The eyelets on the RBK skates were much lower, and the laces bowed out to compensate for the arch of my foot. If I tightened those laces at all, it crushed my arch and left a lot of pain.

On the Graf's they're a much deeper fit, the eyelets are higher, and the laces don't bow outward much at all. I can really tighten them everywhere without causing any pain. Proper fitting makes a huge difference.

 

[darkmoon1196]

everytime i get new skates the ends of my ankles get cut and bleed on the laces... after about three or four games of this it stops. skates take a while to get broken in, give it time, pain will go away.

 

[macgyverthatshiz]

I recently purchased a pair of Vapor X:20 skates 10D (I finally got my foot measured by a skate shop), wore them to a game right out of the box, no pain whatsoever. I could not believe the comfort level, this coming from a skate I bought at Play It Again sports that 10.5 EE (not knowing any better at the time).....which were way to big and killed my feet. This proves that proper fitting skates should eliminate most foot pain. By the way, I could not justify spending the extra loot for anything higher end than the 20's. The only difference I could tell between the 20's and 30's is the fact that you can replace the blade, which is irrelevant to me as I like to change skates every year or two, just out of boredom.

 

[macgyverthatshiz]

everytime i get new skates the ends of my ankles get cut and bleed on the laces... after about three or four games of this it stops. skates take a while to get broken in, give it time, pain will go away.

Damn, that sucks.....Bleeding from skates.

 

[ponder]

So I can balance and move on ice but cant stop and so forth. I do receive pain on the bottom of my feet ( I am not a flat-foot) and its very unbearable. Now since i'm learning I would accustom it to it being just my muscles not being very used to balancing on a small point.

My question is, if it is the muscles how long would that last? I mean i go skating every once in a while, and it always happens. One day I had it not happen but the next time i went out on the ice bam again.

What could the cause be, and what methods should i try to fix this problem. All advice will be taken.

Should I try and get on the ice multiple times a week see if it lightens, should I go thorugh the pain one time see if it gets easier.

Could it be my skates just not fitting me well (Vapor X:20) if its skates the problem is seeing which alternative there are because I mean really the pain happens on the ice.

Could it be my form, if so how do I fix it? Could it be that my muscles on the bottom of the foot just aren't used to balancing that is required with ice skates?

I have also tried yellow superfeet there was no difference. this has been a re-occurring issue for a few years, as I did go not as often back in the past?

Describe the fit of your skates:
1) When you put your foot in with the skate untied, how far are your toes from the ends of your skates?
2) How snug is the fit in general? Does your heel lift off the footbed at all when skating, even slightly?
3) Are there any pressure points? Do you feel like the skate is too tight at the balls of your feet?
4) Unlace the top 5 eyelets, pull the tongue way up, run a pencil/pen across the tops of the eyelets. Does it make contact at any point?

Answer these questions with as much detail as possible and I should be able to tell you whether your skates fit well or not.

As for other things:
1) Are you still using the Superfeet yellow insoles? These work great for me personally, but all feet are different, you could also look into Graf or Shockdoctor insloes, which seem to work better for some people
2) How tight do you tie your skates? A good way to relieve some pain can be to tie them only snug (not loose by any means, but not death grip tight) through most of the skate, then make it real tight for only the last 3ish eyelets. You can only do this with a skate that fits well though, otherwise it'll be too sloppy of a feel
3) Try to focus on keeping your feet relaxed while skating. If your feet are well supported with a proper fitting skate and a good footbed there's no reason for them to be all tensed up. Pay attention to what your feet are doing, you might be tensing them super tight, almost trying to curl them into a ball. Focus on not doing this

 

[vexXed]

I just got fitted for new skates, and went from RBK skates to Graf. The RBK skates were for a much shallower foot/arch. The eyelets on the RBK skates were much lower, and the laces bowed out to compensate for the arch of my foot. If I tightened those laces at all, it crushed my arch and left a lot of pain.

On the Graf's they're a much deeper fit, the eyelets are higher, and the laces don't bow outward much at all. I can really tighten them everywhere without causing any pain. Proper fitting makes a huge difference.

But which Grafs? Yes the RBK's and CCM's have almost no arch support for people with high arches and insteps, but you make it sound like Graf is only good for people who need more arch support and depth. They have a range of skates that fit different feet - the deep ones you are talking about will be the Graf 709s or the Graf Ultra G70s. They also have skates that fit shallow arches and insteps like the 703s or the Ultra G3s.

Other stuff taken in to consideration are the heel width and shape. Site has more info - http://www.grafcanada.com/hockey_skates/

 

[Skraut]

Yeah I got the Ultra G35's. More than I wanted to spend, but the custom footbeds really helped.

 

[Pierre Gotye]

Don't ever buy a skate online without making sure it's a proper fit.

There are many skate choices out there, but not every skate is intended to fit every foot. Some are designed for narrow feet with a high arch, others for wide flat feet with a low arch.

 

[Ducati1098VII]

How tight are you tying your skates? Try tying them barely snug (not tight at all) all the way up and only go tight on the top 1 or 2 eyelets.

Are you hydrated decently? I find when I play hockey without being hydrated properly my feet are the first thing to scream in pain.

Also, do you have wide feet? It could be that the skates are too narrow for your feet.

There could be a number of things causing the pain. Those are the first three questions that come to mind. I've dealt with this before and the three questions above were my problem, collectively. A deeper knee bend helps my pain as well for whatever reason. Test out the easy solutions first before going out and buying things to attempt to fix the problem.

Haven't posted in a while, since I have not gone skating in all that time sheesh.

I dont tie them to snug but i have tried super loser, tighter, semi-tight. It doesnt seem to work. Ill try sung with the top real tight next time.

Hydration could be one ill also make sure to drink alot before I go.
I have normal size feet, not Wide and I am not flat Footed.

When I got my skates it was sized at a Hockey Store, but it was a teenager so who knows for sure right.

Im using this thread as a check list of things to try... as its making it very hard to learn to skate when I cant put in a consistent 30min + into skating.

 

[FiveHole23]

Sometimes during my first shift I get real bad foot pain on the arches of my feet. When go to the bench I retie my laces making them tight as possible from the bend in the boot up. No problems after that. I think when the laces are loose the muscle in my feet have to work hard to keep my foot tight to the bottom of the boot.

 

[TheOtter]

Another thing to check for those who are new to hockey is whether you're trying to grip the ice with your feet. I know it may sound weird, but it's very common for new players. Make a conscious effort to relax your feet and try to notice whenever they tense or curl up. Gripping with your feet will make them hurt right quick.

It's kind of funny, but true.