Pronation, Graf (Sidas), Superfeet, CCM Custom Insoles

[consequential 0]

Hi all,

I'm 6-3, 330lbs, with very flat feet and my feet (when in skates) pronate almost 45 degrees. I've had this my whole life starting when I first skated at 5 years old. I've also always had intense foot pain when on the ice, mostly starting on the outside at the mid-sole to small toe

My current skates have been modified using a shimmy on the inside of the blade so that when I stand up in the skates, I no longer naturally have my ankles bend inwards. However, my feet still hurt as described above.

I'm about to get new hockey skates and before I did I wanted to ask a few questions.

1. Do Graf (Sidas) custom hockey insoles help to correct pronation or do they only help with comfort? If they mold to the shape of your foot, I don't see how they could help with anything other than comfort but I'd love to hear from any of you who have tried them.

2. Would I be better served going with Superfeet (yellow) or CCM custom insoles?

3. Has anyone else had my symptoms and attempted to correct them? If so how did that go?

Thanks!

[salayc 8]

I have this problem as well. With skates, the problem was most pronounced when using Graf skates, I tried everything: moving the holder, shimming, Superfeet, Graf custom insoles. Moving the holder worked a bit, Graf insoles were the most comfortable, but not much better for pronation than Superfeet. For skates, I just changed skates (4 times) until I found what worked. I discovered, for me, the most important factor causing pronation was heel and ankle fit. Too much volume allowed my skates to turn under. My solution has been to heat and clamp skates at areas where there is too much volume and that in turn solves the pronation problem. It works best with the highest end thermoformable stiff skates BTW.

That said, your problem could be more of a foot issue. For my cycling shoes I used Surefoot insoles. They started as an insole company for skiers, and branched out a bit. They 3D scan your foot and make an insole with a CAD router. That might solve your problem, but if it's ongoing and severe, an orthopedist might be your best bet, or at least your first stop.

So in short:

1. Yes, a little.

2. It's pretty even in my experience.

3. Yes, and it went pretty well.

[smcgreg 81]

Hi all,

I'm 6-3, 330lbs, with very flat feet and my feet (when in skates) pronate almost 45 degrees. I've had this my whole life starting when I first skated at 5 years old. I've also always had intense foot pain when on the ice, mostly starting on the outside at the mid-sole to small toe

My current skates have been modified using a shimmy on the inside of the blade so that when I stand up in the skates, I no longer naturally have my ankles bend inwards. However, my feet still hurt as described above.

I'm about to get new hockey skates and before I did I wanted to ask a few questions.

1. Do Graf (Sidas) custom hockey insoles help to correct pronation or do they only help with comfort? If they mold to the shape of your foot, I don't see how they could help with anything other than comfort but I'd love to hear from any of you who have tried them.

2. Would I be better served going with Superfeet (yellow) or CCM custom insoles?

3. Has anyone else had my symptoms and attempted to correct them? If so how did that go?

Thanks!

A couple of my thoughts on pronation in this thread

http://modsquadhockey.com/forums/index.php/topic/63374-ice-hockey-possible-to-align-graf-holdersblades-like-the-mlx-skates/?hl=smcgreg#entry963876

and on the footbeds here

http://modsquadhockey.com/forums/index.php/topic/66171-superfeet-vs-ccm-custom-support-footbed-vs-graf-sidas-footbed/?hl=footbed

Hope they help

[Vet88 673]

I pronate and my thoughts are covered in the 1st thread listed above. Read the article ladyinred, it gives a very good breakdown about pronation. I have Grafs, moved the holder myself (cheap and easy to do) and then clamped the boot to the shape of my foot. I did try orthotics and shims but they didn't work for me. Moving the holder inwards and then removing the negative space around the lower heel area (to stop the foot rolling inwards) was the best answer I found.

[vhawk12 0]

This is a topic near and dear to my heart...it first started for me in Ski Boots. I don't recall having this problem growing up, but I do have a lot of pronation/flat feet. The issue for me is that me feet aren't overly wide, in fact, they're probably on the narrow side, but what I've noticed is that as my ankle pronates, my flat feet have a 'wider' contact area on the ski boot or skate. I worked at a ski shop for a number of years and the owner told me to try smaller boots because as you go smaller, the last gets wider closer to the heel, after that, if I had length problems we could punch out the toes (a bit). I went with a Salomon boot that actually has heat-fit customizable outer shell in addition to the removable liner, I associate this with the upper end Bauers that have the curv composite quarter package. It worked awesome, I only get slight pain now on the outside when on really icy terrain (lots of skidding to stop).

The skates I just bought are 8EE (I have a 9.5 shoes size), which I think is just a bit too wide and a bit too long, but they were half-price One.9s, so I went with them. I use them mostly for coaching and I it's an ok fit, but still get that pain on the side of my foot if I start doing lots of tight turns demoing drills. I think it is coming from the skates being just a bit too long for me as my toe doesn't quite brush the end of the skate when standing and with a shorter skate, the last would widen out a bit closer to the heel similar to the ski boots. One thing I've done with ski boots in the past is tape some padding (read Kleenex) the problem area of my foot and re-heatfit. I have been meaning to do this with my One.9s to add just a bit of extra room in that spot. I have learned though that a little goes a long way, so don't overdo it if you're going this route.

The red circle in the linked image below is where I think the difference lies between someone with a wide foot (orange outline) and my foot (black outline). Let me know if you guys think this makes sense. I think the ideal option is to custom order a pair of skates with an E width and an A heel. Of course custom would mean they take the outline of your actual foot, so right there that should be a huge difference!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2LAyQT4VCqQajVNLTVaX0dOUzg/view?usp=sharing