Foot pain - why?

[Hedwig]

I have pain below my feet, in the soles, more in the front than in the back.
I have new skates that are now a few weeks old - at first I thought they were not broken in but I have skated quite a bit with them and it does not get better.
Sometimes my right foot goes numb for a bit.

I skated three hours today  - I CAN skate but I sometimes need to shake my feet or do an element on the other leg because the first foot needs some rest.

and ideas how that might get better?

[AgnesNitt]

I don't know if everyone has this but it's pretty common. I had a coach who had me go to the boards, roll forward to my toepicks then curl my toes in and out to stretch the soles of my feet and the muscles on the bottom.

My experience has been that as I skated more my feet got stronger. The problem never went away but it took longer on ice for my feet to get sore.

[Christy]

I had this when I was breaking in a new pair of skates. I found that changing the insoles from the stock ones to ones which provided more support (Superfeet) helped, but it still took a few weeks for the pain to disappear totally as it was a different brand of skate so the heel was higher.

[Doubletoe]

3 suggestions, all of which have solved those problems for me before: 
(1) They might be a little too narrow for you in the ball of the foot (the front of the foot, widest part).  Try getting them stretched a little wider there.
(2) You might need some arch support.  You can get heat-moldable insoles made at most skate shops and put them inside your boots. 
(3) You might be tying them too tight above the instep (middle of the foot).  That cuts off circulation because there's a big vein that runs across the top of your foot that delivers blood to the toes.  Tie them tigher in the toes and ankle but not so tight over the top of the foot.

[Hedwig]

thanks so much - that was really helpful!
I will first try to tie a bit differently and then look into the other options (because I will go to the rink in an hour).

but it is good to know that the pain is not uncommon.

I think the skates fit. I was fitted by a really knowledgable guy and he heat-molded them a bit here and there. Exactly at the ball of the foot in the right one there were a bit too narrow.

The arch support sounds like the best option - I will look into that.

[nicklaszlo]

Does the pain go away quickly when you take them off?  If so, I think it's Doubletoe's theory (3). 

Also, if you have skates that are not broken in yet, you should not be able to skate for three hours.  After one hour they should be hurting quite a bit. 

If your skates are new and very stiff, you will bend your ankle less, which reduces circulation.  Do your skates hurt more when you stand still?  Mine do, because movement increases circulation. 

[Hedwig]

most of the pain goes away quickly after skating. I feel a bit of it left during some movements.

I don't know if you would call them broken in or not but I guess they are - they were not super stiff to begin with anyway and I was basically able to skate for 1hour immediately without any big pain or blisters.

I tried to tie them a bit differently and I still had the pain in the right foot but maybe the whole area is irritated now? I have to stop skating now anyway in summer so the foot can rest a bit.

[holdontilmae]

I have pain almost exactly like this. My left foot (spinning foot) is the worst, so I switch to backspins and loops when it gets too bad. I got fitted recently and discovered that my skates are a full size too long and too narrow. Alas, I can't afford to get new ones yet. Maybe ask the gentleman that fitted them for you what his suggestions are? Hopefully its a quick fix!

[Hedwig]

Oh no, what a bummer for you. And skates that are too long are really not good from what I read.

Yes, good idea to ask the fitting guy again. He is two hours away from me but when I am in the city I will do that!

[RoaringSkates]

I do wonder if your skates aren't too narrow for you. But go see the pro and see what he says. He may be able to adjust these to help you out.

[amy1984]

I had this same issue and my skates were too narrow through the arch.  It's funny because I originally was going to order them wider but was concerned they were too wide in the toe area so went down a width.  Wrong choice!

If your skates are heat modeable and they're not too incredibly tight, they should be able to be heated up and stretched.