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My feet hurt .. what's going on?


tomcat

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I have a pair of Koflach Degres that I have only used twice. I came back from Rainier this week after wearing them for two days and both my big toes are completely numb. I don't think it's frostnip (although I'm not sure) .. I think it may be the boots. My question is has anyone ever experienced this before, has anyone ever experienced this before with Koflach Degres, and to all the podiatrists out there, what is going on with my feet? Will the feeling return?

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Last summer I did a climb (can't remember which one; might have been Cannon Mountain) and my right middle toe was pseudo-numb for about a week afterward. It was like it had strong pins-and-needles when I put pressure on it to walk or when I squeezed the base of it between my fingers. It wasn't dibilitating, just annoying. It went away and hasn't been a problem since. I figure I just pinched a nerve while climbing.

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I once rented a pair of Raichle plastic boots for Adams that inflicted terrible pain in an unusual place- the side of my foot. Usually if a boot will hurt it is because it pinches my little toes. With plastics, they either fit or they don't. There isn't much breaking in. If you got them at REI, take them back and try a different brand. My Scarpa Invernos have been a dream come true. It's SO nice not having to think about your feet.

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I lost some feeling in bits of my left foot after a few weeks in the tropics wearing nothing but sandals. (Chakos) My left foot is bigger than my right, and I'm pretty sure it was just cutting off circulation.

 

Anyway, it lasted for quite a while, not sure exactly how long but days or weeks but it came back eventually and it didn't cause any further problem that I'm aware of.

 

I have a pair of Degrees as well, and the inner boot will pack out at least a half size, so if they're too tight, the problem will probably fix itself.

 

But I'm not a doctor or anything so what do I know... rolleyes.gif

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Could be your boots are a bit too small and you're pinching a nerve somewhere. Are your toes pressing up against the tip of the boots when descending? Or...maybe your boots aren't snug enough & your feet are sliding forward. Those used half-size-too-small Eigers I wore on Serpa & Shuksan last summer left the tips of my toes feeling numb for a long time. My then new rock shoes, seemed to agravate the problem too. New boots and rest solved the problem.

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Thanks for the replies everybody. sverdina you may be right .. my boots are a tad bit small but I bought them that way on purpose so the inner boots could stretch to a proper fit. Since this was only my second trip with these boots they probably haven't broken in all the way (although they're probably getting there now). That in combination with my tendency to kick harder than I need to on steeper slopes probably caused the numbness. It's good to know others have had the same problem and that the pain will eventually go away.

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If you keep experiencing the same problem whenever you wear the boots you may want to get a different pair. You can eventually damage the nerve and the numbness may not go away if you repeatedly compress it. The same thing happened to me when I wore Koflach's a few years ago. After a month of numb toes, I went to my doc and that's what he told me. I wear Lowa's now.

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This problem is definitely from pressure on the nerves from the boots being too tight. It almost always comes back, but it can take months. The first time I got this was on an Outward Bound trip when I was 18. My entire big toe had no feeling for three months, all from one descent of Grandfather Mountain. If you can't make your boots fit any more loosely, you need more boots or this will continue to happen. (My One Sport leather boots will sometimes do this to my left foot, which is a little bigger than my right, but only if I lace it too tightly, so the boots are still usable.)

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After spending a few weeks in my Koflachs Arctics I couldn't feel a few of my toes at all for several months. I would aggrivate the situation every time I went out for some weekend ice. I found that my toes were getting bent backwards a bit with every step, since the soles of the boots are so rigid. Solved the problem by removing the stock insoles and putting in some superfeet. Helps hold my feet in a better position and they are no longer numb....at least because of those boots.

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Plastic boot shells can be shaped to fit your foot better - at least for some foot shapes... I have a pair of Koflachs, they're the right length but too narrow. The boot fitter told me to get a pair of custom insoles and bring the boots in for re-shaping. In my case it's not that complicated, the big toe needs a little more space to the side and the opposite side of the foot also needs a little more space, this is apparently not hard to fix.

 

Why I want to wear those plastics is another story entirely... I just bought them because they were selling for $50 at the garage sale. I've been trying to find an excuse to use them since, without any success.

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Why I want to wear those plastics is another story entirely... I just bought them because they were selling for $50 at the garage sale. I've been trying to find an excuse to use them since, without any success.
You got a pair of those Asolo AFS Guides from the REI rental program didn't you? I also got a pair of those. I used them a year and then replaced the liners. Dave Page had some liners for only $60. The are comfortable and very warm, however they allow very little ankle flexibility, which is why I picked up a pair of Invernos (also at the garage sale) for $114 for ice climbing. I save the Asolos for easy glacier slogs.
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  • 2 years later...

I've had the same problem a couple times over the years. The numbness goes away after a couple weeks/months and doesn't come back until you re-aggravate it.

It does sound like a pinched nerve.

I would suggest the better insoles, as suggested above, to keep your feet from smashing forward on kicking/downhills, and would suggest wearing the boots to work and around the house to break them in the rest of the way without the added weight of a backpack or the impact from downhill travel - that should let the liners get used to your foot shape.

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