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Ski boot adjustment after pregnancy

HikenSki

Angel Diva
Hi all,
Soooo looking forward to getting back out on the slopes again. My season was cut short last year due to being pregnant. Now that I'm no longer carrying around a little human, it's time to get back on the snow. I knew I would likely need my boots adjusted after pregnancy with feet possibly becoming longer and wider. Post-partum weight gain plus changes during pregnancy meant moving my top buckle to the widest notch just so I could buckle them. Length seems good, no toes banging the front. Width on right foot seems good but left foot will need to be punched out a hair around the pinky toe. The strangest thing is I feel knock-kneed now. I did not need to have any canting done before but it feels like my left leg now wants to lean inwards when I flex looking straight ahead. Did anyone need to have their boots canted after being pregnant? I figure my hips changed during pregnancy and now my stance is all wonky. I'll be seeing my awesome bootfitter on Thurs to get these boots back in order. When he found out last May that I was pregnant, he commented he would see me again in the fall. Heehee
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
@HikenSki - what boot are you in?
I'm in men's Lange RX 120lv boots, purchased last year in the fall before the season started and before I got pregnant. Ha!
 

Jilly

Moderator
Staff member
Commenting on the top buckle...have you moved the whole receiver over. There are 3 positions for it on the "strap". You may need an Allen key that came with the boots.
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
Commenting on the top buckle...have you moved the whole receiver over. There are 3 positions for it on the "strap". You may need an Allen key that came with the boots.
Yup! Found my Allen key and moved the whole receiver over. I didn't think I had another notch until I looked more closely from inside the boot. Once I did that, I was able to get that top buckle closed and so far, just chilling here in the house, have gotten it buckled halfway without discomfort so I'm not at the widest setting, which is good. I have some booster straps on their way here to replace the stock power strap which I've never really been happy with. My calves got big due to the weight gain and lack of running since June. Ugh.
 

brooksnow

Angel Diva
A change in your calf to the point that you had to move the receiver could change the angle of your leg coming out of your boot, which could cause the new knock kneed stance.

I'm curious to hear what your boot fitter says and does.
 

StayWarm

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I'm very curious to hear about your experience getting your boots adjusted post-pregnancy! If I may ask, what guidance did you get from your doctor about how long it was okay to keep skiing during your pregnancy? I've just found out that I'm pregnant (:yahoo:) and am hoping to keep skiing for at least a few more months!
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
I'm very curious to hear about your experience getting your boots adjusted post-pregnancy! If I may ask, what guidance did you get from your doctor about how long it was okay to keep skiing during your pregnancy? I've just found out that I'm pregnant (:yahoo:) and am hoping to keep skiing for at least a few more months!
My doctor wasn't exactly thrilled but said she wasn't going to stop me, especially since I was very fit and a good skier that naturally skis cautiously and is very aware of my surroundings. Were I a beginner I would not have skied. I skied until 16 weeks. By that point my pants were starting to get tight and I was more aware of my belly and didn't want to take any further risks. I skied slower, avoided crowded runs and times, and stuck to more gentle terrain (no steeps or bumps for me or icey runs). I've always listened to my gut and if something didn't feel right with my body or with my surroundings, I took a break or called it a day.
 

StayWarm

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
My doctor wasn't exactly thrilled but said she wasn't going to stop me, especially since I was very fit and a good skier that naturally skis cautiously and is very aware of my surroundings. Were I a beginner I would not have skied. I skied until 16 weeks. By that point my pants were starting to get tight and I was more aware of my belly and didn't want to take any further risks. I skied slower, avoided crowded runs and times, and stuck to more gentle terrain (no steeps or bumps for me or icey runs). I've always listened to my gut and if something didn't feel right with my body or with my surroundings, I took a break or called it a day.

This all makes sense to me. I think I'm going to be taking it very much a day at a time, slow, and sticking with familiar terrain. I did tell my husband a few months ago that the fastest way for him to guarantee that he'd win our ski-days-in-a-season competition would be to knock me up! :rotf:
 

Kimmyt

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I got boots about a year before my final pregnancy and they never fit great but they were tolerable. After my pregnancy they were excrutiating so I ended up just getting new ones. I'm much happier now in my new boots!
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
I got boots about a year before my final pregnancy and they never fit great but they were tolerable. After my pregnancy they were excrutiating so I ended up just getting new ones. I'm much happier now in my new boots!
I hope it won't come to that since my DH just spent a lot of money on new boots for himself. After wearing them in the house, it looks like I'll need the pinky toe area punched out a bit on each boot (poor little toes are falling asleep and tingling). I also strangely feel knock-kneed when I flex, so will see if he can fix that. Such a strange feeling to feel wobbly when looking straight ahead and flexing.
 

Jilly

Moderator
Staff member
Just shows how that little human can change your anatomy. I suspect your hips are a little wider and it's changing your Q angle. Canting should fix that.
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
Just shows how that little human can change your anatomy. I suspect your hips are a little wider and it's changing your Q angle. Canting should fix that.
LOL, No kidding! I'm thinking this is what happened. Will be interesting to see the fix.
 

mustski

Angel Diva
Yup. Pregnancy is weird. I lost all my baby weight quickly with no problem, but I completely changed size in clothing - everywhere! Pants, blouses, dressed, bathing suits, bras, underwear, and shoe sizes all changed.
 

Kimmyt

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I hope it won't come to that since my DH just spent a lot of money on new boots for himself. After wearing them in the house, it looks like I'll need the pinky toe area punched out a bit on each boot (poor little toes are falling asleep and tingling). I also strangely feel knock-kneed when I flex, so will see if he can fix that. Such a strange feeling to feel wobbly when looking straight ahead and flexing.

Yeah, my fit wasnt great beforehand which didnt help. I made myself suffer through four years post-baby of them just to recoup some of the costs, and then I got new ones. By the time I got new ones I would have been happy to watch the old ones burn they caused me so much pain with skiing. I hope some punching and canting fixes your issues! You might also consider getting new footbeds molded, if your arches fell a bit or something causing the foot spread which resulted in the pinky toe pain, a new insole might help.
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
You might also consider getting new footbeds molded, if your arches fell a bit or something causing the foot spread which resulted in the pinky toe pain, a new insole might help.
Hmmm...very possible I may need new footbeds. I currently have the pink Superfeet heat insoles in there because the soles are very thin compared to my previous footbeds which made the boots even more cramped when I had them transferred over from my old boots.
Fortunately, these happened to be an end of year sale price so if I need to eat it, the pain won't be too terrible. But still. DH's new boots and my demo pair of Liberty V82w skis I bought back in Nov used up our fun money. Baby plus new home insulation plus new fireplace insert leave little extra cash laying around...
 

liquidfeet

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Just shows how that little human can change your anatomy. I suspect your hips are a little wider and it's changing your Q angle. Canting should fix that.
The loosened joints form all those hormones may also affect your foot's mobility permanently. That can enable more pronation (knock-knees) than before. A good bootfitter can determine whether a new footbed is called for.
 

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