How do I choose the best size skates for me when buying online? There's many criteria to take into account when fitting skates, including the shape of your foot, the model of skates and even your individual perception of reality!! (call me a hippy!). Here we bring to you some tips, advice and general musings on how to choose the right size skates for you.
Skates sizing tips...
Intro:
Hi Welcome to LocoSkates - We’re going to be talking about how to buy the correct size skates today. We get lots and lots of questions about how to choose the right size skates and we’re going to try and give you a further insight right now.
Perception:
The perfect fit is a completely subjective ideal. Everyone perceives comfort differently. What I consider to feel too small, the next person might perceive as perfect. Similarly, one skater might be happy in a 'toe curled' position whereas the next skater requires lots of free toe space. Give yourself the best chance of getting it right first time.
The science to buying the right size skate?:
We’ve done extensive testing on many models of skate to try and find a science to buying the right size for you. Unfortunately, it turns out that there is no formula to be found. We found that you simply can not measure your foot and then measure the insole of a skate to find the correct size. The reason for this being that some people have a longer big toe, some people have a longer 2nd toe, other people have a higher arch so when they put weight on their foot it spreads in a different way.
We've found that the insoles of many skate models were not completely accurate to the size of the boot they were trying to fill i.e. some insoles fell short of the length inside the boot so measuring the insole can be deceiving too!
We've also found it’s really hard to know what part of the heel of the insole to start measuring from because everyones heel shape will differ.
Size Tip:
Because each model of skate is differently sized, the only real way to judge whether you are buying the right size skate is to try them on. Of course, you can’t do this when purchasing online. The next best option is for us to attempt to judge the fit of the skates for you using the best knowledge we can (not 100% accurate because ‘fit’ is so subjective, but better than a blind guess!) Simply to look on the ’Size tip’ displayed in the description for each pair of skates on our website for our expert advice. We’ll let you know if a particular model fits small or fits big. You’ll find most models to fit accurately and you can simply buy your regular shoe size.
Width:
If you have a wide foot then, depending on the model you may have to size-up. Again, look at the size tip on our website to see if we list the skates as narrow.
‘Breaking in’ New Skates:
Keep in mind that when your skates are new they are going to feel tighter than when they are bedded in. This is because the foam inside the liner will be all new and plump! Once you’ve worn them a couple of times the foam will get flatter and things will start to shift around inside the skate and create some more room. If you are unsure if your skates are fitting then we’d advise wearing them around the house for a while (only on carpet) so you can still send them back if you need to to see if they bed in nicely.
It’s also worth mentioning that the natural skating position is one with bent knees. When you stand up with bent knees then you’ll notice that your heels are pushed back into the heel cups of the liner thus creating more room for your toes at the front of the skates. Keep this in mind when trying skates on for the first time (bend your knees, get a feel for how it’s going to feel when in action)
To make sure you are fitting your skates in the best possible way:
-Use our size tip guides on LocoSkates.com website
-Round the size UP if you are between sizes or unsure
-Bed them in by wearing them around the house for a while
-Bend your knees when trying them on
-Use our free size swap service if they are still too small