Cold feet- Is this just a girl thing?

A snowHead

My feet get seriously cold and painful whilst skiing. Last january in Tignes they were so painful by the end of the day I thought my toes might actually fall off. I was reminded of this joy whilst at the chill factore the other day. :

A snowHead

buy Little Hotties (from ebay?) - you put them on your boots at the start of the day and they keep your toes off freezing all day. Make sure they are the toes ones not the hands one as they wont go in your boots. I didn't think they would work - they do (and much cheaper than the electric heater things). I use them for adults and children.

It's not a girl thing having cold toes (but moaning about it all day on the slopes might be . . . . . . . . . . . )

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

billyh, If you dont have bad circulation it could be a boot or sock issue. Are these problems with your own boots or hire boots? What type \ thickenss of socks are you using? These could have a direct effect.
I've only used the hand warmer types, one of the 'precaution' from their web site states:-

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I have good boots, good circulation, good socks, relatively fit and not a small lad but at -15c my feet get cold !!

Used the toe warmers for a couple of seasons (only need them Dec to Feb) and the kids use them as well and never a problem.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

alti - dude, At -15c most of us would get cold! Smile

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Not a girl thing. Eric Berthon, ex world mogul champion, now an off piste guide, uses boot warmers.

After all it is free

Generally a girl thing along with cold hands, IMV.

Always dry the liners overnight. Having liners that come out of the boots is bonus for this..
Clean socks on per day.
Warm up properly before you ski ...which is why walking to the lifts isn't such a bad thing.. and keep moving and don't chill.
If the day is too much for you, then hot drink stops.

A decent hat and decent gloves possibly with silk liners would be the start point.
I always rotate gloves daily giving them a chance to dry out... not that my gloves get wet much, but...

other than that, I'm done

Yep, Hotties. My OH loves them.

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Well I must admit that Helen Baxendale was my main reason for watching.

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I always get too hot skiing, feet and hands included, and I very rarely wear a hat. This might be because I'm a Europe in March skier (temperatures rarely below -5ºC). If you really don't enjoy the cold, you could try skiing later in the season when the temperatures are warmer?

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Some people use neoprene over-boots.

You know it makes sense.

Frosty the Snowman, Laughing

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

[quote="JT"]Generally a girl thing along with cold hands, IMV.
/quote]

not for me, but i inherited from my mum, bad circulation, reynords they call it.

i've had bike rides ruined cos my hands get so cold is just destroys my body and mental spirit. i've done mostly ok in winter. i've got a good set up of thin but warm liners and waterproof outers.

as for feet, when i ride in winter i have waterproof boots, and for skiing had most definetly suffered cold toes. sometimes thinner socks seem to work better as they don't constrict blood flow and allow me to (try and) wiggle my toes. thinner socks are also more comfy in your boot as they can't bunch up.

i'd look into merino socks as the material is great for heat regulation. i've got merino socks and base layer and they always keep me just right, even on the coldest days. I had some merino liner gloves which were great too till the thumb started to untwine itself. no thumb, no so warm.

worst comes to worse, look for some nice liners to replace your current ones. intuition (by scarpa) ones are very comfy and have worked in my touring boots with no complainets. they also don't smell...yet...

A snowHead

Personally I think wool is a poor idea for socks...as the wool, does not retain its shape over any decent sort of period as well as a mix..

I have X-socks 3 times older than my Smartwool socks and in far far far better and supportive condition.
Wool is good for a lot of things but retaining shape isn't one of them,. IMV

I use wool for golf and skiing and shape is the biggest drawback and they tend to ruffle up.......

A snowHead

Thanks for all the comments. My own boots fitted in EB Castleford by a guy called Julian and don't think they are too tight. He did comment that I'd got cold feet when I had my boots fitted and I'd just taken off a pair of uggs which doesn't bode well. I keep boots in a boot room which is heated but not on heated racks so perhaps I could dry them better in my room. Tried different socks including a thicker pair of smartwool-expensive mistake Embarassed

Not tried really thin ones as I was concerned my boots would then feel too big but perhaps I will give it a go. Does anyone use heated insoles and do these fit in boots with custom beds? All said would this stop me skiing-never Very Happy

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

billyh, you can get them with custom footbeds but they add a layer of about 1-2mm thick over the top so if you can give up that space they are worth it.. I have them and they are ace... just be careful when a lift swings round from behind it doesn't break one Sad

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I have hotronic M4s^

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I also have hotronic M4s - wouldn't ski without them.

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I too can't ski without my bootwarmers in the cold.

Funnily my kids and husband are OK, but my feet get cold. I read a book on hypothermia once and there are physiological reasons why women tend to get colder hands and feet. They retract their blood to protect their core (and womb). Consequently women are more likely to loose fingers and toes due to frostbite but less likely die from hypothermia. Of course there will be people (men included) with poor circulation as well, these are general statements.

It does though point to the need to keep core warm and then there will be less blood diversion back to core.

After all it is free

billyh, My Swiss friend uses boots with the warmers in them - there is little rechargable power pack that she clips onto the boot in the morning and she says it lasts most of the day and helps her.

I have not yet (thankfully) suffered from cold feet in ski boots. This in itself is most unusual as I suffer from cold extremities more than most and am def. a 'greenhouse flower'. What I do find helps is to dry the boots overnight and not leave them in the locker room unless on one of the heating devices that the posher hotels offer. I have a boot dryer device which also warms them a little by the morning and it really helps to put on warm dry boots over warm dry socks in the morning. There is nothing IMV that will make feet much colder than putting on cold, clammy, ex sweaty boots in the morning.

Just returned after the first skiing holiday using heated insoles - how did I ever ski without them? My husband says it transformed the experience - so much time and euros saved not sitting in bars while I tried to thaw out my frozen feet and moaned in pain! At -22 I still had some pain even with the heaters, but much less than usual, and once it got slightly warmer my feet felt great. Heated insoles seemed expensive before I used them, but I'd now say they were cheap at the price as they transformed my skiing experience. Little Angel

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What works in snowboard boots? I get super cold fingers and toes Sad

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I've suffered from painful cold toes on the last couple of holidays and I think I've worked out why. I often tighten my boots up a bit too much on the first couple of runs, then undo them on chairlifts etc to ease them. However, I think doing this means that water leaks in .. and my feet get wet and freezing!

I now take the entire liner and footbeds out every night and dry everything out .. then TRY not to do my boots up too tight to keep the water out. I had it cracked by the last day, didn't undo the boots all day and my feet were warm as toast. Yay.

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Nadenoodlee, i just get really cold hands, but i've stuck the disposable handwarmers into my boots instead (under my feet, in between two pairs of socks) in norway on a -16degC night-time excursion and it worked a treat.

i have found that you've just got to get them started about ~60 minutes before you think you're gonna need them, using them in this way and the normal hand-warming way. i haven't actually snowboarded like this, mind, so maybe the proper disposable feet warmers may work better cos they're smaller? just a thought.

Thermic Lionpack user here.. I like having warm feet Smile

You know it makes sense.

ooooh, maybe a way to keep my feet warm without shelling out a £100 - like that! what do these Little Hotties things look like - are they a thin (how thin?) pad you put under your toes? do they workk like those hand warmer, in which case presumably they are a layer of gel than be too thin? Jst concerned about fitting into boots. cheers

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I wouldn't put those hand warmer things into boots etc. If you do burst one, you're going to have hot gel directly on your foot, which will take several seconds at least to get away from the skin, could lead to burning etc. And burned feet is incredibly painful and inconvenient.

Not entirely sure I like the idea of electrical systems either, but if well insulated definitely seems like a safer solution.

A snowHead

billyh I'd get you ankle flex assessed, lack of flexion will give these symptoms, as the flucrum effect caused can restrict blood supply to the toes as well as making the forefoot very painful.

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

The toe warmers I have used are the iron filing type and they stick to the outside of your socks. They do stick but it's a bit of a palaver to stop them moving when you put your boots on. You can stick them over or under your toes and best you start them off in advance (they do last for hours). I was glad of them in Big White at more than -25

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sherlock235, holidayloverxx, Your boots are obviously far too big if you can fit them in! Very Happy

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anarchicsaltire, nope, i was only walking around in my boots, not riding in them. i'd consider using a slimmer foot warmer if i needed to use one whilst snowboarding.

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anarchicsaltire, Oh, believe me they aren't - that's why it's a palaver wink

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I haven't got room for anything else in my boots, so it's really important to dry them out properly each time they're used. I use the Dryzone gel pack dryers.

After all it is free

Spyderman, Yup - I stick those in my boots each night and hang them above a room heater or by a sunny window during the day. great bits of kit for keeping the feet toasty.

Carol Walls,

I agree with all you have said. We ski in Canada all the time, through some very cold condtions and without my warmers I would last maybe 1 hr tops before a warming break and loads of pain. Now I still do get cold feet sometimes but I don't get the pain on rewarming that has on occasion reduced me to tears. It has to be good value in terms of the extra hours skiing and the cost of a lift pass

Help!!

Cold feet- Is this just a girl thing?

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