When it comes to winter sports injuries, orthopedists sometimes see patients who have hurt themselves while ice skating. Continue reading to learn about common issues caused by poorly fitting ice skates and how you can avoid them.

Ankle Sprains

When you select a pair of ice skating boots, it’s important to choose ones that offer you plenty of ankle support. If your skates are loose around the ankles or are soft and allow your ankle to bend at a sharp angle, then wearing them can make you more likely to suffer a sprained ankle. In addition to choosing a supportive pair of skates, practice ankle strengthening exercises if you’ve sprained an ankle in the past and avoid skating on uneven surfaces. Finally, never go ice skating if you’ve recently sprained one of your ankles and it hasn’t completely healed.

Achilles Tendinitis

The Achilles tendon connects the heel bone to the calf muscle. Achilles tendinitis, which causes the tendon to become swollen and painful, can be caused by suddenly increasing your activity level, wearing poor fitting skates, foot problems, and overuse in ice skaters. If your ice skating boots are too stiff or tight, this can put added pressure and strain on the tendon. To avoid this problem, choose boots that aren’t too stiff or tight at the top.

Painful Bumps

Having calluses, bunions, or blisters can quickly take the fun out of ice skating and cause you to put your skates away for the season. If you want to avoid suffering from painful bumps like these this winter, then it’s important to ensure that your ice skating boots do not place too much pressure on the bony areas of your feet. To do this, wear skates that fit snugly but comfortably, and modify your skates with padding to make them more comfortable. If you already have calluses that give you trouble, then speak with your sports medicine specialist about how to remove them.

Able Orthopedic & Sports Medicine specializes in treating sports injuries near Queens . To schedule your appointment, please call (347) 537-2404.