Plantar/Instep pain ARGH

Has anyone experienced this with their skates? I purchased a pair of Klingbeil boots two years ago, when I first started skating. They were on the stiff side, but they were always comfortable. I always tied them a little loose, but of course, that led to edge problems. I tightened the laces, but I always found that my plantar/instep would have this ache as I skated. The boot is a perfect fit, but this seemed most prevalent when learning new elements (funny, when the elements become comfortable, it doesn't hurt to do that element at all). My coach suggested tightening at the ankle, but leaving the plantar/instep looser. Even when I only tighten the ankle, the plantar/instep still has that ache.

If you've experienced this, can you tell me what you did to alleviate it? My coach and I think it's actually me putting too much pressure on the feet, rather than the boot being too tight.

Is the pain on the bottom of your foot like from how high your arches are, or across the top, or the entire circumference?

Do you have pronation of your feet? If you do have pronation, there is a possibility that when learning new elements you are "training" your feet to bend a certain way that eventually the feet are able to adapt. We don't usually think of how to bend our feet when skating, but for people who have a pronation problem it's important.

I tighten my laces very tight from the ankle up only, leaving the foot to feel relaxed but not flopping around. What it means is that they loosen up faster when I'm skating, so I end up getting off the ice a lot to re-tighten, but at least my feet don't hurt in the middle. I'd rather deal with inconvenience than pain. (I have dead nerves in the foot that pronates, so I can't feel how tight my skate is until after I'm actually skating on it for a few minutes. I have to go by how loose the laces look rather than how tight the skate feels).

I did that today, treesprite, and it helped! What also helps me, believe it or not, is actually taking my time when I tighten my laces, rather than just tightening them and stepping out onto the ice.

Also, I do have pronation. Regularly, I wear orthotics to keep my weight evenly distributed, which has helped me in walking and with exercising. When I skate, I tend to lean more to the outside, which helps the "pain."

I'm glad it helped. Skate lacing is a very individualized process, seriously. I always take a long time with my skates, because if I'm not comfortable I'm not going to enjoy the skating as much as I know I can.