Question: The “One finger thickness behind the heel” Rule. Is it a good indicator of whether you are on the right sized Skates?
Time and time again we hear from experienced Skaters (and even Specialists!) that by sticking a finger behind the heel of your Skates; you can get an indication on whether you are on the correct Skate size. The theory says that if you can get your finger half way down the back, there’s about 5mm allowance at the front, and if the finger goes all the way down to the bottom, there’s about 10mm allowance. This assumption is sometimes correct but gives extremely unreliable results.
Not only is this method unreliable but it also makes the assumption that every Skater has a standard foot width. For people with wider feet they may feel like their toes are touching the end of the boot but really they are only stuck halfway down at the side walls. This is where people make the mistake of getting a larger boot size to compensate. Meanwhile the boot length becomes far too large for the Skater which not only compromises the Skaters performance but also the longevity of the Boot.
We have seen large numbers of both New Zealand AND Australian Skaters with ill-fitted boots using this method.
Useful links:
Edea’s official documentation on how to size yourself
How can I check if I have the right size?