Mike, a transtibial (below knee) amputee, loves his shinfinTM fins, starting with pool laps then open water swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving. Most important, to optimise water balance he wears one fin on his stump and the other on his full leg. Furthermore, he loves the fact that he can adjust the fin heights and angles on his legs. So he can experiment to get the most comfortable fin placements.
Mike’s review from Homestead, USA
“I love the fins! It is so nice not swimming in left hand circles:) No really, I am so happy with the shinfinTM fins and I love being back in the water. I love being able to do laps in the pool and getting ready for open water soon. Thanks for the fins! A happy shinfinTM fins owner.”
Mike’s review: Transtibial amputee fins for pool laps, snorkeling & scuba diving
“Just ordered a pair of shinfinTM fins and excited and am anxious to receive them. I am a transtibial amputee who has been looking for an economical way to get back in the water and snorkle and scuba dive again. I was quoted over $3000 USD for a swim prosthetic and was not going to pay that much. But a search brought me to your web page and, as I said before, I’m excited.”
Reply
Thank you for your order and your email and nice to hear you are so excited about them. Your fins were sent off today, so you should get them within about a week.
Mike
“I love the fins! It is so nice not swimming in left hand circles:) No really, I am so happy with the shinfinTM fins and I love being back in the water. I am taking them on my cruise in May and will try them out in the western Caribbean. A happy shinfinTM fins owner.”
Reply
Great to hear you love them so much. I have an increasing number of amputee customers, so I am always trying learn more to help them. So can I ask how much tibia you have below your kneecap to strap the fin to? What strapping works best for you – any tips?
Is your other leg fine with the fin positioned down to line up with your second toe? Or do you have that fin higher up that leg, to match your amputated leg?
Mike
“You can use as much of my testimonial as you want and I’ll send some pictures with the shinfinTM fins. I had my left foot amputated about 5 to 6 inches above my ankle and I have a lot of leg left.”
“I have tried both positions on my remaining foot and I have found the 2nd toe positioning is a better kick. But it takes getting used to having it at different lengths. If I wear both fins at my amputated height, it feels better but the thrust isn’t as strong because of the drag of my foot being exposed. Hope that helps out other amputees. I took the enclosed pictures sitting here in the house.”
Reply
Thank you for your email and for your permission, the photos are a great help.
Yes, I think having both fins at the same height will give a better swimming balance, and presumably a more symmetrical development of your muscles too. Does your ankle flexibility let you point your toes reasonably well, because this would reduce foot drag? Even a few degrees of extra ankle flexibility makes all the difference, so that’s why swimmers work on it. With the fin at the second toe position, that should help encourage ankle flexibility at the right times in the kick. If this works for you, then you could do some swimming with the fin lower on your foot until your ankle flexibility increases.
Mike
“You may use the pictures all you want.”
“I was in the pool today trying different positioning with the shinfinTM fins on the good leg. I definitely like the fin down to the toes instead of up at my amputation level. Just feels better to me. But I love the fact that you have the choice using shinfinTM fins. So it can be up to the individual to experiment to find “their” comfort placement.”
“I love being able to do laps in the pool and getting ready for open water soon. Let me know if I can be of any more assistance or if you need any action shots of me doing laps in the pool or if you wait until the first part of June I should have some snorkeling pictures from my cruise. Thanks for the fins!”
Reply
Thanks again for your email. Just out of interest, how good is your ankle flexibility? How straight can you point your toes? e.g. how close can you get to a straight “ruler” edge along your shin and all the way along the top of your foot?
Mike
“I have 100% flexibility with my remaining foot. I can straighten it out with ease.”
Reply
Thank you for your email, that gives a good picture. All the best for success.
Conclusion
Transtibial (below knee) amputees will love shinfinTM fins for pool laps, open water swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving and more. Most important, to optimise water balance you can wear one fin on your stump and the other on your full leg. What’s more, you can adjust the fin heights and angles on your legs. So you can find the most comfortable fin placements for you.
Most transtibial amputees fit the fin on their stump if it is long enough. However, as shown in these other reviews, transtibial amputees can also fit the fin on their thigh or on their below knee prostheses. These further reviews show them used by a transtibial amputee to improve freestyle and butterfly, and an above knee amputee for pool, snorkeling and scuba diving.