Comfortable fins FAQ

For more comfortable fins, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. Fins on your legs flex in and out to fit different leg sizes and shapes. They don’t fit on your feet at all. So your foot size doesn’t matter.

Furthermore, fins on your legs have flexible, thin tapered edges for extra comfort. Their wide silicone rubber straps are soft and comfortable, and fully adjustable to fit around your leg. What’s more, the straps stretch and contract comfortably, as your calf muscles expand and contract during your kick.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs is more comfortable.

Firstly, fins on legs don’t fit on your feet at all. So they don’t hurt your toes (including bunions and hammertoes) or your feet and arches. In contrast foot fins, even with many sizes, are often a poor fit for our widely variable feet sizes and shapes. So it is hard to find a comfortable pair of foot fins that don’t hurt. Too tight and the pressure hurts. Too loose and they rub and blister your skin, and sometimes fall off. People often try in vain, to make foot fins more comfortable by wearing socks or neoprene wetsuit booties. Or they smear petroleum jelly on their feet where the foot fins rub. Fins on legs don’t have any of these painful problems for your toes, feet and arches.

Secondly, fins on legs leave your ankles, Achilles and calves, supple and flexible. So they don’t hurt your ankles, Achilles tendons or calf muscles. In contrast, foot fins strain your ankles, Achilles and calves by forcing you to point and hold your feet in an unnatural position to kick the foot fins. Fins on legs avoid all these painful problems for your ankles, Achilles tendons and calf muscles.

Thirdly, fins on legs encourage a horizontal streamlined kick which doesn’t hurt your knees and lower back. Less bending and twisting of your knees, means they don’t hurt your knees. Less flexing at your your hips, means they don’t hurt your lower back. In contrast, foot fins require more knee bending which hurts your knees, and more hip bending which hurts your lower back. Fins on legs avoid all these painful problems for your knees and back.

Your toes, feet, arches, ankles, Achilles tendons, calf muscles, knees and lower back will all be much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To avoid painful toe cramps and blisters, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. You can also adjust the fin positions on your legs so they don’t hurt bunions or hammertoes. These comfortable fins give you extra propulsion whilst leaving your toes and feet completely free to move and swim naturally. Fins on your legs don’t hurt your toes because they don’t have foot pockets. So they can’t cause toe pain, cramps and blisters like foot fins.

Foot fins often crush your toes and cause toe cramps. They also rub your toes, give you blisters and hurt bunions or hammertoes. They are especially painful when sand gets trapped in the foot pockets. Often you can’t use foot fins for very long before they hurt so much that you have to stop swimming. Then you may have to wait many days for your sores to recover before you can swim again.

You can test this yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find that your toes and feet are much more comfortable and relaxed, and not forced into unnatural positions when you kick.

Fins on your legs promote a similar kick to swimming without fins, and they don’t hurt your toes. Plus they overcome many other foot fin faults, including foot pain, Achilles tendon pain and ankle strain.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs avoids toe cramps, blisters and bunion pain.

Firstly, fins on your legs have no foot pockets. So your toes are not constrained inside a fin. Your toes and feet are free to move naturally, like without fins.

Secondly, the fins lie gently along the top of your feet as you point your toes during your forward kick (downwards for freestyle and butterfly, upwards for backstroke). The fin tips are soft and flexible. So they don’t rub your toes and don’t give you sores or blisters on your toes.

Thirdly, if you have bunions or hammertoes, you can fit the fins a little higher up your leg. So you can fit the fins to avoid touching and aggravating bunions and hammertoes.

Your toes will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To avoid sore feet, arch cramps, blisters and other foot pain, choose fins that fit on your legs, not on your feet. Then your feet are completely free to move and swim naturally. Fins on your legs give you extra propulsion without hurting your feet. They don’t have foot pockets. So they can’t cause foot pain or arch cramps like foot fins. Furthermore, they fit you regardless of your foot size. You can have small, narrow feet up to extra large, wide feet. You can also adjust the fin height and angle around your leg.

With foot fins, it is very difficult to find the right size and shape for your feet. They are either too big, so your feet slide around in the foot pocket. Or they are too tight, so your feet feel painfully squashed. Either way, your feet press and rub on the inside of the foot pockets. This gives you sore feet and blisters. Especially if sand gets trapped in the foot pockets as well. What’s more, cramps across the arches of your feet are a frequent problem, and dangerous too. So foot fins restrict your feet and force your feet to kick in an unnatural position.

You can test this yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find that your feet and ankles are much more relaxed, comfortable and not twisted when you kick.

Fins on your legs promote a similar kick to swimming without fins, and they don’t hurt your feet. Plus they overcome many other foot fin faults, including toe cramps, Achilles tendon pain and calf cramps.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs avoids sore feet, blisters, arch cramps and other pain.

Firstly, fins on your legs will fit you regardless of your foot size or shape. They also fit if you don’t have feet. Your feet can be very small and narrow, up to very large and wide. Your foot length, width and shape don’t affect how these fins fit.

Secondly, you can position the fins on your leg to lie across your kick direction. Just line up the fin centreline with your toe that matches your kick direction. So your feet move naturally without twisting your feet, ankles, knees and back. This avoids hurting your ankles and reduces knee twisting pain and back twisting strain.

Thirdly, fins on your legs improves your foot movement during your kick. They leave your feet flexible and your ankles supple, like good swimmers kick. Furthermore, they guide the timing of your foot movement, even though you hardly feel them doing this. During your forward kick (downwards for freestyle and butterfly, upwards for backstroke), the fin presses gently along the top of your foot to guide you when to point your toes.

Your feet will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To avoid ankle strain and injury, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. These comfortable fins give you extra power without hurting your ankles. They also tend not to aggravate an existing ankle problem, if you use them sensibly. You may also find that they help with your ankle rehabilitation after ankle injuries and ankle operations. Check with your doctor and/or physiotherapist first of course, and read these tips.

Regular foot fins give many people sore ankles. This is because foot fins force your ankles to point your feet too much when you kick. Also, they make you hold your ankles at an unnatural angle, just to point the fins in the right direction for your kick. This strains your ankle joints and ligaments, and twists your knees. After a while, the ankle pain builds up. Your ankles can even stay sore long after you leave the water.

You can test this for yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find it doesn’t hurt your ankles so much. Most likely, this is because you are kicking with less of the damaging, twisting power going through your ankle joints.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs avoids ankle strain, pain and injury.

Firstly, fins on your legs give you extra power without these problems because they strap just above your ankles. So their extra fin power is connected directly to your legs. Fin power does not transfer through your ankles like with regular foot fins. So they do not hurt your feet or add ankle strain.

Secondly, these fins don’t force your ankles to point your feet harshly. Your ankles do not hurt like they do when holding foot fins rigid. This also reduces Achilles tendon pain and calf muscle cramps. Instead, your ankles and feet are free to move the same way as when good swimmers kick without fins. So your ankles are relaxed and supple, without pain.

Thirdly, fins on your legs don’t twist your ankles unnaturally. Your ankles aren’t twisted like they are when holding foot fins at a particular angle. Instead, these fins can be adjusted around your leg to be perpendicular to your kick direction. You simply line up the fin centreline with your toe that matches your kick direction. This avoids ankle twisting pain and injury.

Your ankles will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To avoid painful pressure on your Achilles tendons and Achilles tendinitis, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. These comfortable fins give you extra power without hurting or damaging your Achilles tendons. They also tend not to aggravate an existing Achilles problem, if you use them sensibly. You may also find that they help with your Achilles rehabilitation after injuries and operations. Check with your doctor and/or physiotherapist first of course, and read these tips.

Foot fins give many people sore Achilles tendons for a few reasons. The heel pockets of closed-heel foot fins often dig into your Achilles tendons. This causes painful sores and bruising. You get similar problems with open-heel foot fins, as their heel straps dig into your Achilles tendons too. Furthermore, foot fins tension your Achilles tendons to hold your feet at an unnatural angle to point the foot fins for your kick. This strains your Achilles tendons. After a while, the Achilles pain builds up. Your Achilles tendons can stay sore long after you leave the water.

You can test this for yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find it doesn’t hurt your Achilles tendons so much. Most likely, this is because you are kicking with less tension in your Achilles tendons, as you no longer need to hold the foot fins pointed.

Fins on your legs promote a similar kick to swimming without fins, and they don’t hurt your Achilles tendons. Plus they overcome many other foot fin faults, including toe cramps, foot pain, ankle strain and calf cramps.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs avoids Achilles tendon pain and injury.

Firstly, fins on your legs strap just above your ankles. This direct connection to your legs gives you extra fin power without increasing tension in your Achilles tendons. So fin power does not transfer through your Achilles tendons and ankles like it does with foot fins.

Secondly, these fins don’t force your Achilles tendons to point your feet unnaturally like foot fins do. Instead, your Achilles tendons are relaxed and supple, like good swimmers kick without fins.

Thirdly, the strap goes around your leg above your ankle. This is higher than the sensitive part of your Achilles tendon where it attaches to your heel. Furthermore, the strap is comfortable, stretchy and wide with soft edges. So the strap doesn’t press uncomfortably into your Achilles tendon at your heel like foot fins do.

Your Achilles tendons will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To reduce calf cramps and avoid straining your calf muscles, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. These comfortable fins give you extra power whilst helping you to avoid calf muscle strain and prevent calf cramps.

Foot fins often cause terrible cramps in your calf muscles. Then it becomes too painful to kick, so you have to stop swimming. This can be very dangerous if you are stranded out in the water, unable to swim. These calf cramps happen because foot fins force you to point your feet and toes unnaturally, to hold the foot fins in position. This works your calf muscles far too much. So your calf muscle strain builds up and you get calf cramps.

You can test this for yourself by swimming without fins. You will probably find that you don’t get calf cramps or pain when you kick without any fins. Most likely, this is because you are kicking with less strain in your calf muscles, as you no longer need to hold the foot fins pointed. So, as your calves don’t hurt when swimming without fins, that tells you that your calves won’t hurt when swimming with fins on your legs either.

Fins on your legs promote a similar kick to swimming without fins. So they don’t hurt your calf muscles. Plus they overcome many other foot fin faults, including Achilles tendon pain, knee pain and back pain.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs prevents calf cramps, and avoids calf muscle strain and pain.

Firstly, fins on your legs strap just above your ankles. This direct connection to your legs gives you extra fin power from your hips, using your larger muscles in your thighs, buttocks and torso. So you don’t use your calf muscles as much as you do with foot fins. Instead, you use your calf muscles much less, similar to kicking without fins.

Secondly, these fins don’t force your calf muscles to contract to point your feet unnaturally like foot fins do. So you don’t have the extra calf muscle strain needed to hold cumbersome foot fins in position. Instead, your calf muscles only move your feet in a similar way to swimming without fins. This means your calves are more relaxed, like for a good swimming kick without fins.

Thirdly, fins on your legs encourage a streamlined kick from your hips, keeping your knees fairly straight, with only a little knee-bend. This further reduces your calf muscle strain because your calf muscles do not need to bend your knee joints as much as with foot fins.

Your calf muscles will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To reduce knee pain, choose fins that strap on your legs, not on your feet. They encourage you to kick with straighter knees. So these comfortable fins don’t hurt your knees like foot fins. They also tend not to aggravate an existing knee problem, if you use them sensibly. In fact, many people find them very useful for knee rehabilitation after knee injuries and knee operations. Check with your doctor and/or physiotherapist first of course, and read these tips.

Regular foot fins can cause knee pain that gets worse the more you use them. This is because foot fins cause you to bend your knees too much when you kick. Also, the leg forces needed to hold the foot fins at their required angle in the water, twists your knees, strains your ankles and hurts your feet. After a while the knee pain builds up. Your knees can even stay sore long after you leave the water.

You can test this for yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find that it doesn’t hurt your knees so much. Most likely, this is because you are kicking with straighter knees and with less twisting of your knee joints.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs reduces knee pain, strain and injury.

Firstly, fins on your legs avoid knee pain because they encourage you to kick from your hips with less knee-bend. Kicking with straighter knees reduces knee pain and strain in your knee joints and surrounding ligaments. It also reduces lower back pain. This is actually how good swimmers kick, with a smooth, streamlined kick.

Secondly, these fins can be adjusted around your leg to be perpendicular to your kick direction. You simply line up the fin centreline with the toe that matches your kick direction. This minimises knee twisting pain. It also reduces calf muscle strain and cramps and Achilles tendon pain.

Thirdly, you don’t even have to kick these fins much to get the benefits from them. Even if you swim mainly with arm power and only kick a little (or even trail your legs), the fins still help to straighten your knees and lift your body horizontal and streamlined. You can then add as much kick power as your knees feel comfortable with.

Your knees will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.

To reduce back pain, choose fins that fit on your legs, not on your feet. They guide you into a streamlined, horizontal body position with straighter knees. This works even if you choose to not kick much and swim mainly using your arms. Fins on your legs don’t hurt your back like foot fins. They also tend not to aggravate existing back problems if you use them sensibly. In fact, many people find they help their back rehabilitation after back injuries and back operations. Check with your doctor and/or physiotherapist first of course, and read these tips.

With foot fins, back pain often gets worse the more you use them. They make you bend your knees too much. So they drop your knees and thighs too low in the water. This causes you to arch your back to maintain stroke balance. The result is painful stress on your lower back and often knee strain too. So this bent-knee kicking style required by foot fins, is what hurts your back.

You can test this yourself by swimming without foot fins. You will probably find that doesn’t hurt your back as much. Most likely, this is because your knees are straighter and your back is less arched.

Fins on your legs reduce back pain because they promote a similar kick to swimming without fins. Plus they overcome many other foot fin issues, including calf cramps and Achilles tendon pain.

Here are three key reasons why choosing fins that fit on your legs reduces back pain.

Firstly, fins on your legs encourage a proper streamlined kick from your hip, with less knee-bend. This gives you a more horizontal body position. This in turn gives you a straighter back with less back arching and less lower back strain.

Secondly, you can adjust the fins around your leg to be perpendicular to your kick direction. Just line up the fin centreline with your toe that matches your kick direction. This minimises back twisting pain. It also reduces knee twisting pain and arch cramps.

Thirdly, you don’t have to kick these fins much to get the benefits from them. You can swim mainly with arm power and only kick a little. You can even trail your legs without kicking at all. Fins on your legs will still help to lift your body horizontal and streamlined. This reduces the strain on your back. You can then add as much kick power as your back feels comfortable with. That way, these fins can help you to gradually strengthen the core muscles in your lower back and torso.

Your back will feel much more comfortable with fins on your legs.