This is what I don‘t understand....

[AlphaCharlie]

A soldier‘s feet are THE MOST important part of their body. Without heathy, pain-free feet a soldier is rendered ineffective.

So what bothers me, is that the government won‘t spend some decent coin on BOOTS THAT ARE COMFORTABLE. We spend almost all day in our boots yet they have soles with rubber, wood and steel, providing NO shock protection, and little comfort.

Same with the rucksacks... having 100% of the weight on your shoulders/neck is horrible for you! hip support is needed for all rucksacks...

hmm.....

 

[Da_man]

use insoles

 

[AlphaCharlie]

Originally posted by Da_man:
[qb] use insoles [/qb]

aye, that‘s what i‘m doing now, but still, after 3-4 hours of moving you‘re feet are gonna hurt no matter what insoles you have.

 

[meni0n]

The gortex boots are very comfortable you just have to finish basic to get them.

 

[McInnes]

My area you don‘t get gortex boots till after your trade‘s training.

 

[portcullisguy]

Those Gortex boots are comfy, but I find that mine are crap for any marching, especially on pavement. I‘ll take the Mark III‘s any day for marching. The Gortex seem to lack ankle support. Maybe I just need to lace them tigher, I dunno.

The ruck should have a proper hip belt and what not, I agree. In the mean time, try and lighten the load, or distribute it so that the weight is as high and centred to your back as possible. If the weight is all in the valise, or away from the body, it will seem heavier and there will be more movement/bounce, which will strain your neck muscles quicker.

 

[CI Dumaran]

Not many militaries invest in the "perfect" boot simply because it is not cost effective.

I could think up the best boot ever...
- Shock absorbing gel in the core of the heel
- edge padded steel cap and shank
- quick lace
- breathing sides
- padded and comfy neck
- custom orthotic arch support
- etc...

Spending top dollar on boots is less important--to the brass in charge of spending--than, say, a new patrol vehicle.

All you can do is use insoles, get perfect fitting broken-in boots and use an arch supporting insert... or Dr scholls gel insoles...
I spent the whole summer at Connaught on Staff and Dr Scholl‘s Gel insoles where great!

Or hey, if your feet are hurting that bad, go to the MIR and get a chit so you can wear aftermarket boots. Magnums and other such "police" duty boots. I know a couple officers and NCMs that have such chits.

as for the ruck... The advice given about was perfect.

 

[IceHawk]

mmmmm.....Dr. Scholls, "I‘m like MA-gellin I‘m sooooo gellin!" Seriously tho, when I first joined my unit my section commander told me to go with Dr. Scholls and they worked great! Some good inserts should hold you until those new CADPAT boots come thru in the next year or so.

 

[48Highlander]

Or you could stop complaining and deal with it. Being a Pte(R) you probably have no idea yet how bad your feet can hurt. You‘ll learn, you‘ll adapt, and your feet will get tougher. Just make sure you have good insoles, good socks, and give it some time.

 

[Jungle]

Originally posted by AlphaCharlie:
[qb]

Originally posted by Da_man:
[qb] use insoles [/qb]

aye, that‘s what i‘m doing now, but still, after 3-4 hours of moving you‘re feet are gonna hurt no matter what insoles you have. [/qb]

You should get used to the kit you‘re issued. After more than 20 years, I still wear the MK 3 with issued insoles. When you deploy to some of the more exotic locations, Dr Scholl‘s will not accompany you, and you will have to go back to issued stuff, so get used to it.
BTW, if your feet hurt that much after 3-4 hours, you either have to train more to harden your feet, or change your line of work.

 

[Sh0rtbUs]

Originally posted by portcullisguy:
[qb]
The ruck should have a proper hip belt and what not, I agree. In the mean time, try and lighten the load, or distribute it so that the weight is as high and centred to your back as possible. If the weight is all in the valise, or away from the body, it will seem heavier and there will be more movement/bounce, which will strain your neck muscles quicker. [/qb]

Thats interesting you say that, because our course staff told us that the lower the weight, the better. have you tried both and have come to the conclusion that lower is better?

 

[48Highlander]

lower is better. putting too much weight too high makes it harder to balance which means you have to strain your back more while carrying it. that‘s why a lot of people prefer the jump-ruck, it has the sleeping bag on top instead of the bottom.

 

[MedCorps]

The WO (Jungle) has wise advice. I too use the Mark III with the issued insole. Not because I like it, but becuase when I deploy to some God-awful spot, it is quite possible that I will not a a re-supply of all the "jammie" kit people like to train with.

If we ever go to War (with a capital W in this case) it will not be a 6 month deployment. The Canex will not be the priority, nor will it sell all the good stuff you have come to rely on in training. Another example is people who eat those high energy "Gel packs" when on Rucksack marches. They swear by them... they come to need them (psychologically or otherwise) to complete them mission. Yep... no NSN for high carb, high glucose gel packs in war.... doom on you. The list can go on and on (electric razors, GPS watches, MSR stoves, water filters)

The endstate is this. If you are issued it, you will have it overseas. If your not issued it, do not count on it once yours breaks, wears out, is thiefed.

MC

 

[chrisf]

I agree with you about everything except the insoles... the issued insoles provide little or no cushioning... while yes, you can get your feet used to them, that‘s not the issue... your knees are going to go... it‘s not of if, but more so when... it‘s from the shock placed on them... using a proper insoles can delay this for a very long time.

You‘re no good to anyone if you‘re crippled.

 

[mattoigta]

The issued insoles actually warped when I used them. They would always move under my feet and fold over itself, and would come stuck that way. After about 3 pairs I gave up on em and now I‘m "gellin" as the commercials say.

 

[chrisf]

Are the gel ones actually any good? I‘m using doctor scholls foam ones right now, the sport ones... they work fine for me, though if I can get better insoles, why not.

I tried some ones with extra padding in the heel once during basic when we were getting ready for the final parade, so there was a **** of a lot of drill... feet were great, but I found I every time I halted it was like jumping on a trampoline...

 

[mattoigta]

I actually don‘t feel a huge difference between the Gel and Foam insoles, and now that I think of it - it seems to me that my gel insoles wear faster than the foam ones i‘ve had.

 

[Slim]

The mark III boots are, for the most part, fine. The odd person will have trouble with them and need special insoles.

When you think that, not so long ago, we used to do PT in those boots and go on runs in those boots, they can‘t be that bad.

A lot of it has to do with your feet toughening up. If you are going through basic right now then this is the time that your feet will hurt the most, as they have not yet gained the hardness required for the long marches, ect.

I would say give yourself some time in before you run off to spend money on some $300 dollar pair of Danners or Matterhorns.

Bear in mind too, that if you are wearing non-issue boots and hurt yourself, the CF may not cover you!

 

[CI Dumaran]

Meh, I wear Mk3s, magnums, Altimas... I like my Mk3s with the issued insoles.

I don‘t "gell‘in" on FTEx or field training... as stated above it‘s impractical.

On parade I am "gell‘in" just because all that standing, though I could easily enought suck it up, numbs my feet.

by far the most uncomfortable boot is the CF issued (early) desert boot. There was no support and the boot was not rigid enough to hold the foot when carrying heavy weight. Oh well, I got used to them.

 

[MedCorps]

The newer desert boots are quite nice. Fond of them, I am.

Here is a little known fact about combat boots and knees. Vibatrim soles for the Mark III combat boots are quite en vouge. So in style, the CF thought, "Hey, maybe we should just issue troops with the Vibatram sole verus having to pay for all those combat boots to get re-soled once a MO writes a chit for them".

So DCIEM (Defence and Civilian Institure for Environmental Medicine in Toronto did a study to see if the impact force on the knees was lower with the Vibatram sole. Turns out, Vibatram soles are worst then, or as good as the normal sole of the Mark III combat boots, with repsect to energy transfer to the knees while doing a bunch of activities.

Makes you think when you see all these people with the tricked out boots

MC