Top ligament or tendon on top of right foot hurts while diving

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

What did DAN say when you called them for medical advice?

I'm just certified and I did not sign up for DAN yet but I am going to this week

 

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

The ligaments you linked are located on the side of the ankle and the typical injury here are ankle sprains.

Your pain is probably one of two things. I think it is most likely a tender area from the fin as many have suggested. In this case the pain would be localized to the area where the fin contacts the front of the ankle and it would be sore to touch.

Another possibility is a tendon injury from an activity you are no longer accustomed too. Your kick might have been just different enough on the right to cause some discomfort. In this case you might notice the pain is not quite as localized, it isn’t very sore to touch and it probably hurts more to move your foot up and down.

For what its worth I just got a new set of Mares, identical to my previous, and had some ankle discomfort the first few dives, just as you describe, with both sets. Stopped after several dives. I blame it on my high arches.

Very good points, and yes it was sore to the touch only on the right foot but it could just be a case of new fins breaking in. Thank you for the help!

 

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

I'd bet if you switched out to thinner boots - or even went bootless for one dive - you'd get relief. Both my husband and I have had that happen, and it always got better with thinner boots or even socks (mine hurts if I use thick neoprene socks, but not if I use the thin spandex socks). Good luck!

I will give that a try, thank you!

 

[arew+4]

Did not see how new you are at first. Look into other kick styles, I tend to use them all the first few dives of a trip. Just doing the same thing after not having done it in a while can cause soreness. If you mix it up at the start it helps.

 

[Ayisha]

I just finished my OW cert using properly fitted Mares Avanti Quattro plus fins with 5mm booties. They were fantastic but by the 4th dive only the top of my right foot near my shin was really starting to hurt. I think it might be the tendon that runs there. My left foot was perfectly fine with no pain. This was the first time using my new fins so maybe I was just getting used to them? Do new fins tend to "break in" after a few dives? Due to covid this has been my first time back in the water for about a year, and prior I was a avid free diver with no right foot cramping issues. Do you think this was just a case of over working my self and new not broken in fins? I am also use to snorkel finning and not proper scuba fin technique quite yet. Any suggestions on what I should do to avoid this in the future?

I started out with Mares Avanti Quattro fins and also had pain at the top of my right foot and shin. Although they were the smallest size, they were slightly big for me (ladies size 5 feet), which caused slight wobbling of the fin. Smaller straps helped, but my foot and shin still hurt half way through a dive. I knew others who had discomfort with Avanti Quattros as well, but some love them. I gave them up after 1.5 years.

The same thing happened with the smallest (medium) Jetfins for me.

I wasn't sure if it was because they didn't fit snugly or the weight or what.

I finally switched to UTD Precision Neutral fins 7 years ago and never looked back. They have a deeper, comfortable foot pocket, and I have never had any discomfort whatsoever. Deep Six makes similar fins.

Hope you figure it out...

 

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

Did not see how new you are at first. Look into other kick styles, I tend to use them all the first few dives of a trip. Just doing the same thing after not having done it in a while can cause soreness. If you mix it up at the start it helps.

I will look into and try mixing it thanks for the help!

 

[Nitrox_DiverNY]

I started out with Mares Avanti Quattro fins and also had pain at the top of my right foot and shin. Although they were the smallest size, they were slightly big for me (ladies size 5 feet), which caused slight wobbling of the fin. Smaller straps helped, but my foot and shin still hurt half way through a dive. I knew others who had discomfort with Avanti Quattros as well, but some love them. I gave them up after 1.5 years.

The same thing happened with the smallest (medium) Jetfins for me.

I wasn't sure if it was because they didn't fit snugly or the weight or what.

I finally switched to UTD Precision Neutral fins 7 years ago and never looked back. They have a deeper, comfortable foot pocket, and I have never had any discomfort whatsoever. Deep Six makes similar fins.

Hope you figure it out...

Intersting, maybe I should try out a smaller strap. Ill look into the UTD precision Neutral fins. Thank you for the help!

 

[jonhall]

Just trying out different things, like the suggestions given, to rule them out or as a fix would be helpful. Hard to do with scuba unless you have the opportunity and the means. I have the same problem (as well as neuropathy) with my right foot when I wear certain shoes with a stiffer upper - I attribute the pain to the pressure on the nerve or tendon from the upper shoe. Much easier to try on shoes than fins and find something that doesn't cause the pain.

Surprisingly I don't have that problem with fins and I wear both open heel/boots and full foot. I did switch a couple years into diving from a stiff fin to more flexible split fins - had pain in lower legs after a few dives - no pain after the switch.

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I just finished my OW cert using properly fitted Mares Avanti Quattro plus fins with 5mm booties. They were fantastic but by the 4th dive only the top of my right foot near my shin was really starting to hurt. I think it might be the tendon that runs there. My left foot was perfectly fine with no pain. This was the first time using my new fins so maybe I was just getting used to them? Do new fins tend to "break in" after a few dives? Due to covid this has been my first time back in the water for about a year, and prior I was a avid free diver with no right foot cramping issues. Do you think this was just a case of over working my self and new not broken in fins? I am also use to snorkel finning and not proper scuba fin technique quite yet. Any suggestions on what I should do to avoid this in the future?

Okay, I’m going to take a bit different track here. I think you are probably right-handed, and right-footed. That means you probably unconsciously kick harder with your right foot than your left foot. This can contribute to your pain on the top of the right foot.

The Mares Avanti Quattro are plastic fins, and so perform differently in warm, tropical water than in cold, New York water. They are stiffer in the cold water. The Quatto have a nice foot pocket, and a beautifully-designed strap system. But the plastic is definitely stiffer in cold water than in tropical water (which being manufactured in Italy, they are made for the tropical water).

I have found that the Avanti Quattro are harder to push through cold water than some other fins. You might try true rubber fins, or more flexible fins (but be careful about more flexible, as they may not deliver the performance you wish).

I have one other suggestion, but will await this discussion to present it here.

SeaRat

 

[Ayisha]

Intersting, maybe I should try out a smaller strap. Ill look into the UTD precision Neutral fins. Thank you for the help!

Smaller straps or spring straps might help if you think the fin isn't staying put as well as it should when kicking.

The UTD Precision Neutral fins are about half the weight of Jetfins, and maybe even less than that of the Quattros, so it depends if you need heavier fins in your configuration. The UTD Precision *Negative fins have the same deeper, more comfortable foot pocket, but are about the same weight as Jetfins. So it depends if you need heavy fins or can go lighter.

Hopefully you can borrow some different fins (and maybe even boots in case those are the issue?) and see what might work for you..