Unfortunately my current shoes are on their way out due to lots and lots of wear. As much as I want to go shoe shopping for some new ones, I think it’s time to start wearing some of the boots I’ve got stashed away. I generally size my shoes bouldering tight, which means they are going to need breaking in. Having experianced a few different pairs of climbing shoes now, I’ve found that the breaking in period is always different. My Evolv Shaman LV took around 2 months, whereas my Five Ten Anasazis LV took about 2 weeks. Branding, fabric, sizing and your own foot shape makes each breaking period unique. Of course climbing shoes will wear in as you climb, but sometimes it’s hard to get them on your feet to start the process!

Here are a few tips to help:

– Use plastic bags over your feet to help you slide into your shoes

– Instead of breaking them in on your climbs, try wearing them at home for 20-30mins over a few days

– Wear your climbing boots whilst wearing very thick socks

– Heat your shoes up with a hairdryer until the rubber is warm to touch and then quickly put them on, let them cool down on your feet so the shoes mould to your foot shape

– Try stuffing the shoes as tightly as possible with thick socks before heating them up, and let them cooldown with the socks still inside to help stretch them out

– Wear your  boots at the end of your climb to practice some easy problems

You can mix and match some of the tips above to suit your needs. I hope this helps to make your climbing sessions pain-free!

Leave your own tricks for breaking in boots in the comments 🙂

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