I’m guessing if you are here you’ve got some pretty obnoxious heel lift going on in your snowboard boots. It really is the worst, and one of the hardest parts of boot fit to get just right. But you are in the right place. I’m going to go through some solutions, some you can do to your current boots and some things you can look for when buying your next pair.

check out our other article on – The Top 5 Snowboard Boots to Help With Heel Lift

Why is heel lift so bad?

When your heel lifts up it pulls your toes back from the end of the boot. This puts more pressure on the toes and forefoot and, most importantly, reduces the energy transfer to the board, especially for those toe side turns. Overtime this can cause blisters or numbness in your toes, on the balls of your feet or the top of your feet from the friction. Not being able to get the leverage you need to make a proper toe side turn can really hinder your progression, which is why heel lift is the absolute worse, especially for beginners. Beginners can become frustrated feeling like they are in the proper body position and doing everything right but still not seeing the desired results.

Heel lift can also force riders to think that they can fix the problem by just tightening their boots or bindings, but over tightening you boots and/or bindings can lead to even bigger problems. Over tightening can lead to loss of circulation in your feet, which has its own consequences such as making your feet feel super cold, as well as bruising on your calves and shins. Riders also try to wear multiple pairs of socks to help. Two things wrong with that: more socks actually make you colder not warmer (that circulation thing) and also wearing multiple pairs of socks will pack out your boots much more quickly and will likely make your heel lift problem worse.

What can be causing it?

Unfortunately the cause is not just one thing, which is why this problem is so hard to fix, but we’ll get into that soon. Some of the common culprits of heel lift:

you have super skinny ankles, and the boot is not fitting properly around them

your boots are too big overall

the padding in your boots has compacted and ‘lose grip’

Why is it hard to get just right?

The simple answer is that all of our bodies are different and move in slightly different ways. All the manufacturers have a hard time accounting for all of our nuanced differences. This is why its a really good idea to check out several different brands, since some run small, some have wide toe boxes, some are great for skinny calves. Manufacturers don’t advertise these features so you just have to try them on to see what works best for you.

Another reason it’s tough to get the fit just right, is because boots pack out. Many people buy what they think is the perfect boot, only to ride half the winter and realize their boot is not the perfect boot and now can’t be returned.

How can you fix heel lift?

The good news is that there are many options and because feet are weird and each is different (sometimes even from each other) you may even need to use a couple different solutions together to get the best results.

Heel anchor harness

Dakine used to make these heel anchors. They wrap around the outside of your boot liner and use your laces as leverage to keep your heel down. Though they don’t make them anymore I can usually find a few listings on eBay for them new.

J bars or any other derivative

J bars are just small foam pieces shaped like a J, usually with velcro or some way to stick them to the outside of your liner. They help fill in the extra space in your boot around your ankle and can eliminate heel lift. They are also pretty cheap. You can also get J bars custom made, which of course are … less cheap. Now aside from J bars there are a few other inserts that vary in shapes that you can give a try if the J bars don’t work.

Thirty Two makes a heel hold down kit, which is made for their boot liners, but can also work with others as well.

Then there are butterfly wraps, these work kinda like J bars, but they wrap all the way around the ankle for a tighter, more firm hold.

Dual lacing systems

The main reason over tightening rarely works is because with standard laces and some other lace systems you cannot pin point the ankle so you end up tightening the boot everywhere, but not where you actually need it. In dual (or triple) lacing systems you can target the ankle area for a better fit. Double and triple boas are great for this, along with Fast Track lacing.

Custom orthotic inserts

Custom inserts can really make all the difference. They are great because it’s something that can be used even if you are renting. They can make sure that your arches are supported through those turns, and better support your heel to keep it from lifting. I would recommend custom insoles even if you are not experiencing heel lift since they make your boots feel 100% more comfortable especially towards the end of the day when your feet really start to get tired.

Heel wedges

Heel Wedges fit underneath your insole. They raise your foot a bit to help get rid of that extra space, and put less pressure on your toes. They are great for people with a small instep, because raising the instep against the tongue of the boot closes the the gap and creates a tighter fit.

heat molding

If your current boot liners are not heat moldable try to make sure your next pair are heat moldable. Any ski shop can help you with the proper way to do it, and also do it for you with you in store. When heat molding the liner, you stand with your toes on a block driving your heel into the boot liner, this helps to set up a really nice pocket for your heel. Heat molding can help with heel lift, but also makes sure you get the most out of your boot and the snuggest fit.

Specific boot types

check out our other article on – The Top 5 Snowboard Boots to Help With Heel Lift

Some boot manufactures are adding some special tech inside their boots specifically to combat heel lift. Solomon’s STR8JCKT technology is an example of this.

Here’s also a link to the women’s STR8JCKT boot

And the lesser known Northwave Freedom’s 360 Heel Hold

They are coming up with new things every season so check out your local ski shop and ask what new tech they carry.

Final Notes

There will always be a tiny bit of heel lift, but it’s alright to have a very small of heel lift when you’re carving hard on your toe side. This is because while you are going through those turns you are compressing the boot liner with the pressure of your turn. Nothing you can do about that, all boots pack out. You just want to make sure this lift is just barely noticeable.