Your feet, like your hands, are ''extremities'' and, as such, are subject to difficulties keeping them warm in cold weather. After all, your toes are the furthest away from your heart, which supplies warm blood to your entire body. The distance blood has to flow and the amount of blood available to those areas limits how much heat reaches your toes. Further more, your body reduces blood flow to extremities when it gets cold to preserve the heat in your core to keep your organs functioning. Wiggling or exercising your toes can sometimes help increase blood flow enough to help keep them warm.
Good, dry, insulated boots are a first good step toward keeping your feet warm. In really wet weather you may need to wear rubber boots or galoshes or over-shoes to keep your feet dry. Insulated work boots help prevent you from losing the heat from your feet. Snow-boots are usually made of fabric and can be quite warm and comfortable but might not provide the impact protection you need for many outdoor activities. You can buy insulated OHV boots, cowboy boots and insulated hiking and work boots.
A good sock system is another way to keep your feet warm. And yes, that is a sock system, not just a pair of socks. A proper sock system will include a fairly thin layer next to your skin that can wick away perspiration and protect your skin against abrasive movement that can cause blisters. On top of that you will want to wear appropriate layer(s) for insulation to prevent heat loss and keep the warmth your feet get from your blood from escaping. Wool is an excellent material for socks as it continues to retain its insulating quality even it it gets wet. Summer and winter I usually wear a pair of thin dress socks beneath my motocross socks in my OHV boots to prevent chafing and blisters. They make my feet noticeably hotter in the summer but do seem to ad a bit of insulation in the winter.
Tall boots will keep your feet warmer than low topped shoes. Close fitting tops will retain heat better than loose, open tops. Tall boots or gaiters will help keep your legs warm, which in turn, will keep the blood going to your feet warmer. With that in mind, wearing full length thermal underwear can also help keep your feet as well as your legs warmer.
Chemical heat pads are available to help keep your feet warm. You usually place them near your toes as they are the most vulnerable to heat loss. They typically last about 8 hours but sometimes will need to be pulled out and reactivated by shaking. Do that in a warm environment if possible so you won't lose more heat than you gain!
Battery-powered electrically heated socks are another option. Personally, I haven't found them to be very effective. In the first place they didn't get very warm and in the second place the batteries didn't last very long. I also found the bulk of the batteries banging around my ankles kind of uncomfortable. I only tried one brand so there may be better ones out there. For me warmer boots and warmer socks are a better solution.
Just stomping your feet or wiggling your toes can help simulate blood flow to help ward off the cold. Rolling your ankles might help bring more blood to your feet too.
Getting your feet next to a campfire or other heat source is a good way to warm them up. Just be careful you don't get too close for too long. You can easily get up the soles of your boots enough to burn your feet if you aren't careful. When dirt biking in the desert we liked to build our campfire in what we called R2D2, and old washing machine tub. I put it on an outdoor RV table pedestal to lift it a few inches off the ground so we could stick our could toes underneath to get them warm. I've seen people put their boots right into a campfire to get their feet warm but be aware that by the time you begin to feel the heat the soles and steel shank may have gotten hot enough to burn you before you could get your feet out of your boots so exercise caution if you every resort to this! Campfires and stoves are also a good pace to warm up your boots before you put them before going outside for a little added comfort on cold days. Be aware that it takes time for the heat to penetrate your boots. Don't keep your feet too close to the fire for too long. If you wait until it starts to feel too hot the residual heat will probably cause burns even after you move away from the fire. If your footwear or pants start smoking, back away from the fire immediately!
If you have a warm environment available (RV, cabin, vehicle, tent, etc) you can go inside and remove your cold boots and tuck your feet into a blanket, warm towel, or sleeping bag to get them warm. I find that kind of sitting Indian style and tucking one foot behind the knee of my other leg and clamping it between the thigh and calf helps warms my foot from both sides, then switching sides every few minutes until both feet are warm. That might a really important if you are think you are starting to get frostbite. I use an old pair of snow boots as my ''desert bedroom slippers" when camping. They are easy to get on and off and keep my feet warm around camp.
When boating, keeping your feet dry will go a long way towards keeping them warm. Being out on the water means you have a good chance of getting water in your boat and your feet are likely to be subject to more extensive exposure than other parts of your body. In wet weather or when dealing with a lot of waves splashing into the boat, wear waterproof shoes or boots instead of the canvas shoes you normally wear. When you feet do get wet, change into dry socks and shoes as soon as it is practical. Lacking waterproof footwear I have seen folks tie plastic bags over their shoes for some protection. Some folks prefer going barefoot on their boats. While it exposes your feet to abrasion and other injuries proper foot gear might protect against, it does allow you to dry your feet quickly and avoid the consequences of sitting around in wet shoes and socks. Allowing your feet to remain wet can result in additional injury or damage to your skin so keeping them warm and dry becomes a priority. Weather permitting, going barefoot will let you dry your feet more easily as needed.
Speaking of frostbite, contrary to a very old bit of folk medicine NEVER rub snow on frostbitten areas. This practice was definitively proven ineffective and even dangerous way back in the 1950s. Frozen areas should be rapid warmed up using moist, controlled heat. Putting frozen skin near a campfire or hot stove can result in burning the frozen flesh! Tuck frozen extremities next to warm body parts (yours or someone else's), put them next to hot water bottle, or cover them in warm water. BTW, don't rub frozen skin with anything as rubbing will further damage the affected tissues.
Now you're hot footin' it!
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