Why a tight strap is important and how to stretch the strap if it is too tight.

Archies Thongs have been designed with a tighter strap than normal thongs. This is because in thongs with a loose strap, the toes claw down in an attempt to keep the thongs on the feet. Normally when you walk your toes are supposed to point / bend upwards. When the toes point / bend upwards, this activates the arch of the foot which helps provide protection and support to the vital structures of the feet. When the toes claw down such as when trying to keep the thongs on the feet, the arch does not activate correctly which means that you do not get the protective support from the arch of the foot like you are supposed to. This can leave the foot tired and achy, vulnerable to stress and potential injury such as issues relating to the plantar fascia.

The tighter strap found in Archies Thongs and the super lightweight design helps the thongs stick to the user’s feet which helps to reduce toe clawing and subsequently the user is often able to walk with a far more natural gait cycle than what they would be able to in other thongs which are typically heavy and have a loose strap. This is one of the main reasons why many Archies Thongs users often report being able to walk for ‘miles and miles’ in their Archies Thongs without pain while in normal thongs this never would have been possible.

We STRONGLY suggest that you educate your patients / customers as to why a tight strap is important and also that you ALWAYS ask them how the strap feels for them as for some people it will just be too tight and will need to be stretched.

It is important for you to know, if the strap feels a little too tight for the customer at first, that the strap is very elastic and within a few days of wear, the strap will gradually stretch and mould to the shape of their feet.

However, if the strap feels too tight for your customer or if they have a particularly wide foot, then you should stretch the strap for them as it is very, very easy to stretch the strap and the toe pole with your hands until it reaches their desired level of tightness.

How do I stretch the strap?

Click here to watch our quick video on how to very easily stretch the thong strap!

Step 1: Ask your patient / customer exactly where the strap feels too tight.

Step 2: Before stretching the strap, always inspect on the underside of the strap for a material joining line. Occasionally, a joining line in the material will be present and is indicated by a faint line through the underside of the strap. While under normal circumstances the strap is very strong, if you stretch the strap directly on a joining line, it can break with little force, so never stretch the strap directly on a joining line! Please note, there is always a moulding joining line on the outside of the strap, it is always in exactly the same spot on the strap and is present on every single thong, this is not a material joining line and is not weak like the material joining line.

*See the faint material joining line above. This is a weak spot.

Step 3: To stretch the strap, simply hold the strap between your fingers and in small little increments stretch each section of the strap where it feels too tight. You can do the same for the toe pole if this feels too tight. Continue to do this, getting the customer to try the thong on and off, stretching the strap and toe pole until it has reached their desired level of tightness.  

IMPORTANT! It is important to note, that while the straps are very elastic, once stretched, the strap will not return to its original tightness, so please be careful not to overdo the stretching!