There is nothing wrong with have svelte ankles! (That is what I tell myself anyway.)
I use tongue pads to get a good fit with high volume boots. Tongue pad example on Amazon. They stick inside the tongue and let you get more lace pressure on your instep in situations like yours.
You can make your own once you sort out your needs as well.
Not the Prio, but I own the HFS and had the same problem. I had to size up to get enough toe-room, which left the mid foot feeling rather loose. The insole for my HFS is identical to that of my Lems and Altra shoes, but there is much more volume around the midfoot.
Only thing I can suggest is putting in tongue pads to reduce volume; use ones that can be layered like this brand. I like the HFS, but when I wears out I'll be buying a different brand due to the midfoot volume issue.
I’m not sure which Fresh Foam model you have, but I’ve found New Balance heels to work great for me. If you’re considering a new pair, the newest 1080v12, the RC Elite v2, and the Rebel v2 have all felt great on my achilles. If you like a firmer/lower stack shoe, the Adidas Adios 6 also works great with the notched heel.
As a potential stopgap, I used these super cheap tongue pads to add a bit of extra cushion under the laces while dealing with that foot pain. It may make the shoe a bit hotter, but they seemed to work well for me as I recovered.
Best of luck working through it!
This may or may not work with non-laced shoes, but I just learned about tongue pads. They're little fluffy/padded stickers kind of like heel-grips, that adhere to the tongue of a laced shoe or possibly just the top of your shoe wherever it's too loose. Maybe that would help your sliding-forward problems.
I've used these from Amazon.
Any shoe store. Here is the link to Amazon. You just pull of the adhesive backing and stick on the tongue where you can't see it when you wear the shoe.
https://www.amazon.com/Pairs-Felt-Tongue-Shoes-Large/dp/B0030KSCCA
Yes, it should help to make the boot fit about 1/2 size smaller overall. There are also tongue pads and heel pads that you can stick on, but I have no experience with those. Link
Yes. I’ll use tthese or make my own out of a sheet of foam.
But there are tons of options. Wool ones, foam ones, leather ones, synthetic ones.
Maybe I'm using an incorrect term. I'm referring to this type of product. I've got a pair that I sized up just slightly to accommodate my incredibly wide feet; in particular, I feel that a tongue pad would be a better fit than heel grips/pads.
I'll likely just buy something that seems good, but I figured I'd tap into the community here to see if there were any particular recommendations.
These ones worked well.
What are you using them for though? Tongue pads and heel pads have different purposes.
Here are the ones I got, just with more per pack.
Tongue Pads may solve your heel slip and reduce the impact of the laces on the top of the foot. Might be worth trying.
Tongue pads.. they push your feet back into the heel and it helps prevent slippage.
Get some Tongue Pads.
Have you tried insoles? Generally if i find a pair that are too big, ill put some thick insoles in them and potentially some tongue pads as well.
http://www.amazon.com/Pairs-Large-Tongue-Shoes-Adhesive/dp/B0030KSCCA
Good luck, hope that helps.