Toughening up feet for a long hike......

[Sarcasm the elf]

Walk around the block barefoot. I did as preps for my first LD hike and it worked, no blisters. However, I did have serious blisters after my first walk around the block in my neighborhood (~0.5 mile walk on black asphalt), and they hurt for a few days really bad, but better to hurt at home than on the trail.

I now run barefoot a few times per month to keep them toughen'd up.

This is my recommendation as well. I barefoot walk and do light barefoot running on pavement and it's amazing how quick the calluses build up and how quick your stride changes.

Regarding altitude. In my minimal experience going from my sea level house to Utah or Colorado, I recommend you give up drinking alcohol for the duration of the trip, drink extra fluids and get extra sleep.

[Pedaling Fool]

Howdy neighbor...I also live n AB....I'll keep eye out for the crazy guy jogging barefoot on this hot asphalt!


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Yeah, I see you live in Neptune, just across the street (Atlantic Blvd).

Don't look too hard, because now I'm in the D.C. area dealing with family matters, but when I get back you'll probably have a better chance of spying that fool pedaling around with big ass bags attached to his bike

[saltysack]

Ha... We moved last year to AB off Seminole rd..:


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[saltysack]

This is my recommendation as well. I barefoot walk and do light barefoot running on pavement and it's amazing how quick the calluses build up and how quick your stride changes.

Regarding altitude. In my minimal experience going from my sea level house to Utah or Colorado, I recommend you give up drinking alcohol for the duration of the trip, drink extra fluids and get extra sleep.

Thx... I plan not to drink a week or two before the trip as well...it's going to be hard not drink my favorite beverage though....Sierra Nevada!!!


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[Sarcasm the elf]

Thx... I plan not to drink a week or two before the trip as well...it's going to be hard not drink my favorite beverage though....Sierra Nevada!!!


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Trust me I feel your pain. When I went to Golden, CO I was at a different brewhouse almost every night, but it caused huge hangovers even when drinking in moderation and made the dayhikes at 9,000ft misersble.

When I went to Salt Lake City this January I mostly swore off booze for the trip and it made for a completely different experience, had a great time and felt alright (but a bit tired) the while time, including when summiting a 10,000 footer.

[saltysack]

How did the altitude affect your daily mileage. Just curious


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[Sarcasm the elf]

How did the altitude affect your daily mileage. Just curious


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More than my mileage it affected my speed. It's a wierd feeling where my muscles felt relatively fine, but I was constantly out of breath, almost like my body was walking but my lungs thought i was sprinting. The hiking took alot more exertion and i had to really watch myself to make sure that I wasn't pushing myself too hard too fast. My solution to mitigate this was to walk at an almost comically slow pace, especially when going uphill.

[RED-DOG]

put "rubbing alcohol" on your feet atleast 2-3 times a day for a month before your hike it will toughen your feet and it does prevent blisters

[Traveler]

Rubbing alcohol will toughen them as well, I've heard.

Colin Fletcher recommended this as a good foot toughening regimen. By the time the bottle was used up, you should have feet like steel.

[saltysack]

put "rubbing alcohol" on your feet atleast 2-3 times a day for a month before your hike it will toughen your feet and it does prevent blisters

Thx...I'll give it a dhot


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[Pedaling Fool]

Ha... We moved last year to AB off Seminole rd..:


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Yeah, I run by that street, but I don't stay on it, because I hate how narrow it is and it's full of traffic a lot because, it's basically the only way out of that large housing area, since you got the beach to the east, the golf course to the west and Hanna park to the north; south is the only exit for all them households -- I don't even ride my bike on that road and I don't mind riding in traffic. But there are some nice neighborhoods to run thru back there.

[saltysack]

only concern is how thick are your socks. I wear about the same size differential but normally just use nylon dress socks instead of wool or thicker socks. this is with thick sole hoka shoes. hopefully, the leuko will work with your socks/shoesize combo. I like the nylon dress socks out there in sierra especially. you can wash them every 4 hours and they dry in an hour or less. they are slippery and vent well too.

I've never used Leuko tape...where do u buy?


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[Old Grouse]

I've never used Leuko tape...where do u buy?


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I can't find it in any store but it's easy to get on Amazon.com

[saltysack]

I can't find it in any store but it's easy to get on Amazon.com

Thx....I've looked at lots of stores locally before w no luck..I'll order


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[Wyoming]

It sounds kind of crazy but what I do to toughen my feet is break all the rules about how to take care of your feet.

That is when I go for training walks I wear cotton gym socks, deliberately tie my shoes loose so my feel slip a little, walk on pavement when it is hot to overheat the feet, the cotton socks also get my feet sweaty. All the things which can cause blisters so the callus's thicken up.

re the hiking at altitude. As you probably know the breathlessness comes from a lack of red blood cells. It takes 2-3 weeks depending on physiology and age for your body to build up the extra red blood cells you need when you go up in altitude.

[just dad]

I have also had foot problems (blisters etc) during section hikes. The thing that has worked the best for me is to jog with no socks starting a month or so before the hike. If you're not a runner, then wear your shoes around the house without socks. Definitely toughens the feet.

I second this suggestion. Use an old pair of whatever you hike in and spend a month or so before your hike walking, jogging, running, etc. without socks. You may need to work through a few sets of blisters, but it will get your feet tough for the trail.

[oldwetherman]

Soaking feet in a strong solution of tea was discussed here on WB a few years ago. The tannic acid is supposed to work well for toughening skin. A Google search on it will give you all the details.

[bemental]

Soaking feet in a strong solution of tea was discussed here on WB a few years ago. The tannic acid is supposed to work well for toughening skin. A Google search on it will give you all the details.

Drinking the tea foot bath subsequently toughens up the immune system.

[Berserker]

Best thing for toughening up the feet in my opinion is to just walk a lot. I still a got a few blisters when I did the JMT in 2013, and it wasn't a show stopper. Make sure to have supplies along to deal with them as required, and it shouldn't be a big deal. The thing that almost derailed my hike was the 6 days of smoke from a wild fire.

Since altitude was mentioned a few times I thought I'd mention what I did before the hike. I spent the first night in the Tuolumne Meadows campground (around 8,600'), and that help significantly with the acclimatization.

[Pedaling Fool]

Best thing for toughening up the feet in my opinion is to just walk a lot. I still a got a few blisters when I did the JMT in 2013, and it wasn't a show stopper. Make sure to have supplies along to deal with them as required, and it shouldn't be a big deal. The thing that almost derailed my hike was the 6 days of smoke from a wild fire.

Since altitude was mentioned a few times I thought I'd mention what I did before the hike. I spent the first night in the Tuolumne Meadows campground (around 8,600'), and that help significantly with the acclimatization.

True, but just make sure you do that walking before getting out on the trail, because blisters on the feet suck, but they don't suck nearly as bad as blistered feet while hiking -- that goes beyond simply sucking.

That's why I walk/run on pavement, because I toughen them up before the hike (much better to have blistered feet sitting at home) and also you don't have to spend as much time walking, since it's such a rough surface.