View Full Version : Toe socks vs toe blisters...
Hangfire
02-28-2015, 23:44
Just thought I'd throw it out there to anyone who has ever suffered from toe blisters either on the ends or in between that toe socks work wonders for these problems. I was advised this about this time last year by a 2 time thru hiker that toe socks worked wonders for him. I had suffered horrible toe blisters on the Camino the year before (lost 3 toenails) and was hoping i could figure something out other than duck tape. I ordered up some smart wool 1/4 top toe socks which I used as liners under my smart wool mediums and they absolutely did the trick. They are a little strange to get used to at first, but they eliminate the toe rub issues that I was having in Spain, plus that smart wool really keeps the odors at bay. This issue seems to affect people with longer toes like myself(werewolf toes) so if this is at all a worry to anyone getting ready to tackle the AT or any trail for that matter give them a shot!
http://www.amazon.com/Smartwool-Mini-Socks-Medium-Black/dp/B00HCSZCMY/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1425181139&sr=8-11&keywords=smartwool+toe+socks
mtntopper
02-28-2015, 23:54
Do you think that your boots were too small? If so this could have caused the toenail lose.
Sirsnappy09
03-01-2015, 00:17
I used to get toe blisters due to the build of my feet. I switched to injini toe liners about 7 Years ago and problem solved. They work great.
brancher
03-01-2015, 09:20
I just picked up some new hiking shoes yesterday, and picked up some Injinji liners there as well. So far, the liners have done great, everybody says they are the best solution..... but too early to tell.
Plus, I had to go up another size and get a wider toe box shoe (turning into a Hobbit in my old age....)
Injinji Hiking 2.0 toesocks are great for preventing blisters... I have 3 pairs in my pack for my thru-hike... I don't wear liners and my shoes are low trail runners and I have no isuuses hiking 10+ miles a day..can't say enough good things about Injinji toe-socks...
Injinji's work fine for me, but are a bit of PITA to use and wear out relatively quickly; I might get 500 miles out of a pair before the ball of the foot is wearing through. Other socks tend to wear out in other places, FWIW. Injinji's take longer to dry when wet, too, then my thin (yet durable) liner socks.
I'll bring Injinji's if I know or strongly suspect I'm having problems. If not (or really, regardless), I'll carry one or two silicon toe spacers. What I use looks somewhat like this:
http://www.armadasilicone.com/uploadfile/product/big/Silicone-Insoles-395.jpg Though mine are round in plan (looking down on) view, not oval. Too small and they fall out or do no good. Too big and they push your toes too far apart and can cause other problems. But for me these work well, to include recently when I already had a toe blister --- the separator in place for a week or so on the trail allowed it to heal up as I walked.
Of course it depends on what part of the toe the blister is, and, related, what's causing the blister.
What doesn't work at all for me is this: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41VwFwzzk1L._SL160_.jpg
At least for me, trying one of these on I found it fit so tightly it felt like it limited the blood supply to the toe, and yet within about a mile of walking it had come off and was just rattling around in my socks, another annoyance until I was able to stop and take it out.
This stuff seems a bit tricky to get right and very individual, but finding an approach other than just toe socks is helpful IMO. If your blisters are on the tops or bottoms or ends of your toes, then this won't help, but if it's based on toes rubbing together, I suggest that you try out various toe separator options and see if you can find something that works for you.
Injinji liners+Darn Toughs... What are blisters?
dangerdave
03-01-2015, 20:10
+1 What Elewolf said!
Turtle-2013
03-01-2015, 20:51
Injinji liners+Darn Toughs... What are blisters?
ditto Elewolf :)
squeezebox
03-02-2015, 00:47
Here's a different idea I just had. A lot of the shoes we wear kinda push our toes together. With enough time our toes grow that way. I find toe socks that spread my toes to be very comfortable, my toes aren't jammed together. So if we wear toe socks most of the time , maybe cotton balls between out toes to spread them.
I've heard that ballet dancers wrap their toes in wool felt. Maybe after a while our toes will spread and not rub against each other as much. Look at your daytime shoes for a bigger toe box. Just thinking!
my toes are already crammed together from wearing too tight shoes as a child. No way to fix that now. Toes socks drive me bonkers, the most uncomfortable socks out there, for me. Couldn't wear them. Gave them to my kids, who love them, but their toes aren't crammed together because I made sure their shoes always fit correctly.
Traveler
03-02-2015, 08:24
Just thought I'd throw it out there to anyone who has ever suffered from toe blisters either on the ends or in between that toe socks work wonders for these problems. I was advised this about this time last year by a 2 time thru hiker that toe socks worked wonders for him. I had suffered horrible toe blisters on the Camino the year before (lost 3 toenails) and was hoping i could figure something out other than duck tape. I ordered up some smart wool 1/4 top toe socks which I used as liners under my smart wool mediums and they absolutely did the trick. They are a little strange to get used to at first, but they eliminate the toe rub issues that I was having in Spain, plus that smart wool really keeps the odors at bay. This issue seems to affect people with longer toes like myself(werewolf toes) so if this is at all a worry to anyone getting ready to tackle the AT or any trail for that matter give them a shot!
I looks like you are describing two problems with perhaps a similar source. Losing toenails is typically an indication your boots/shoes have a too small toe box for you. Blisters on the ends of the toes or on the toe joints are usually related to footwear that is too small. The blister conditions can sometimes be mitigated with a change of socks (toe type or standard), going to a thinner, thicker, or smoother material. The toenail issue is unlikely to be mitigated with socks and usually requires a change in footwear itself. You may be treating a symptom and not the underlying problem if you have not fully investigated the shoes you are using.
Become a Blister Whisperer (http://unboundroutes.com/2014/08/31/the-blister-whisperer/)
Hangfire
03-02-2015, 23:14
30131I actually was wearing running shoes a full size bigger than my feet. The steep descent coming out of the Pyrenees was what really did the damage, probably some slipping going on in those shoes.
Sorry for the gnarly image but I love this picture!
Sirsnappy09
03-03-2015, 15:19
Shoes with a narrow heel and wide toebox really help. I had issues with my forefoot and toes being squished together Altra shoes are awesome. I wear line peaks and have zero issues now.
The biomechanics of people's feet vary widely and blacktoe and subsequent loss of toenails is not always directly attributed to wearing shoes with to narrow or short toe box. Marathon runners often get it with correctly sized running shoes. And you know how those stretch. I have walked five Caminos now, twice from France to Santiago on the Frances Route, once from Sevilla to Santiago, last year from France to Santiago on the Northern route and this year from Lisbon to Santiago and on to Muxia. I wore Source sandals on the last two, Teva sandals on the earlier ones and I always lost 3-4 toenails after they turned black. And when they first turn black they are painful as $#@*! I have always had the problem whenever my mileage climbed up to beyond 15 or so/day. I know its the way I walk, that my toes constantly grip down upon the bed of whatever footwear I have and if it is done enough over a long time they turn grey then black and a few weeks later peel up and peel off. My sandals have NO toe box. My problem is from the peculiar bio-mechanics of how I run or walk. Its a pain in the.....foot!
30131I actually was wearing running shoes a full size bigger than my feet. The steep descent coming out of the Pyrenees was what really did the damage, probably some slipping going on in those shoes.
Sorry for the gnarly image but I love this picture!
One of the big issues with wearing oversize shoes, as many do, is it is very difficult to tie them sufficiently tight to prevent slippage. Large shoes just want your foot to slide forward or sideways or let your heel fly up and down in the shoe. I always tell folks to buy whatever shoe fits your fancy as the best for you, but, if you can't tie the shoe tight enough to prevent your toes from hitting the end of the shoe, or your foot sliding sideways, or your heel slipping badly up and down, then you just do not want to buy that pair no matter how much you think you like it.
saltysack
06-22-2015, 16:51
30131I actually was wearing running shoes a full size bigger than my feet. The steep descent coming out of the Pyrenees was what really did the damage, probably some slipping going on in those shoes.
Sorry for the gnarly image but I love this picture!
Looks like u could use a pedicure!!! Trim those nails.. U can borrow my grinder![emoji2]
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Injinji liners+Darn Toughs... What are blisters?
Yeah, I just finished a section from Damascus to Harpers Ferry, 553 miles. I wore this combination of socks and although my feet got sore during the day, I was pleased each evening that I had no blisters.
saltysack
06-22-2015, 22:18
Yeah, I just finished a section from Damascus to Harpers Ferry, 553 miles. I wore this combination of socks and although my feet got sore during the day, I was pleased each evening that I had no blisters.
I think I may give this a shot..a few months back I did from SI campground to NOC..started around 7 at night headed to cheoah bald...my shoes and socks were wet for most of the trip....I got blisters between my toes...not sure if the toe socks would prevented but now I carry an extra pair of socks and body glide. I'm planning to do a JMT shakedown hike from woody gap to deep gap next month.
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Vegan Packer
06-22-2015, 22:58
I got blisters between my toes...not sure if the toe socks would prevented
This was my chronic problem before switching to Injinji toe socks. Not a single blister since. Give them a try.
Buttercup01
06-25-2015, 04:49
Bodyglide and properly sized boots. ..
I have started using toe socks due to a callus on the interior part of one toe, that becomes sore while on a hike. No issues on the one hike I went on since switching over.
saltysack
06-25-2015, 11:12
Bodyglide and properly sized boots. ..
I just bought some body glide to try.....I've only got blisters between my toes when feet stay wet...does the body glide prevent this when applied between toes?
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I just bought some body glide to try.....I've only got blisters between my toes when feet stay wet...does the body glide prevent this when applied between toes?
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That would be the plan. Another treatment that is often helpful is a nightly and morning dusting with Goldbond foot power (this is one of my favorites when I am in a situation where my feet are wet all day). Also one can use foot balm for restoring the moisture in the skin of the bottom of the foot if that is also an issue (I realize you did not mention that).
But keep in mind that something is 'causing' the blisters and the body glide is treating the symptoms not the cause. As you have time to experiment you need to determine what the cause is for you and try and eliminate it. It can be lots of things. The wrong size shoe as Butter mentioned (it could be too big and is allowing too much movement, or it could be too small and constricting the toes too much), the wrong socks for you (what is needed vary's widely amongst different people), not having your shoes tied correctly and thus the shoe is slipping around to much, and it can also be your biomechanics in how you walk (many people generate their problems due to their not having the 'ideal' mechanics (pay attention when you are walking - do you lift your toes inside your shoe when you walk?). The mechanics can be retrained if one is persistent.