A short note for would-be Barefoot Runners and Others.
I get cracks in my feet and hands when my skin is dry. I had had an irritating but not deep crack in my right big toe for several days before my Table Mountain adventure, and because of it I toyed with whether to go or not. Hence the green/yellow insulation tape "plaster" in the photo of my feet, and that was the second application (I carry a roll with me on such jaunts). The next time I looked down at my feet the "plaster" was gone, and yet I didn't feel any discomfort, so it remained so until I got back home. But after a cup of tea and a long shower, the irritation returned.
Similarly, sharp stones are always uncomfortable but one survives... but if I pause for a drink or a rest, when I set off again, almost however short the pause, my feet complain overly for the first few minutes, and then they largely appear to give up complaining.
It's as if the body adjusts - what used to hurt becomes just mild discomfort, by sheer necessity I suppose.
This principle should be an encouragement to would-be barefoot runners or, indeed, to anyone anticipating an activity that would seem nigh impossible. Persevere. The human body is an amazing machine and it will do its utmost to keep you safe. Of course there are limits, but most of us rarely meet let alone exceed those limits.
Showing posts with label cracks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cracks. Show all posts
20141026
Coconut oil and bare-foot care
I am learning - so anything I have said in previous posts, and anything I now say on the subject of foot care, must be taken with a pinch of salt. Whilst I remain a firm advocate of running barefoot, one downside is that I suffer from cracks. I know this is endemic but the least I can do for the barefoot running community is to share what I have learnt so far. If you are not part of this community you have probably stopped reading already...
I used to recommend Silcocks Base. But then I read the ingredients and found it contains sodium laurel sulphate which as you probably know is the "soapy" detergent ingredient in just about every liquid soap, shampoo, body wash product. Whilst on this subject a work colleague of many years back maintained that all these products, and washing-up liquid included, were are variations on a theme. He therefore used washing-up liquid as shampoo as it is cheaper. I have done the same with no apparent ill-effect. But generally I prefer to use soap. It is cheaper, more efficient and I think may be better for you. As with "running shoes" there is a whole load of advertising hype that convinces most of us that we need separate shampoo, body wash, hand-wash and washing-up liquid. It is therefore likely that most of what we are told is untrue.
Since it seemed to me that detergent was the very opposite of what my feet wanted, I turned to my wife's latest-craze good-for-every-ailment coconut oil. I cannot be certain my change to coconut oil is responsible for a marked improvement in the condition of my feet but it seemed likely. It is at least a natural product which bodes well. If I remember I apply it every night. It is also good for the cracks I get on my hands.
What one is trying to achieve is to keep the skin moist and supple. Running in wet conditions does the same - also a nice long hot bath although in both cases the effect is only temporary. Running on clay or dusty surfaces has the opposite effect and tends to dry out the skin. Dare I say, wearing shoes also keeps the feet moist (sweaty) which is why, I suppose, shoe wearers do not suffer so much from cracks. They suffer from hot and smelly feet instead.
Cracks are caused when thick, hard and brittle skin is forced to bend. Therefore a second line of defence to to keep those areas exfoliated where skin gets unnecessarily thick or has to crease or bend. The best tool that I have found for this is a small rotary sanding band in an electric drill (e.g. Dremel). The one I use is about 15mm diameter and probably has grit P80 abrasive. Apply gently to avoid burning - your nerves will tell you when to stop. Particular areas are the sides of my big toes and the crease under the toes. In neither of these places is thick skin required as they are not "load bearing" whilst running.
Generally cracks do not appear on the "load bearing" surfaces namely the ball of the foot and the heel. If they did it might be a show stopper. The fact that they don't must be a clue to their cause. I suppose that the abrasion caused between the surface of the ground and those areas must exfoliate them and encourage natural regeneration so that the skin is relatively new and thus more supple.
I have a choice of two treatments when cracks appear despite the above precautions (and they still do). In places where the skin is not having to bend (for example the sides of the big toes, or the back of the heels) I apply super-glue. Super-glue has been used by the medical profession so must be relatively safe although some sites say it is toxic. I therefore cannot recommend it even though I use it myself.
In areas subject to stress and bending such as the crease under the toes super-glue makes things worse because it is brittle when dry. The best thing is pink Germolene - the pink version may now be difficult to find. I apply it to the crack then apply fabric Elastoplast which I secure at the edges with superglue as otherwise it will come off too easily. Such a dressing will survive a 5 mile run on roads, although may not survive a cross country run.
I used to recommend Silcocks Base. But then I read the ingredients and found it contains sodium laurel sulphate which as you probably know is the "soapy" detergent ingredient in just about every liquid soap, shampoo, body wash product. Whilst on this subject a work colleague of many years back maintained that all these products, and washing-up liquid included, were are variations on a theme. He therefore used washing-up liquid as shampoo as it is cheaper. I have done the same with no apparent ill-effect. But generally I prefer to use soap. It is cheaper, more efficient and I think may be better for you. As with "running shoes" there is a whole load of advertising hype that convinces most of us that we need separate shampoo, body wash, hand-wash and washing-up liquid. It is therefore likely that most of what we are told is untrue.
Since it seemed to me that detergent was the very opposite of what my feet wanted, I turned to my wife's latest-craze good-for-every-ailment coconut oil. I cannot be certain my change to coconut oil is responsible for a marked improvement in the condition of my feet but it seemed likely. It is at least a natural product which bodes well. If I remember I apply it every night. It is also good for the cracks I get on my hands.
What one is trying to achieve is to keep the skin moist and supple. Running in wet conditions does the same - also a nice long hot bath although in both cases the effect is only temporary. Running on clay or dusty surfaces has the opposite effect and tends to dry out the skin. Dare I say, wearing shoes also keeps the feet moist (sweaty) which is why, I suppose, shoe wearers do not suffer so much from cracks. They suffer from hot and smelly feet instead.
Cracks are caused when thick, hard and brittle skin is forced to bend. Therefore a second line of defence to to keep those areas exfoliated where skin gets unnecessarily thick or has to crease or bend. The best tool that I have found for this is a small rotary sanding band in an electric drill (e.g. Dremel). The one I use is about 15mm diameter and probably has grit P80 abrasive. Apply gently to avoid burning - your nerves will tell you when to stop. Particular areas are the sides of my big toes and the crease under the toes. In neither of these places is thick skin required as they are not "load bearing" whilst running.
Generally cracks do not appear on the "load bearing" surfaces namely the ball of the foot and the heel. If they did it might be a show stopper. The fact that they don't must be a clue to their cause. I suppose that the abrasion caused between the surface of the ground and those areas must exfoliate them and encourage natural regeneration so that the skin is relatively new and thus more supple.
I have a choice of two treatments when cracks appear despite the above precautions (and they still do). In places where the skin is not having to bend (for example the sides of the big toes, or the back of the heels) I apply super-glue. Super-glue has been used by the medical profession so must be relatively safe although some sites say it is toxic. I therefore cannot recommend it even though I use it myself.
In areas subject to stress and bending such as the crease under the toes super-glue makes things worse because it is brittle when dry. The best thing is pink Germolene - the pink version may now be difficult to find. I apply it to the crack then apply fabric Elastoplast which I secure at the edges with superglue as otherwise it will come off too easily. Such a dressing will survive a 5 mile run on roads, although may not survive a cross country run.
20131013
Did I tame my feet?
They call it "tempting fate". Having told the world how to care for one's bare feet, a week later and I have several bad cracks under my big and smallest toe, left foot, and what is probably a thorn in one of the toes of my right foot. Not to mention the off cracks appearing on my heels. I do not think my diet has changed, so why? Not to be deterred I am treating them the usual way and they have improved enough to do short runs barefoot this weekend.
20131005
How to tame your bare feet
I think I mentioned before that I go running barefoot. Initially I carried trainers with me for use on on difficult surfaces. I never take trainers now and I survive. I generally run three of four times a week, usually around 5 miles though sometimes longer at the weekend. Today I ran about 10 miles. So how do my feet survive this onslaught?
Apart from the occasional thorn, or stubbing one's toe, my main enemy is splits. The thickened skin tends to crack particularly in the creases under the toes, especially the large and smallest toe. I also get cracks on the soles and around the heels of my feet. It appears that other barefoot runners suffer similarly so here I offer my own experience.
The best approach is preventative by periodically removing dead skin and frequently applying moisturising cream. The best way I have found to remove dead skin is to use abrasive paper. I use P80 grit, the high quality type used for sanding belts in which the abrasive does not come off easily. Glue a strip around a piece of wooden dowel and sand the dead skin off, especially in the places where one tends to get cracks. If the cracks are bad (deep, even bleeding) then apply pink Germolene (it comes in a blue and yellow box, whereas the white germolene comes in a blue and pink box) and fabric elastoplast. If necessary you can use a spot of superglue at the edges to keep the elastoplast in place. I have found nothing better for healing bad cracks. Once the cracks have somewhat healed then you should cut way the upper (dead) layers of skin either side of the crack to relieve the stress (precision side-cutters are excellent), and then use the abrasive tool to reduce the dead skin more generally.
Cracks on areas not subject to stress (e.g. the heels) can be glued together with superglue. I cannot vouch for the medical safety of this method so you use it at your own risk, but see here. Superglue will actually make a crack under the toe worse as it sets hard and does not allow the skin to stretch as it must here.
The purpose of the above methods is to give the skin a chance to heal. Only sometimes have I been forced to skip a run on account of cracks. Normally I take the attitude that the body was made for running barefoot so it should be able to cope: obviously this is true only up to a point and common sense must prevail.
Moisturising cream should be applied every night whilst there are any signs of cracks, and especially after a run as some surfaces (e.g. dusty clay) have a drying effect. The best cream, as I have observed before in this blog, is Silcocks Base and it is not expensive. Apply liberally.
Over the several years that I have been running barefoot the soles of my feet have, of course, hardened. But I have found that this hardening process has plateaued. I was hoping to get to the stage that others claim of being able to walk easily on any surface. So I decided to extend my barefoot experience to most of the time and have found that this has definitely had a positive effect on my feet.
For example this morning I was climbing our young apple trees barefoot to pick apples. It worked well - much less damage to the tree and the ability to "feel" how strong a branch was (apples trees are not strong).
Whilst I have considerable freedom to go barefoot, working as I do from home, there are the opinions of family and friends to consider. For example, is it acceptable to go barefoot to church barefoot, or for a meal with one's wife? Whilst there is good scriptural basis for worshipping barefoot this should possibly not be taken literally and it appears that most people are offended by the practice! Or is it OK to go shopping barefoot - I have tried it but it embarrases my wife. I prefer to drive barefoot and is not illegal provided one can operate the controls effectively - for me I find I have greater control barefoot.
So, in summary, if you would enjoy the barefoot experience you should be prepared to go barefoot as much as possible, to endure some discomfort (nothing ventured, nothing gained), and to look after your feet as explained above.
Apart from the occasional thorn, or stubbing one's toe, my main enemy is splits. The thickened skin tends to crack particularly in the creases under the toes, especially the large and smallest toe. I also get cracks on the soles and around the heels of my feet. It appears that other barefoot runners suffer similarly so here I offer my own experience.
The best approach is preventative by periodically removing dead skin and frequently applying moisturising cream. The best way I have found to remove dead skin is to use abrasive paper. I use P80 grit, the high quality type used for sanding belts in which the abrasive does not come off easily. Glue a strip around a piece of wooden dowel and sand the dead skin off, especially in the places where one tends to get cracks. If the cracks are bad (deep, even bleeding) then apply pink Germolene (it comes in a blue and yellow box, whereas the white germolene comes in a blue and pink box) and fabric elastoplast. If necessary you can use a spot of superglue at the edges to keep the elastoplast in place. I have found nothing better for healing bad cracks. Once the cracks have somewhat healed then you should cut way the upper (dead) layers of skin either side of the crack to relieve the stress (precision side-cutters are excellent), and then use the abrasive tool to reduce the dead skin more generally.
Cracks on areas not subject to stress (e.g. the heels) can be glued together with superglue. I cannot vouch for the medical safety of this method so you use it at your own risk, but see here. Superglue will actually make a crack under the toe worse as it sets hard and does not allow the skin to stretch as it must here.
The purpose of the above methods is to give the skin a chance to heal. Only sometimes have I been forced to skip a run on account of cracks. Normally I take the attitude that the body was made for running barefoot so it should be able to cope: obviously this is true only up to a point and common sense must prevail.
Moisturising cream should be applied every night whilst there are any signs of cracks, and especially after a run as some surfaces (e.g. dusty clay) have a drying effect. The best cream, as I have observed before in this blog, is Silcocks Base and it is not expensive. Apply liberally.
Over the several years that I have been running barefoot the soles of my feet have, of course, hardened. But I have found that this hardening process has plateaued. I was hoping to get to the stage that others claim of being able to walk easily on any surface. So I decided to extend my barefoot experience to most of the time and have found that this has definitely had a positive effect on my feet.
For example this morning I was climbing our young apple trees barefoot to pick apples. It worked well - much less damage to the tree and the ability to "feel" how strong a branch was (apples trees are not strong).
Whilst I have considerable freedom to go barefoot, working as I do from home, there are the opinions of family and friends to consider. For example, is it acceptable to go barefoot to church barefoot, or for a meal with one's wife? Whilst there is good scriptural basis for worshipping barefoot this should possibly not be taken literally and it appears that most people are offended by the practice! Or is it OK to go shopping barefoot - I have tried it but it embarrases my wife. I prefer to drive barefoot and is not illegal provided one can operate the controls effectively - for me I find I have greater control barefoot.
So, in summary, if you would enjoy the barefoot experience you should be prepared to go barefoot as much as possible, to endure some discomfort (nothing ventured, nothing gained), and to look after your feet as explained above.
20120701
Barefoot running new record
Sunday afternoon again - I felt like running away so I did - this is my longest totally barefoot run so far, just short of 11 miles, and about a mile of it was on "loose chippings" that had not yet bedded in much - not very comfortable. The dog didn't seem to mind though. The link should open in Google Earth (if you have it installed). The route starts with a segment of my usual "forest run", then through Hollywood to part of St Kevin's way and back along what we call "Goat man's lane".
Yes, I was tired afterwards, but I could have run further. My feet are coping pretty well - one problem I have at the moment is cracks in the creases underneath where the toes join the foot: I get cracks on my hands too, and the condition is probably related to the nail fungus which I also suffer from. The best treatment I have found so far for cracks is pink Germolene creme: basically it keeps the area from drying out. I am not sure if my link is correct as Bayer appear to have rebranded the substance. I have, of course, tried various topical treatments for the nail fungus and none have worked. The latest idea is to try healing clay (calcium bentonite) both internally and topically, but I have not plucked up the courage to do this yet as it is fairly invasive. Any readers that can offer a remedy with first hand experience of its efficacy might like to comment...
Yes, I was tired afterwards, but I could have run further. My feet are coping pretty well - one problem I have at the moment is cracks in the creases underneath where the toes join the foot: I get cracks on my hands too, and the condition is probably related to the nail fungus which I also suffer from. The best treatment I have found so far for cracks is pink Germolene creme: basically it keeps the area from drying out. I am not sure if my link is correct as Bayer appear to have rebranded the substance. I have, of course, tried various topical treatments for the nail fungus and none have worked. The latest idea is to try healing clay (calcium bentonite) both internally and topically, but I have not plucked up the courage to do this yet as it is fairly invasive. Any readers that can offer a remedy with first hand experience of its efficacy might like to comment...
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