I went on a 4.5 mile run on tuesday. To protect my torn up foot, I placed a bandage on it, with extra padding on either side, hoping that would keep my shoe from rubbing against the still raw skin…(click image to enlarge)
It didn’t work! I was in alot of pain after 3 miles. When I was done, the blisters were torn open again š Here’s a photo of my foot after this run (warning – it’s gross)!
I went to the track today and ran for 50 minutes. My foot still hurts just walking around, so I tried another idea. This time, I took an old pair of running shoes, and cut a hole in it where my blisters are. This worked like a charm! No pain while running. š (click image to enlarge)
The best way to protect a blister is to surround it completely with an adhesive bandage called “moleskin”. You do this by cutting a hole in the middle of the moleskin so that it does not contact or stick to the blister (or wound). If the wound is particularly large you can place another layer of moleskin over the first (also with a hole in it). Jim Fixx and I were doing that 40 years ago and it was standard practice back then.
On another subject, I would not personally use Vaseline on any wound as it is not sterile and could cause an infection. Use antibiotic ointment instead. Same consistency as Vaseline, but prevents infection.
Reading Jim’s comments, I thought that we don’t realize sometimes how an extra 30 seconds can change 30 minutes in your race at the end. I usually leave the knot in my laces and just slip my foot in, to gain time. Looking at your pictures, I might re-think my T2 routine next time! Hope it heals fast!
That foot looks like mine after Ironman Florida last year. I am guessing it cost me about 30 minutes. MY BAD, I was using speed laces, so my foot started to slide around in my shoe. Even changing into clean dry socks at the halfway point didn’t help.
I’ll know better next time.
Have you tried putting vasaeine on the blisters, it appears to speed up the healing process. I had a similar problem to yourself, my girlfriend suggested the ‘old’ vaseline trick and the blisters healed in no time!!