Anyway to toughen up your feet?

[npaden]

I think I just have wimpy feet.

I did an extensive search last summer for the perfect pair of boots and tried on some Lowas and Hanwags and ended up settling on a pair of Meindls.

I worked with them over the summer and thought I had them broken in and they did great on my Wyoming elk hunt but on my New Mexico hunt the terrain was much steeper and loose and I ended up with some major blisters.

This spring I ended up with blisters again wearing the same pair of boots. I've been to a couple different places that have lined me up with sock liners, some stuff you wipe on your feet called blister guard, some powder to put in your socks and about everything else you can think of. Even tried some creative ways of lacing up my boots.

Now I'm starting to jog more to try to get in shape and I ran 6.5 miles this morning and I ended up with a blister from my new running shoes. I had worn them on a couple runs already, but this was a few miles farther than I had run in them before.

Long story short, is there anything to do to toughen up my wimpy feet? Just treat the blisters and keep wearing the same boots and running shoes and eventually my feet will get used to them? Anything else I can do to toughen them up?

Thanks, Nathan

 

[Big Fin]

Hmmm, it is usually a fit issue, where some boots are just not formed well for you feet. Seems like you tried many boot options.

What kind of socks are you wearing? This might sound crazy, but I wear wool socks almost all the time, even hiking in hot weather. The pile of even thin wool, or a wool-synthetic mix makes a big difference, especially with a load on your back.

 

[the nikster]

I agree with the previous post. Even $400 boots will tear your feet up if they don't fit right.
Also like the previous, I ALWAYS wear thick wool or wool blend socks-oftentimes I'll also wear a liner. My co-workers in the desert of Morrocco were astonished but my feet were comfortable (if smelly).
There are outfits that will take an impression of your feet then build a boot around that but that'll be $$$.
Maybe try not wearing shoes more often. Around the house, in the yard, etc.

 

[WapitiBob]

Two pairs of socks, always.

 

[npaden]

I forgot to mention. I've been wearing high dollar merino wool socks. A few pairs of 100% merino wool and a few differnent pairs of blends. I've tried a couple different inserts in the boots too. The ones I have in there now are Powersteps. I tried Superfeet and like the Powersteps much better. I haven't gone with the custom fit ones, but I don't really think fit is the issue. I really am thinking it may just be wimpy feet.

 

['Ike']

Big thing is to get your feet measured properly and then make sure you have the right insert for the boot shoe...

 

[npaden]

Big thing is to get your feet measured properly and then make sure you have the right insert for the boot shoe...

Yep, done that too. Both at a outdoor/backpacking type shop and at an orthopedic type shoe store. That's where I got the powerstep insert. I really don't think the fit is the issue on my boots, it could be on my new running shoes though.

When I was a kid we didn't wear shoes all summer long except to go to church. You knew your feet were "in shape" for summer when you could run full speed on a gravel road without hurting. I can't step on a piece of pea gravel walking on the sidewalk without noticing it now. Going barefoot outside is an issue though with grass burrs being one of my main types of grass in my yard right now. I wonder what kind of looks I would get if I started going barefoot at my office?

 

[Devil Diver Down]

That sucks. Seems like you've run the gamut and tried about everything. Everybody has a weakness and I think you've just found yours. They just don't want to give the old college try--unless the college was U of arizona (apologies to Oak )

Funny you should mention running on gravel as a kid. I did the same during the summers in Phoenix when I was a kid. Nobody could believe I could run full speed on the scorching gravel roads and trails. My feet are still in great shape but my big toes have awful ingrown nails. I saw a podiatrist for one the day before I drove to CO for an elk hunt last year. He suggested I not wear a closed-toed shoe for 4 weeks. He said a boot in 1 day was out of the question. I laughed and asked if he were a betting man. Maybe that's why I got skunked

 

[npaden]

Supposedly going barefoot is becoming some sort of a trend now. There are even guys that go jogging barefoot and a few recent studies that say it is actually better for you to run barefoot than wearing running shoes.

Right now I wince walking on my flagstone sidewalk to the barn without a pair of shoes. I think I'm going to start trying to at least go barefoot around the house and on the sidewalk. My yard is out of the question with all the grass burrs though!

 

[Lawnboy]

If your getting blisters on the bottom of your feet try Spenco brand insoles. They are neoprene and really cut down on heat that causes blisters. They are now using neoprene saddle pads for performance horses for this very reason. It could be a cheap fix or at least help reduce them.

 

[AZ402]

Rub some dirt on them.

 

[wgiles]

Have you tried duct tape? Seriously, duct tape or moleskin over the areas that blister under your socks. Duct tape has a slick surface that allows the boot or socks to slide while protecting your skin. I don't have much trouble with blisters, so I can't tell you if it really works, but I have heard about using duct tape for years. When I do have blisters, they are almost always on the backs of my heels from the boots rubbing up and down. I usually wear low hikers or approach shoes, but I wear 8" Matterhorn metatarsal work boots ten hours a day, five days a week. The only time that I really had trouble with a pair of boots was with a pair of Vasque Sundowners that were personally fitted to me in the store. I wore them some and thought that they were broken in well enough. I walked up the trail to Low Gap in the Smokies and by the time I got back down, my heels hurt so much that I could barely walk for three days. I've never had that happen with any other boots.

 

[mhungerford]

Something you might look into that has really helped me is running in my vibram fivefingers
http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/index.htm
these things are great my feet are so strong now after using these for awhile they take a little getting used to but they really work i bowhunted in them last year and love them. just my 2 cents.

they will help with the blisters.

 

[Blacktailbc]

These guys make good inserts....
http://www.yoursole.com/

Also, these hikers won the 2011 editor's choice award for backpacker magazine.
http://www.trekstausa.com/p-31-treksta-mens-evolution-mid-gtx.aspx

I noticed one of their testers stated that silk slippers could give him blisters. He tried these hikers, and after 5 days with a 50 lb pack, no blisters. They have something they call nestfit technology. Something about they patterned 20,000 different feet, and sized the shoe after that. I know they are not "boots", but they are gore-tex, and it sounds like you are desperate.

 

[WapitiBob]

These are the same as 5Fingers without the toe separation.

http://www.merrell.com/US/en/Barefoot_Collection

There is some stuff you can rub on your feet too. My old hunting partner used to use it. Similar to "working hands" cream.

 

[Let The Carbon Fly]

I've used Tuf Foot for a month before hunts. It works by toughening skin tissue.

http://www.tuffoot.com/about/humans.htm

 

[CabinFever]

If its an issue of heal blisters, try using the boots with no insoles or with extra thick insoles. A lot of times the heal blisters are simply a case of your heal not quite fitting the shape of the heal pocket, so moving yourself up or down in the pocket could make all the difference.

Also Kenetrek does custom stretches of their boots for anyone that has a hot spot in the heal or at the ball of the foot. Stretching directly on the spot that blisters just 1/8" can relieve a ton of rubbing...

 

[schmalts]

Try poly sock liners. Also pack a small roll of athletic tape in case you blister up your heels

 

[Dinkshooter]

Rub some dirt on them.

Or rub some dirt on IT.