Topic: Barefoot Running Blisters

[Overdrive]

Wow, that's some hardcore stuff, I'll definitely try that sometime, I just got started on parkour about 2 months ago and have plenty of time to get new blisters lol 

[Overdrive]

Guess what Steve, I'm trying salt today! lol wish me luck haha

[Overdrive]

Whelp, I used the salt, I was disappointed, it didn't burn at all, though it might be because the blisters are like 2-3 days old, also, I had a hard time getting the salt to stay in there. Nonetheless I will continue using it on all blisters from here on out (using salt makes me sound tough like you Steve lol)

[EDIT] lol it started burning a little while I was typing the last message not the sweltering god save me kinda burn I was hoping for...but not bad lol good on ya Steve, what else can you use salt for? cuts? scrapes? OH THE POSSIBILITIES! lol thanks again for the idea

[Muse_of_Fire]

Steak.

Yeah I'm going to experiment with salt too; I'd never heard of it before Steve mentioned it here. I'd like to see what works better for me. We're in intersession now with company, so no pointe classes, but once our summer session starts in a few weeks there will be plenty of opportunities. Both would have a drying effect, and both would sting, so my thought is it's probably down to personal preference.

[Overdrive]

lol well MoF I have an update for you, It takes a while for the burn to start, it burns much much worse than alcohol, I think my feet hate Steve now haha. it took about 5 minutes or maybe 10 for it to kick in, and boy did it. So, just a quick warning lol

[Steven Low]

Hah, you put it on old blisters. Yeah, it will take a while to soak through them there to burn. I'm talking about putting it on new fresh blisters or rips. Takes maybe 15-30s for it to start burning, and it doesn't stop until minutes after you wash it off. But you'll feel they're noticably tougher within a day afterwards which is nice.

[Overdrive]

How long would you recommend leaving the salt on there?

[applesauce1289]

Steve, you keep saying "rips"   What are they?  Like actual rips in your skin?

[Steven Low]

Yes, actual rips in your skin... if you've ever used your hand so much a part of your skin actually rips out down multiple layers of skin. Kind of like regular blisters except a bit deeper. Most often occurs in sports like gymnastics and weightlifting.

Um, I usually do 15-20 minutes or so after the burning starts. I'd do it throughout the day for best results.. if you have free time soaking your hand in a salt bath is probably the best idea (simulating going into the ocean or pool where stuff heals faster with repeated use)

[7th__Samurai]

I had a good portion of the skin on my hands simply rip off just about a week ago while swinging on monkey bars, I was trying to swing back and forth from one end to the other for as long as I could and then mid swing on one the skin under my ring finger ripped off, I thought I was safe because I have existing calluses at the base of each finger from weightlifting football and the damn pull up bar in the gym but I wasn’t. Then after continuing to just climb around and hang from various objects on the play ground the same thing happened to the other hand.

Mine were subjected to the chlorine in the pool I jumped in afterwards which really burned and then I poured alcohol on them which really does cause a lot of pain, the worst thing though was after doing it on one hand and knowing what was coming for the other. It's pretty entertaining though to stand in front of a mirror and try and keep your composure and look all nonchalant while its burning away. They healed nicely as a result but took awhile because I didn’t want to pour alcohol on them repeatedly, that’s just too hardcore. I’m going to try salt next time though.

[Overdrive]

I'd first like to say that a word as prestigious as HARDCORE should only be typed in all caps and also, if you thought alcohol was too HARDCORE then you're going to prolly pass out from the salt lol Salt was awesome, I can't wait until tomorrow now that I know what to expect, I hated the burning sensation when I first started applying stuff to my blisters, but now, I crave it! lol it's fun, your little composure thing should be quite a challenge with salt lol good luck!

[ComebackKid]

Ever hear of Epsom Salt baths? ever have a bunch of scraps, rips, and tears? Salt the wounds, keep the salt on there, pour 600 grams of Epsom salt in a bath, as hot as you can stand, submerge all wounds, and enjoy. I'll actually use some bandage and wrap the salt in and let the Epsom salt water bleed in. Not suggesting it, not saying it's safe, but that works for me no doubt. IMO this is as HARDCORE as i go 

[aggreenvln]

Well, after running pseudo-barefoot (Vibram FiveFingers) this weekend, I developed quite a nice blister on my right heel. It's about the size of a quarter. I just CAN'T wait to get home after my training session this afternoon to rip off the dead skin and use some of the methods in this thread! (*cough*sarcastic*cough*)

[aggreenvln]

I just used the salt method, and yowza! It feels like it works anyway... . I cut the skin off of the blister on my heel, washed it off and filled my bathroom sink with about an inch of water. I poured salt in and dissolved it until I reached the water's maximum solubility, and then poured some extra in so I had a little pile of salt on the bottom. I put my foot in the water and rested the open blister on the pile of salt. Let me tell you, I didn't feel anything at first but after 20 or 30 seconds it was pretty intense! I left my foot in there for about 10 minutes, then washed it off, dried it and put on a band-aid. We'll see how it is tomorrow!

[Muse_of_Fire]

Heh. I still haven't tried the salt... alcohol has always done the trick for me but I do want to experiment to see which I prefer.

Company will be off break in another week, and then we jump right in... I'm ordering new pointe shoes and it will likely be blister city as I'm switching to a new brand and there's always a painful transition as I work with the makers to see what works (custom shoes ftw! Makes a huge difference).

So I plan to treat the blisters on my right foot with alcohol, and my left foot with salt. I should have a report at the end of summer.

*braces self for the impending pain*

[chipset]

What do you do with black/dark blue blisters? 

[Muse_of_Fire]

That is a blister that is filled with blood.

I would pop and drain it, and take measures to prevent infection (keep it clean and covered with a bandage during the day, let the air get to it during the night, use antibiotic cream, etc.) By the time a blister is filled with blood it is very deep, so alcohol/salt will probably kill you with the pain. At least it would probably kill me.

Honestly at that point you need to let some healing happen before you can work on drying/toughening the skin. So just do infection prevention for several days until it's better. Chances are it will callous up on its own.

[Steven Low]

Haha.. I used to pop my blood blisters and put salt on them a few hours later when I got home. Never got infections. I think they're overrated honestly (plus salt/alcohol kills bacteria anyway).

Do what makes you feel better about it though. What MoF said is the less painful way to play it. If you need your hands tough in the next few days I would put them through some pain though, lol.

[chipset]

Popped the blister on the foot. Put some salt in it. Then cleansed it with alcohol, and got tissue with alcohol bandaged all over it.
Now cleaning it away with soda bath.

Didn't hurt at all What am I doing wrong?

Hmm, that sounded like a post from some sadomaso forum... lol ))

[Muse_of_Fire]

Chips, you are just that hardcore, I guess.

Heh...Steve, you too.

I think I've gotten a bit wimpier in my old age.