The Agony of De Feet

[Hawkeye]

Sorry, but I couldn't resist the bad pun in the subject line.

 

I've been doing karate for almost a year now and one of the recurring problems I get is blistered feet. It seems like they never fully heal and toughen. I cover the blisters with band-aids and first aid tape to give them some protection but I had thought that with time, the soles of my feet would toughen up and not hurt to the point of being a distraction. Martial arts shoes are sadly not an option as they are not allowed to be worn during sparring and it seems that that is when I blister the most.

 

Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

 

Thank you in advance.

[Ben Martin]

i have the same problem i get blood blisters on the balls of my feet and and on my toes (as i do kickboxing) the more you train on the hard surface the tougher your skin will get. i haven't been to lesson due to my broken to for 2 months so i know when i go back i will get them again as my feet have gone soft. i can wear ma shoes but i chose not to infact im the only person in the class who doesn't, as wearing the shoes helps you spin on your toes easier i believe that is cheating because if you train with shoes then take them off your not able to the kick as good, so i like to learn the hard way.

[Popkov]

if you want to toughen up the soles of your feet i would suggest alot of walking, bear foot walking in perticular, but in your country you may seem strange walking around with no shoes on, doing alot of walking i find toughens the soles of feet. (around 6 miles per day in a 2 weeks stopped me from getting blisters)

[1kickKO]

Are you allowed to use any type of wrap at all? Try soaking them in hot water a bit after karate, this will make them feel better..but I guess the only thing I can tell you is more time...If they don't heal after that then I don't really know what to tell ya...

[senna_trem]

How long have you been training for? I've been training for six months and the blisters have petered out. Getting a parrafin treatment on my feet really helped to even out the skin as well. The soles weren't all pitted from various blisters so I think there is now less friction and less blisters.

[krzychicano]

Alot of walking will do the trick for ya. I learned that in the army . Also you may want to think about using mole skin instead of band aids or first aid tape. It works great for blisters..again another army lesson well learned.

[1kickKO]

Or you could just chop off both of your feet and sell them for 2 bucks on ebay...hmm, somehow a little voice is telling me this idea won't work out.

[Hawkeye]

Hey, 1Kick - the little voice may have been off-target about the whole feet chopping thing, but if it says that you should start writing Hawkeye big monthly cheques, then hey... just go with it.

 

Krzychicano, about that moleskin. Does it hold up under the rigors of a class? I would have thought that all the pivoting and spinning would have worn it off pretty quickly.

[AngelaG]

Try rubbing them with surgical spirit every day.

[Ben Martin]

Hey, 1Kick - the little voice may have been off-target about the whole feet chopping thing, but if it says that you should start writing Hawkeye big monthly cheques, then hey... just go with it.

 

Krzychicano, about that moleskin. Does it hold up under the rigors of a class? I would have thought that all the pivoting and spinning would have worn it off pretty quickly.

 

ahhhh mentioning pivoting has just reminded me of when i was traing with a blister covering most on the top half of my big toe that it ripped off appart from the bottom side (square shaped blister) and i couldnt bring my self to rip it off as it was so thick. this has happened more then once