Fixing Your Feet Ezine - Wrinkled Taping, Calluses, and more

FIXING YOUR FEET E-zine

Volume 7, Issue 10, October 2007
John Vonhof, Footwork Publications
Copyright, October 2007, All rights reserved

THIS ISSUE IN SUMMARY
This issue has en editorial on Wrinkled Tape and Practice. My feature article is on Fighting Calluses. I have a bad feet photo, some reader feedback, and a review of a great new outdoor book that I am sure you’ll love.

PURPOSE
The Fixing Your Feet E-zine is published monthly to inform and educate athletes and non-athletes about proper foot care skills and techniques, provide tips on foot care, review foot care products, and highlight problems people have with their feet.

EDITORIAL: WRINKLED TAPE AND PRACTICE
A few months ago I ran across the picture you see here. There was more to the picture but the taped foot was the main point. Look closely at the taped foot. What do you see?
     This past weekend my wife and I spent time with Denise and Ben Jones in Lone Pine - a beautiful place at the southeast edge of the California Sierra. Denise and I taped my wife’s feet many times as we worked to take pictures to document taping feet. Toes, ball of the foot, bottom of the foot, sides of the foot, and heels – back of the heel, sides of the heel, and bottom of the heel.
     These will be photos that I hope to use in a new publication, The Foot Care Field Guide. With luck and a lot of time, the aim is to have this completed by next summer. Between Denise and me, we have patched several thousand feet. We have practiced and practiced – and in the process, have learned what works best for us.
     In the picture above, I see wrinkled tape and skin pinched by the tape being pulled too tight. I hope you see the same thing. This tape job is going to lead to problems down the road or trail. The skin is stressed beyond what is normal and comfortable. The pinched skin can easily blister. This is the result of feet being patch incorrectly.
     Maybe I need to be more sensitive here. I am sure the tape job was done with the best intentions and as well as could be done under the conditions. The job may have been rushed by the athlete being in a hurry or by others waiting in line for foot care. It may also be the result of using the only tape available, not having tape adherent –or by a lack of experience on the part of the person doing the taping.
     I believe that continually learning how to tape better is important. I have taped with Elastikon, Leukotape, duct tape, Micropore, Hypafix, Kinesio-Tex, Enduratape, Endurafix - and a few more I can’t remember. Over the past years, I have patched a lot of feet, and all parts of those feet. I patch better now than before. I have changed many of my methods by seeing how different tape and blister patches work on skin.
     If you are not practicing, you are not learning. This creates potential problems for the athlete whose feet you are taping. It may also create problems for the person at the next aid station who has to fix your patch job. Of course, this is just my opinion.

I welcome your opinion on this editorial. Send me an email.

FIXING YOUR FEET, 4th EDITION
The 4th edition of Fixing Your Feet can be ordered through my FixingYourFeet.com web site, ZombieRunner.com, or Amazon.com. Completely updated, it has three new chapters and lots of new sections. The new retail price is $18.95 but these days no one pays full price! So, whichever of the two sites below you choose, the price is comparable.

WRITE AN AMAZON REVIEW FOR A FREE COPY OF HAPPY FEET
Those of you with the 4th edition can get a free copy of my booklet, Happy Feet: Foot Care Advice for Walkers and Travelers. Click on Amazon or Barnes & Noble to go to the book’s page—and write a review of the 4th edition. Then send me an email telling me which site the review is on and your snail mail address. I will mail you a free copy of this 36-page booklet. Use it yourself, or give it to someone else. The booklet is described below and has a $5.00 value. Sorry, but because of postage, this offer is good only in the U.S and Canada.

SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER
Please take a moment and forward this issue to a friend or two and encourage them to subscribe.

BAD FEET PHOTOS
This month I want to share a photo of a blister that can be quite painful. This happens to be another Badwater photo. The blood here makes this a bit complicated to patch. I drain these and give the athlete a stern lecture on the signs of infection, which are more likely with a blood blister. However I usually tell others that if this is their blister at the end of a race, let them be. This blister was matched by an identical one on the other foot - caused by footwear.

Just think; your feet could be featured in this e-zine for everyone to see! Submit your photo or short story by email or snail mail. Stories should be no longer than 250 words. Send them to me by email.

FEATURED ARTICLE: FIGHTING CALLUSES
By John Vonhof
For the past few months, I have been doing an experiment with calluses. Ok, to be honest, I have only a few, fairly thin calluses on my heels, but they qualify.
     Dori Avila, from Luxuriant, sent me samples of their Cracked Heel Repair to try. I decided this was a good time to work on my heels. Since I am not running, I do not have large calluses, but the rough and hardened skin is good enough to present a challenge. One summer, years ago, before I stated on this foot care kick, I even had a fissure on one heel. I learned then how bad a deep crack through layers of skin could be. It has to heal from the inside out. And it hurt – bad.
     I have three callus files and a number of creams, ointments, and lotions, which I have bought over the years. Cracked Heel Repair is the first skin product I have used extensively. So, let me start with a bit about the product and then I’ll talk about fighting calluses.
     Cracked Heel Repair comes in a push-up, 1-ounce deodorant type applicator. Unscrew the top and push it up from the bottom. Then simply apply of any part of your feet. I found it easy to use, although it sometimes was tricky to push up just a bit rather then a lot. I applied the ointment and then used my fingers to rub it in. It was easy but I found I needed to rub it in for the best use. It has a nice pleasant smell. The oils seem to last longer on the skin than similar products that are creams. It is perfect for dry and rough and cracked skin – common to many of athletes. It is hypo-allergenic and can be used several times daily on feet, elbows and knees.
     Rather than give you ingredients, let me say it is natural with a lot of herbs and oils. Cracked Heel Repair by Luxuriant can be found at Footsmart.com, SenseOfBeauty.net and CVS.com.

Now, on to my testing. I used the callus file each evening, followed by a coating of Cracked Heel Repair. One evening I wrapped my heels with plastic wrap. The next morning my skin was very soft. If I missed a day, I noticed the difference. Using any skin product alone, without a callus file, can be fruitless. The file is important to reduce the hardened skin and callus. For those with thick calluses, it is very important to continue treatment daily, and if possible, even twice a day. Do not be afraid of using a coarse callus file. A good file will come with a smooth side and a coarse side. Use them both. Reducing thick calluses can take time and effort. Don’t give up.
     I know of many athletes who value their calluses. If that’s you, I am not asking you to change. Just be aware of possible problems of deep blisters under those calluses. I know an increasing number of athletes who are seeing the value in soft and smooth skin. I am in that camp.

MY HAPPY FEET BLOG
If you like to stay informed about foot care issues and information - on a more regular basis than this monthly newsletter, check out my blog, Happy Feet: Expert Foot Care Advice for People Who Love Their Feet. This is different from this ezine. The Happy Feet blog will have a new short topic every week.

READER FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS
Jack Crosley wrote, “Boy, I sure can relate to your latest Happy Feet article “Are Your Feet Wearing Out?” My feet are getting really thin in the fat pads. We are about the same age. Twenty months ago I could jog barefoot on the beach. Now I can't go barefoot in the shower. Just wondering if there is anything I can do besides good shoes and orthotics. How about this procedure where Sculptra or Restylane is injected to plump up the fat pads?”
     Anyone have a comment here?

Greg Minter wrote that the photo in last month’s newsletter was, "... from David Goggins' 2006 Badwater effort...remember seeing that one..."

Reader feedback to this E-zine and its articles is welcome and encouraged. Please email any foot care ideas or tips that you have tried and would like to share with others, or ideas for an article for the e-zine.

NON-FEET NEW PRODUCTS
I received a copy of a new book last week. If you are a runner, adventure racer, ultrarunner, or interested in extreme events, this book is for you. The title is Extreme Running by Kym McConnell & Dave Horsley and is published by Pavilion, an imprint of Anova Books. I love this book.
     Extreme Running is 126 pages and features sections on races on the seven continents. Twenty-four events are profiled in the chapters. Each event is shown with plenty of photos, race information, distance, time of year, field size, ascent and decent data, contact and Web information, and maps or an altitude profile. As you read the chapters, you get a feel for the event and its difficulty. The Marathon des Sables is featured in 16 pages, Badwater in 10, while others are each section are covered in two pages. The photos are fantastic – making you feel in the race.
     While not inclusive of all extreme events in the seven continents, the book does a great job of showing you popular events and enough information to help you decide if you could do any one of them.
     This is a book that some might call a “coffee table” book – it is that beautiful. It appeals to me because I love the draw and challenge of these extreme events. I have been to several of them and can attest to the descriptions as accurate.
     Extreme Running is available through for favorite book store, or from Amazon. Click here for Amazon USA, here for Amazon Canada, and here for Amazon United Kingdom.

HAPPY FEET BOOKLET   
My booklet, Happy Feet! Foot Care Advice for Walkers and Travelers is in stock and ready for the walkers in your life. This booklet is 3.75 x 8.5 and 36 pages in length. In an easy read format, it gives advice on biomechanics and gait, buying footwear, fit, lacing, insole and toenail tips, skin care, powders and lubricants, blister care, sprains, foot care kits, and more. It’s on sale at 20% off for $4.00. Click here to read more.

GOT A STORY TO SHARE?
I am always on the look out for stories to share about their adventures with some type of connection to feet. If you have something to share, please send me an email.

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