Compeed Blister Plasters... Pro/Con

[aname4me]

On my last Camino I was introduce to Blisters.
It was my fault. New boots with only a month of break in.

I bought Compeed Blister Plasters. Great produce... with a flaw.

Pros....
It sticks on.
It is very smooth.
Allowed me to walk.

Cons....
On my heal, my socks loved them. They would catch the edge and roll them up. Then, the rolled up edge gave me a new blister.

I did find a solution.... Kinesiology Tape (KT tape).
I covered the Compeed with a 6” to 8” strip of 2” KT taped.
This protected to edges, and my foot healed.

So....
Does anyone have other tips for using Compeed Blister Plasters?

 

[Deleted member 67185]

Tincture of benzoin, applied to the skin first at the area surrounding the blister, will dramatically increase the adhesive holding strength of a compeed patch or tape.

But, there are better products than Compeed available now.

 

[Aidan21]

If you are going to use Compeed, use it the very first moment you suspect something is wrong, i.e. use it on a hot spot, do not use it on a fully formed blister.

 

[dgallen]

Avoid using them on back of heels. Lots of pressure from boots and they burst, spilling the internal gooey yuck which wrecks socks

 

[Waka]

I use tape, I now know where I'm likely to get a hot spot so I tape it up before.

 

[David Tallan]

My son got terrible blisters which lasted on and off and on again until we reached Astorga, where there was a podiatry clinic in the albergue. For most people they spent ten minutes or so draining, applying antiseptic and bandaging their blisters. For my son, they spent an hour and a half!. For the bad blisters, after draining and sterilizing, they didn't but the bandage pad on the blister. Instead, they put it around the blister, with a hole cut out for the blister. The idea was to reduce the pressure on the blister when you walk. A little bit of gauze over everything and it all taped in place (the gauze prevents the tape sticking to the blister. They were not fans of Compeed, which they said just makes things worse by putting more pressure on the blister itself. For what it's worth.

 

[trecile]

Omnifix stretch tape anywhere that you are prone to blisters. Available at most farmacias in Spain. It's thin and flexible, stays put all day, yet removes easily with no sticky residue. Great stuff! Make sure that you carry a small pair of scissors to cut it. It comes on a roll about 2 inches wide with paper backing, making it perfect for balls of feet and heels.

 

[Purky]

I don't blister easy (lucky sod), but my wife has had some bad ones a few years ago. She was rather hard-core about it and decided to experiment. With comparable blisters on both feet, we drained and sterilized them. She then used Compeed on one foot and taped the other with leukotape (imbricated little strips). The leukotape won, hands down. The Compeed lasted only one day and made things even worse.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Compeed and other hydrocolloid bandages should only be used on your feet when you have blisters where the outer skin is missing. Take it from an expert (see below.)

https://www.blisterprevention.com.au/blister-blog/how-to-use-hydrocolloid-dressings

Rebecca Rushton is an Australian podiatrist with over 20 years experience. She has spent a lifetime dealing with her own blister prone feet in her sporting and everyday life. Rebecca specialises in helping athletes and sports medicine professionals figure out how to manage foot blisters with ease. And for kicks, she enjoys providing blister care at multiday ultramarathon events. Rebecca is the founder of Blister Prevention and author of "The Blister Prone Athlete's Guide To Preventing Foot Blisters".

 

[Anamiri]

I'm a fan of the prevention strategy. I have never been a fan of Compeed, in my case it has only ever made things a lot worse and more painful.
I walk a lot and find that hotspots/blisters seem to appear in the same places most of the time. So I pre-tape those areas with Kinesiology Tape, and on the whole that works for me. The tape just falls off when I shower, and the next morning I reapply. Does mean that I get through a lot of tape, I just do the balls of my feet and my heels.
After a week on my first Camino, I hadn't got a blister, so I stopped taping. Presto, immediate blister.
On the next Camino, it was cooler and I had no problems at all, stopped taping and didn't get any.

But people are not all the same, and do get blisters in different places, my sister for instance got them under neath her toes. Under every toe. She tried everything, nothing worked. I have no idea how you would pre-tape for that. I never got a blister on a toe in my life so I'm grateful for that.
My problem is that I walk barefoot a lot, and sometimes end up with thick skin on parts of my feet, which makes things worse, as the blisters can form deeply under that thick skin, and are hard to deal with, creating a lot of pressure whilst not being that visable. I either see a podiatrist to reduce the thick skin, or have regular pedicures.

 

[Piero Frustascarpe]

I'm a fan of the prevention strategy.

So, I'm sure you know that the best "pre-prevention" strategy is to wear the right shoes for you.
And, beside the pre-taping, there are other effective tricks. These are the ones that I regularly adopt:
1) wear "techie" socks, especially designed for long distance hikes and ultra-marathons. Booster and merino are my favorite.
2) Put some "intensive foot cream" on the feet before starting to walk and do another once-over at half the walk of your day (or every 20 Km in ultra-marathons). Personally I use a cream based on almond oil and lanolin.

P.S.
Being a fan of barefoot walking and natural running, probably I have feet that are like yours.

 

[Anamiri]

So, I'm sure you know that the best "pre-prevention" strategy is to wear the right shoes for you.
And, beside the pre-taping, there are other effective tricks. These are the ones that I regularly adopt:
1) wear "techie" socks, especially designed for long distance hikes and ultra-marathons. Booster and merino are my favorite.
2) Put some "intensive foot cream" on the feet before starting to walk and do another once-over at half the walk of your day (or every 20 Km in ultra-marathons). Personally I use a cream based on almond oil and lanolin.

P.S.
Being a fan of barefoot walking and natural running, probably I have feet that are like yours.

Yes I think our feet might be similar.
The right shoes certainly are key. And merino socks. I regularly use a foot cream as well, especially on my heels. And I think barefoot walking has kept my toes nice and straight, not kinked and squashed.

 

[Vanozza]

On my last Camino I was introduce to Blisters.
It was my fault. New boots with only a month of break in.

I bought Compeed Blister Plasters. Great produce... with a flaw.

Pros....
It sticks on.
It is very smooth.
Allowed me to walk.

Cons....
On my heal, my socks loved them. They would catch the edge and roll them up. Then, the rolled up edge gave me a new blister.

I did find a solution.... Kinesiology Tape (KT tape).
I covered the Compeed with a 6” to 8” strip of 2” KT taped.
This protected to edges, and my foot healed.

So....
Does anyone have other tips for using Compeed Blister Plasters?

I wear two pairs of well-fitting socks. The inner sock takes the rubbing, not your skin. So occasionally you must replace the liner socks which develope holes instead of your skin. Also a lot of modern boots made of supple materials do not need to be "broken in". But they must fit perfectly right from the beginning. And they are not inexpensive. Do not cheap out on your feet!

 

[Craig Towers]

On my last Camino I was introduce to Blisters.
It was my fault. New boots with only a month of break in.

I bought Compeed Blister Plasters. Great produce... with a flaw.

Pros....
It sticks on.
It is very smooth.
Allowed me to walk.

Cons....
On my heal, my socks loved them. They would catch the edge and roll them up. Then, the rolled up edge gave me a new blister.

I did find a solution.... Kinesiology Tape (KT tape).
I covered the Compeed with a 6” to 8” strip of 2” KT taped.
This protected to edges, and my foot healed.

So....
Does anyone have other tips for using Compeed Blister Plasters?

Many times I think Compeed is put on just before you put on your socks. I’d try putting them on and then walk around for a while in flip flops for a while. Almost let the edges dry. Then put on your socks. Should help.

 

[Curt Leiker]

Compeed worked well as a preventative for Nancy and I walking from SJPDP to Santiago de Compostela. Even on the heels, but there, when the trail was hot, the adhesive melted onto our sock liners. Kind of irksome picking that adhesive off of the sock liners but no heel blisters. We wore Injinji toed sock liners everyday inside quality Merino wool hiking socks. I think those toed liners did as much to prevent blisters as did Compeed on the occasional hot spots. We had spent lots of time before attempting the Camino learning how to lace our boots to fit our feet properly. How to keep the heel from moving around in your boots is the best lacing lesson you can learn. But also how to ease pressure on knobby areas that would lead to blisters. Good boots, lacing, Injinji socks, and Compeed were a winning combination for us.

 

[gloria lowe]

Shoes or boots should not have to be broken in. If they’re right they feel perfect from the very beginning. I have a closet full of shoes I thought I could break in. After reading all about shoes on the Camino forums I learned shoes should feel perfect the first time.

 

[smp]

I had a particularly bad blister on the side of my heel and used a large corn plaster, (I believe that is what they are for), like a donut. It took the pressure off the blister and I held it in place with KT tape. Worked like a charm. Also, as much as I mindfully tied my boots, on the very steep descent into Roncesvalles my toes bumped up against the toe of my boots bruising them. I discovered what is like a rubber padded toe sleeve in the pharmacy which I used for all 800 km. At home I eventually lost two toenails. They will be in my first aid kit this time round for sure. (not the toenails)

 

[kelleymac]

Get shoes that fit. Many people with "blister prone" feet wear shoes that are too small. Take the insole out of your shoe. Put your foot on it. If your foot overlaps the insole get wider or longer shoes. If your toes are scrunched up (any of them) get shoes with a bigger toe box. Your shoe should not be pushing (supporting) your foot to go into an unnatural shape. -- Now I rely on taping with leukotape in blister prone areas, and wearing liner socks. --

 

[kelleymac]

One difficulty I found with corn plasters or using mole skin to build up a protective wall around the blister is that, if your shoe is too small, the plaster or mole skin wall can push the foot against the shoe in another place and create another blister. So-- i've used compeed and mole skin. I've also used compeed with a hot spot. -- But the best thing is to avoid blisters altogether, get shoes that fit (one size bigger than your normal size), with room to wriggle and use all your toes. -- Also, after walking a few weeks your feet may be a bigger size. Consider buying a new pair in Leon if necessary.

 

[jayree]

Omnifix stretch tape ... is thin and flexible, stays put all day, yet removes easily with no sticky residue.

I am not a fan of Compeed but Omnifix works well, as does simple cheap paper tape. For more info see

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/04/13/an-easy-way-to-prevent-blisters-try-paper-tape/

 

[JabbaPapa]

The only really permanent solution is to have walked hard and far enough that you develop leather on the soles of your feet instead of skin.

You still get blisters -- but they turn into a passing annoyance instead of a wound.

 

[JabbaPapa]

Shoes or boots should not have to be broken in. If they’re right they feel perfect from the very beginning. I have a closet full of shoes I thought I could break in. After reading all about shoes on the Camino forums I learned shoes should feel perfect the first time.

This varies from person to person -- I'm glad to hear you're one of the luckier ones !!

 

[Bob Chambers]

My feet are somewhat deformed in my old age with my toes trying to escape out of my shoes on the outsides of my feet so that my middle toenail rubbed on the front outside of my shoes and became black during our weeks on the Camino de Levante. I have now bought a pair of wide toecap Keen walking shoes for our tilt at the Primitivo. Hope that will cure the black toes. I will however also take a raft of silicone toe caps to pad the offending toes if necessary. Any comments on these precautions?

 

[Anamiri]

My friends use silicon toe caps - they say they are brilliant

 

[trecile]

I am not a fan of Compeed but Omnifix works well, as does simple cheap paper tape. For more info see

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/04/13/an-easy-way-to-prevent-blisters-try-paper-tape/

I've tried paper tape, and it just doesn't stay in place as well or as long as the Omnifix. Plus the Omnifix fix is nice as wide, and stretches a bit to conform to the contours of your feet without wrinkling.