Black Toenail! Ouch.

[Kathy F.]

After months of comfortably and confidently breaking in the boots I planned to use on the Camino, they totally let me down on Wednesday. By the end of the day, which included a routine 11.5 Km uphill walk, several toes of my right foot were a little sore. Today, there's definitely a problem.
I think the sudden warm weather, "winter-weight" boots, and hiking socks and sock liners added up to that foot increasing in size too much for that shoe. Alas, a toenail is on the way out, I fear. Now, I have to let my foot recover so I can walk again without causing more injury AND get a new pair of boots. With less than a month to go!
I had been toying with the idea of getting Merrell Moab Ventilators (I need a men's shoe because my feet are too wide for women's) if I could come up with the money but now I think there is no more second-guessing myself.
And I have to order them on-line.
Any words of encouragement???
Kathy :cry:

 

[Al the optimist]

Lots of sympathy. No where near as serious but after my regular 24K walk on Monday I found a rash on the inside of both ankles when I took my socks off and have no idea why! The socks had been washed using my normal washing liquid, I had not walked through anything, had not got my feet wet - nothing unusual! It's very strange. They are not painful, sore or itching but I am in the paranoia period with 3 weeks to go. Oh and funnily enough this week my back has decided to start aching! Paranoia, Paranoia, Paranoia!

 

[KiwiNomad06]

I've had a similar rash before in training. Had to use hydrocortisone cream to get rid of it or it got worse. But good news was it disappeared as I became fitter on the Camino!

Better to discover the black toe problem at home than on the road. Hope you find a solution soon. Maybe even thinner socks?
Margaret

 

[gaydearbeck]

I have been given some advice on the toes....use band-aids over the nails.

I too have an issue with the rash from my socks. So I got something for chaffing..(I am in Florida and I think it is the rubbing as I walk and the heat here). The only thing is that you have to keep putting it on because it only lasted 4 hours. I used it Sunday and my rash was only slight but I only put it on once in 6 hours of walking. I bought it at Sports Authority.

 

[efdoucette]

I'm not sure what caused your black toe problem but my best guess would be not going uphill but coming back downhill (what goes up must come down) and your toe rubbing the tip of your boot. If so I can think of two possible solutions:
1. Ensure your boot / shoe is a little larger than normal, probably one size, this will allow some room when your feet swell, and
2. More importantly, when you are walking downhill your feet will tend to slide forward and the rubbing will occur, you must stop this. Stop, tighten your laces at the instep to prevent your feet from sliding.

I own a pair of Merrell Moabs and walked 2 caminos with them, 1 small baby toe blister from swelling feet. But you are gambling buying them on-line without fitting them on. I also found that Merrell's run small. Meaning a size 9 would fit like an 8.5

You also need to play with other combination of socks and insoles, I started with two insoles and removed one when my feet swelled, somewhere around day 8 - 10.

Best of luck,
Buen Camino
Eric

 

[mspath]

Black nails are a common problem for both hikers and runners. See these web pages for more info >> http://www.livestrong.com/article/54726 ... or-hiking/ and http://running.about.com/od/commonrunni ... oenail.htm. Often the problem occurs when nails rub up against the shoe front when going downhill. Hence hikers are usually advised to both wear a boot or shoe 1/2 size larger than normal so that the shoe 'box' or front of the boot is big enough and to tie them properly with a knot midway and at the top so that the foot does not slide forward.

Take good care of your feet so that they can carry you in comfort.

Margaret Meredith!

 

[Al the optimist]

Thanks for the advice Margaret. I have been using these for some time, so I have no idea what is going on. I have examined them and there is no apparent wear on the ankle part. I'm glad to say that the rash is not an angry one and actually seems to have faded a little since Monday. (I have not walked since). I have been thinking about it. since your post. Normally I pull the tops of my liners down and have the wool ones higher and turned over. But on Monday I was not going immediately home and changed from boots to trainers, taking of the outers and pulling my inners up. Maybe that was it. At least it's something to avoid and see if it cures the problem. Thanks again for being such a source of knowledge and inspiration.

 

[Anniesantiago]

There is a "pilgrim rash" that many people get around their ankles the first week of walking. It is not an actual rash but is the result of tiny capillaries breaking due to the stress of walking and carrying all the extra weight. It usually clears up by the second week. It is alarming to see but rarely painful. I get it each Camino and often see it on others.

 

[Kathy F.]

I appreciate the input, everyone. The voices in my head are not the most helpful, LOL :wink:

Al,
I don't know which is more worrisome - a bad toenail for which you know the cause or a skin rash for which you don't! Hope we both recover soon.

Kiwi Nomad (Margaret),
Thanks for the good wishes. I'm sure it will be OK, just wish the timing hadn't been SO AWFUL!

Lisa,
Now I'm thinking about painting ALL my toenails black.

Gaydearbeck,
Hadn't thought about band-aids. That might not be a bad idea, at least for the immediate future. I appreciate your advice!

Eric,
I share your concern about buying boots on-line with such a short time left. I had tried on pairs of women's and men's Moabs here, which is how I discovered that the men's fit better as far as width. I want a pair of mid-high to help stabilze my ankle a bit and, unfortunately, the store only had the low men's. I'm glad you pointed out that the Merrells tend to run small because, when I tried on the pair that was more comfortable for me, I was (un)pleasantly surprised to see how much bigger my feet had apparently gotten. I live in Europe and find myself much better off going by European sizes than American sizes because I can go from men's to women's easily. I also apppreciate your endorsement of the Moabs. I plan to go to the store one more time to make sure of the fit and then order them (and keep my fingers crossed). I'm not sure what else to do (also, the price difference between paying in euros and paying on-line in dollars is significant).

MsPath (Margaret M),
Like I noted with Eric above, I was surprised when I saw the difference in size between pairs of boots. I normally wear a 42 but now I'm looking at a men's 43. Unfortunately, the store didn't have a women's 43 for me to compare. AAARRRGGGHHH!

Here I was feeling so secure because, with all my walking, I hadn't gotten one single blister. But, I agree, it's better to find this problem out now than three or more weeks from now.

*Sigh*

Kathy

 

[Tia Valeria]

Ouch !
Some one advised us of a way to avoid bruised toe nails which works well. Before going downhill stop and tighten your boot laces. They may have 'eased' while walking on the flat or more so uphill. With the boots tightened your feet are held back and toes don't bump the boot toe-cap.
It works for us - no problems since we followed the advice.

 

[HermanTheGerman]

Hold in a sec, are we perhaps confusing bruising beneath the nail with nail rot? Two different things. Bruising will hurt, but nail rot won't. Eventually the nail will buckle up and either grow out or fall completely off. I worked as a ski instructor for several years in the Austrian alps, and this was always a problem. We were in the same stinky ski boots for 10 hours a day, 6 days a week. If it is nail rot you can try anti fungal creme, but once it takes hold, there's not really much you can do except ride it out, chop the nail off as short as it will go and as regularly as possible, and if the skin behind the nail is completely dead and the nail has gone cloudy near the base, just pull the little bugger off, if doesn't hurt. A new nail usually has already started to grow beneath the old one. If you don't want to pull it off then draw a smiley face on it with Tippex, at least you'll feel better when looking at it

 

[tyrrek]

Yes, I think I must have had nail rot. My big toenails went black after walking SdC to Finisterre. They didn't hurt at all, and I was quite happy with my boots (no blisters etc). The new nails have grown back under the old ones and pushed them out, so it's not pretty but not painful either.

Buen Camino!

 

[HermanTheGerman]

Re: Re: Black Toenail! Ouch.

Yes, I think I must have had nail rot. My big toenails went black after walking SdC to Finisterre. They didn't hurt at all, and I was quite happy with my boots (no blisters etc). The new nails have grown back under the old ones and pushed them out, so it's not pretty but not painful either.

Buen Camino!

I can relate to the not pretty comment as I've been dealing with it since the winter backcountry ski season, and now with the Camino preparation its not helping... But on the bright side, no pain. the new Salomon XAs are great, still need a few more rounds before being properly broken in, but they're not the cause of the black peril.

Buen Camino!

 

[Susannafromsweden]

I wonder if the nail rot you are talking about is the same as the nail fungus?
I got that after vdlp. I never had any problems with my feet ever in my life before. And I walked in sandals. They said at the hospital you can get fungus if you walk in the public showers without flip flops.
I got a kind of nail coat to put on once a week, that helped. I never lost my nails, and after a couple of months they were ok.
This time I'm taking flip flops!

 

[tyrrek]

Who knows what it was exactly in my case. I didn't bother going to the doctor with my black toenails. I found them a nice aide memoire while bathing in the morning for months afterwards! Like a souvenir! :lol: Buen Camino!

 

[HermanTheGerman]

Re: Re: Black Toenail! Ouch.

I wonder if the nail rot you are talking about is the same as the nail fungus?
I got that after vdlp. I never had any problems with my feet ever in my life before. And I walked in sandals. They said at the hospital you can get fungus if you walk in the public showers without flip flops.
I got a kind of nail coat to put on once a week, that helped. I never lost my nails, and after a couple of months they were ok.
This time I'm taking flip flops!

Hola Susanna, yes I think we're talking about the same thing. Good to hear that the nail paint worked for you. You must have got to it in the early stages. I not only try to wear flip flops in the showers but also any time my feet aren't in the boots to air out. Flip flops will be the only other footwear accompanying me in 4 weeks time (oh thank god the day is nearing, I don't know how much longer I can stand my soul being poisoned in the office every day). These flip flops are actually made from kautchuk by Chung Shi. Extremely light and super comfy.

 

[HermanTheGerman]

Re: Re: Black Toenail! Ouch.

Who knows what it was exactly in my case. I didn't bother going to the doctor with my black toenails. I found them a nice aide memoire while bathing in the morning for months afterwards! Like a souvenir! :lol: Buen Camino!

:lol: always look on the bright side of life, tadum, tadum, tada tada tadum...

 

[Susannafromsweden]

Re: Re: Black Toenail! Ouch.

Flip flops will be the only other footwear accompanying me in 4 weeks time (oh thank god the day is nearing, I don't know how much longer I can stand my soul being poisoned in the office every day). These flip flops are actually made from kautchuk by Chung Shi. Extremely light and super comfy.

I had to google your flip flops, they looked cool.
And kautchuk? Guess that means you can use them in the office, too. :lol:

 

[HermanTheGerman]

Re: Re: Re: Black Toenail! Ouch.

Flip flops will be the only other footwear accompanying me in 4 weeks time (oh thank god the day is nearing, I don't know how much longer I can stand my soul being poisoned in the office every day). These flip flops are actually made from kautchuk by Chung Shi. Extremely light and super comfy.

I had to google your flip flops, they looked cool.
And kautchuk? Guess that means you can use them in the office, too. :lol:

Yes, that's a fine idea. I'll hang them on my ears to prevent me from answering the phone and post my status in Skype as "don't talk me, talk to the hand, erm foot that is". :grin:

 

[Tia Valeria]

Hold in a sec, are we perhaps confusing bruising beneath the nail with nail rot?

I read this as bruising but your reply has made me remember another post about foot care. I said there that we used a foot powder recommended by a farmacia. It is 'fungusol' and we have found it very good. The reply made to me on that post was that we should not need to use a fungicide. That wasn't why we were using it, but maybe why the pharmacist remmended it was to stop problems like mentioned here, so not such a bad idea after all.
We powder our feet, and also our boots overnight. It was actually for keeping the boots dry that we bought it originally as well as feet after showers.
Fungusol can be bought in any almost any farmacia in Spain and comes as a powder, spray or cream. Costs about 6 euros for a pot of powder which will last for a full Camino and more.