Ok, them blisters

[JSchmidt]

What's your favourite method of dealing with them?. (apart from correction your footwork :D).
For minor/not so deep ones, I remove the skin and if necesarry use one of those blister-bandaids for a day or 2.
For deeper ones, I'll puncture them with a needle if necesarry and leave them.
I only use tabi/sole-protectors if it's too painful to practice otherwise. (I've never found a method of taping it up, without tearing the tape of during practice.)


Jakob

[alexpollijr]

Well, it has been a while since I don't have any blisters, but at the time, I used to do more or less the same that you do, ripping off the skin and such.

[lucian]

I only got the one blister from kendo and it ripped off during practice and never got another one but still loads of time :)
But I got loads in the army so the sole’s of my feet are quite tuff now, but what I used to do was leave the small one’s they normally went away or burst after a day, but deep one’s I would cut them out with my khukui then put some antiseptic cream on then a plaster or black n’ nasty

[cklin]

A taping method that doesn't come off during keiko!

1) Use athletic tape, wrap three times around the balls of your left foot. Make sure you end the tape on the top of your foot. This wrap shouldn't be so tight that you cannot easily flex your toes.

2) Cut strips of athletic tape about 4-5cm long. Rip them in half lengthwise and put one between each toe, with the adhesive sticking to the athletic tape already on your foot.

3) Wrap full-width athletic tape around 3 more times, covering the ends of the half-width strips and ending the tape at the top. Again, this should not be too tight.

If you have an open blister, it is advisable to put a bandaid or that yellow athletic sponge (made by Johnson&Johnson) over the blister first, before employing this taping method.

[alexpollijr]

Damn cklin, that's a mummy fighting kendo :D

[hamish]

Issue number 4 of the magazine will feature blisters in the Kendo Clinic.

We're looking for some really serious blister photos, so if anyone's got any, send (editor@kendo-world.com) 'em on in!!

[olaf]

Cklin & alexpollijr: alternatively, take strips of athletic tape, take a cigarette lighter and gently burn the plastic on the adhesive side so it becomes even stickier than normal. Put them on this way, and they'll stick much better. You save tape, too, since you won't need to "mummify" your entire foot as you had suggested.

And yes, the spongy material really helps; otherwise if you're taping over a wound, it really defeats the point without the padding underneath.

[Sup]

funny thing this topic came up.

I was having practice today and and suddenly
tissue from my left big toe just ripped right off!!

I was bleeding and bleeding.
Its the first time something like this happened to my toe.
Anyhow, its pretty bad and Im thinkin about staying off it
for a day so Ill have to miss tomorrows practice.

Anyhow, if you have blisters and the tissue is still in tact,
DONT use bandaids b4 taping cus the tape actually needs
to STICK to where the blister is in order to keep the tissue
from being smeared off.

And uh, Im told that the blisters on your hands dont ever go away.

[olaf]

Sup: you mean skin from your toe ripped off, right? I find it difficult to imagine an actual chunk of tissue/flesh coming off during practice... ouch.

I think you're right, blisters on the hands just don't seem to go away...as long as you're still practicing regularly.

[Sup]

Originally posted by olaf
Sup: you mean skin from your toe ripped off, right? I find it difficult to imagine an actual chunk of tissue/flesh coming off during practice...

Hahaha. well I guess it's skin then! :D
Anyhow, I was just trying to say that it wasnt the skin from
a blister that ripped. I had no blisters on my feet and suddenly
the SKIN pealed off!! arrrggghhhhh

And uh.. doesnt your right heal hurt? I think I got bruises on
mine. I mean the floor at my dojang is so darn hard.


I think I tried too hard today. Its been quite sometime since
I last practiced.


Well olaf, I hope I didnt scare ya big guy!

[stakenaka]

Bruised right heel... those are the worst. Takes some time to heal up. If the floor is hard there isn't much you can do, other than to get a really good heel pad. Could also be that you are hitting the floor first with your heel when doing fumikomi.

[olaf]

Sup: it's good to know you only lost some skin. Losing a chunk of foot isn't exactly good.

Hard floors - use a heel pad. If you really need you can use a Kendo heel pad, and then put on a small-sized sports elbow pad around the hell pad...take some athletic tape, and secure the two in place.

[lewis]

I think I tried too hard today. Its been quite sometime since

Remember, it's always a bad idea to do that. Start slow and work up. Of course, I've never been able to follow that advice myself. But it is still good advice.

Sup and Jschmidt,

Taping in kendo has never worked for me. It always comes off during practice.

Consider using (the original, non-toxic) superglue on the big stuff. It sounds gross but it works great. In granite big wall climbing we run into lacerations, big chunks of flesh getting ripped off your fingertips and popped blisters all the time. Superglue repairs them well and can also be used to buildup fake calluses. Superglue was actually invented for a similar purpose as a replacement for sutures inside the body during sugery (to obviate the need to take the stitches out later). That's why it sticks your fingers together so well. It is non-toxic and ultimately dissolves away. Instead of ripping the skin/blister cover off, glue it solidly back down and you will create a callus.

Personally, I'd stay away from the duct tape, especially on an open (bleeding) wound, unless it was the only choice. As a chemical engineer, I know that there is some really nasty stuff in the adhesive on duct tape. It shouldn't kill you (no promises), but it is guaranteed not to do you any good.

[olaf]

"non-toxic superglue" stuff? Is that really necessary? Trust me - try burning the tape beforehand. Just enough to partially melt the adhesive. It works great.

Duck-tape is certainly a no-no. Not even for re-attaching severed appendages.

[stakenaka]

Duck-tape is certainly a no-no. Not even for re-attaching severed appendages.

Hmmm.... I guess now duct tape can't be used for two things: taping ducts (the adhesive qualities of duct tape degrade at low temperature) and for surgery.

Using duct tape is a bad idea. The residue may get on the floor and it is a pain to clean if you don't have any solvents around.

[Achilles]

Bruised heel *is* the worst. I have terrible form in my stomping and finally had to give up and resort to a heel pad.

Hamish, I would be very interested to have the kendo clinic cover heel spurs and whether or not they can result from incorrect Fumikoshi.

[amatsuda]

The way you guys deal with blisters is so complicated...you must go through tons of tape just to protect a blister the size of a nickel or quarter.

Just use Johnson & Johnson's Elastikon Tape..

It doesn't slip like athletic tape, cuts easily, and has stronger/stickier adhesive that will stay on your feet after being heated....It's also porous so it will allow your skin to breathe and possibly dry out.

I've noticed that the best method for the bottom of your feet is to cut about a 3-4 inch strip, heat, and apply lenghtwise on your foot. i.e. "portrait" not "landscape"

J&J says that it has discontinued the tape, but you can still find it on the internet and also thru veterinary supply stores.

amatsuda

[akihiro]

I was going extol the virtues of J&J Elastikon Tape, but I've been de-koted by amatsuda!

Definitely give it a try if you haven't.

[cklin]

Yeah, the Elastikon stuff is really good too!

As to mummifying your foot, it's only an extreme measure... say if you had more than one keiko a day and you've got a crater on the bottom of your foot. Otherwise, I'd say play through the pain!!!

I dunno about you guys, but I haven't had a blister on my left foot for a long, long time; maybe not since my second year of kendo. I have a permanent, thick callous, but it doesn't blister. Every so often, some skin will come off the callous, though.

Maybe I'm lazy and not pushing off the left foot enough (though, since when can one really push off the left foot *enough*)...

For you guys with a messed up heel, and need a quick and thicker fix than your average blue heel pad, go get yourself a women's elbow pad (like they use for volleyball) and slap it on your heel. Those work!

The problem with heel pads is the danger in becoming dependent on them...

[stakenaka]

Hmm... lets move to a more serious problem... having your toenail ripped off. This happen to anybody?
I know that you are supposed to trim your toenails, but I forgot once and my big toenail got ripped off during jigeiko. I just taped up my foot to make sure that no blood got on the floor, and continued (the adrenaline negated the pain. Boy did I feel it later!!!). Does anybody have suggestions on how to deal with it (other than grinning and bearing it)? :)

[alexpollijr]

Funny you said that s takenaka, because my toenail is just being born again.

I struck the right toenail two times in my kendo life. Once in the kashira of a bokuto badly placed in the dojo floor. That time the nail broke but kept there.

The second time I struck it against a comrades' something (leg, foot, don't know really) and it immediately grew dark blue and hurted. It kept hurting for a while and now, after a month or so it has fallen of my toe during bath, and a new one is replacing it.

now that I'm a nailless man, I don't think it'll bother me much in training. I'll find out saturday.

[KENSHIN]

well, i am no real expert on t his, but anyhoo i find that the best way to deal with blisters, is as soon as you get a blister on your foot, you should stop your training, and sit down because there is a chance that you will increase the size of the blister or it may cut open and start bleeding, woohoo...then when you get home, if the blister has not yet opened up, pierce the blister open and let all the crap come out, then try to cut open the blister using a very small pair of sissors, the best are those sissors used for cuting nose hair or trimming moustaches, remember just cut a small hole and leave the rest of the skin on...then let it dry and let some air to it, a good whole night should do it, then the next day its time to cut the remaining skin off, pulling back the skin as you cut around it, once it is all done, then what i find the best thing to apply is a blister patch made by a company called Compeed...whether it exists in your countires im not sure, but basically the blister patch works as a skin, its really amazing, once this patch is applied all pain is gone....and i am not telling any bu**s**t, it is just amazing...anyhoo once the blister patch is applied it is advised that you apply a bandage( the cloth type ones with one sticky side to it..they are the best) and hey presto you should be able to practice at your next session of kendo... if you are a real weakling like me, a week or so should allow the blister to heal up...:D :p

[lewis]

stakenaka

Not much you can do. They come back, eventually. It happens whenever you go live in bare feet. Kendo, Judo, you name it. Trimming is the best preventative (an once of preventative,...). It keeps the nail from catching and gives it less leverage when it does catch so the entire nail is a lot less likely to tear off.

The only real secret you already know. Keep the blood off the dojo floor.

[Jklak]

Originally posted by Sup
I had no blisters on my feet and suddenly
the SKIN pealed off!! arrrggghhhhh
Yeah, I known that feel. It really makes kendo practise very unpleasant when biscuit size of pieces of leather get rid of your sole.

[Florence]

Oh dear, blisters ...

First, prevention: keep your skin soft. That means washing very carefuly and DRYING even more carefuly, using baby powder (send your mother, girl-friend, anyone buying it for you if necessary) in your socks or on your feet before putting shoes and sandals on. Then, get into the habit of putting some cream (hand cream works wonderfully) on your feet after EVERY shower (just don't tell your friends, guys, they won't notice unless you use your girl-friend's perfumed beauty cream ...)

Then, care. I've recognised some of the rough treatments that lead to more blisters, infections, you name it: opening and emptying them without the proper procedure, sticky tape directly on the skin, heated sticky tape ... I can't remember how many poor kendokas I had to take to an emergency room in order to remove infected and/or burnt skin with embedded tape ...

NEVER empty a blister with a needle, unless it's a sterile surgical one. NEVER put tape directly on damaged skin. Sterilise the area well (use sterile wipes in individual packages) Always put some absorbing bandage first, then tape some athletic tape (best is some surgical grade non allergic, 5 cm - 2 inches, tape, like Mefix by Molnycke. Sticks to the skin and not to the floor). The only tape you can put directly on the skin (for holding the remaining skin of a blister) is Steri-Strips.

My anti-blister kit:
- sterile hypodermic needles (for opening and emptying blisters - cuts as well as a scalpel blade, more precise)

- disinfectant (wipes, individually wrapped)

- sterile dressings (in individual packages)

- sterile anti-blisters pads

- physiological serum (in small individual vials, like you use for cleaning babie's eyes - useful for washing open and bleeding blisters).

- Steri-Strips

- Mefix tape (5 cm/20 m)

[Jerry Wellbrock]

I have been practicing martial arts for over 30 years and have tried about ever thing for blisters you can imagine....one of my favorites is PreparationH which is a hemmoroid ointment....it was actually developed as an antiwrinkle ointment but was never on the market for that purpose....it is a great antiflammatory....relieves pain...and promotes healing....leave the skin on the foot and open the blister and squeeze a little PreparationH under the skin.....if you don't like it you know what else you can do with it.....by the way if you get cracked skin between the toes or between the ball of the foot and the base of the toes.....try Desitin Diaper Rash Ointment....it contains Cod Liver Oil and is great for healing those splits.....as far as all the extra foot care goes I'm from the old school...just get out there and train

[Confound]

Florence has a point about keeping the blisters clean. I agree with the 'getting back out there and training', but you really should carefully tape up those blisters.

i have to be honest, I don't even bother to tape mine anymore. when i get a blister, i just let it peel right off during practice. i've picked up my own skin from the budokan floor. this isn't some kind of bravado, i'm just lazy.

c

[samurai999]

Duct tape? Now I have heard everything...

What I usually do is use athletic tape but there are other methods.. The superglue method is ok but my left foot always slips on takeoff..

Blisters normally occur when either your foot is moist or when you practice on a sticky floor. Make sure, at least, that your feet are dry when you start keiko..

You can also use blisters to gage what you are doing wrong... If your blisters are occuring towards the center/balls of you feet, then you are launching correctly. If your blisters are on your toes or on the left edge of your left foot, then that means that your foot is askew when you launch..

Tim

[stakenaka]

Gold Bond powder works well in drying feet. I occasionally have this problem of moist feet if I spent the entire day in my boots. Anti-persperant (not deodorant) works great as well.

[JSchmidt]

Eve blisters on the ball of the foot, is usually an indication that your heel is too high.

Jakob

[hamish]

Achilles: I'll mention the heel spur issue to the doctor, and see what we can come up with, possibly for issue 1 next year.

Hamish

[damocles]

Electrical tape for me. Works wonders for blisters, cracked feet... and it's cheaper than athletic tape

and not as... tough as duct or gaffa tape.

I use a brand called.... heh... 'nitto' on my feet to prevent the skin from cracking. works well for covering blisters on my hands too on the odd occasion that I get them. :)

[Kendoka]

Duct tape, electrical tape !?

Priority 1 - Fix your footwork and manage the infection risk in the short term.

Richard

[damocles]

Originally posted by Kendoka
Duct tape, electrical tape !?

Priority 1 - Fix your footwork and manage the infection risk in the short term.

Richard

*l* nah... it's just that my feet get dry and the skin is thick... so it cracks on fumikomi. I very rarely get blisters on my feet... actually I don't think I've ever had blisters on my feet.... ^_^