any special socks to prevent blisters

[cottontail]

Hi: I have been looking to purchase new socks for our wdw trip. Do I go for the cotton/spandex, cotton/nylon all cotton, any recommendations . Thanks,

Deb.

 

[netnurse31]

We wore all cotton socks for our trip last week. My advice to you is to bring 2 or 3 different pairs of shoes. I think our rotating to different pairs of sneakers daily really contributed to our being blister free. Make sure they are very well fitting and there is no rubbing in any areas. If you plan on going on water rides bring a change of sneakers and socks. There is nothing worse than wet feet!

 

[pwcarlson]

My DH always has problems with blisters! I found some socks that were called "Blister Blockers". If I remember right they are made by 'Oder Eaters' company. I found them at Wal-Mart a couple of years ago. Yes they really helped him. They came in crew and 3/4. I keep looking for them every time I am at Wal-Mart and they have not had them for about a year. I am really bummed. I am glad I stocked up when I did. They are nice and thick and have ridges inside that keeps your foot from sliding. I alos bought him the new Blister bandaids from I think BandAid brand. They are a funky slear bandaid that molds to your foot. YOu can place these on blisters or areas that are prone to blisters. This is a newer product. Other people recommend changing socks during the day. I think maybe just removing your shoes for a few minutes during the day may help also.

Hope this helps.

 

[crusoe2]

I am very prone to get blisters so I have tried several things. I've had really good luck since I started doing 3 things - 1) wearing Peds socks 2) spraying my feet with an antiperspirant and 3) using the Bandaid Blister Blocker bandaids. I also always take my shoes and socks off during our mid-day break then spray again with the antiperspirant before putting my shoes and socks back on. I still get a blister from time to time but I just cut a piece of sterile bandage to cover it then put a Bandaid Blister Blocker over that. Hope this helps.

 

[RobinLyn]

Try "moleskin", it works great!! You can find it in most grocery stores in the foot care section, made by Dr. Scholls. It is a roll of padding that prevents blisters. You cut the padding to fit any size area you want to protect on your feet (one side sticks on your skin). I purchased the Moleskin plus roll and used it for our last trip to WDW. None of us got a blister, it worked so well I would never be without it when going to WDW or any other park. This was a tip from Deb Wills web site, buying moleskin to protect you feet.

RobinLyn

 

[Windermere]

Try 2 thin pairs of socks or if you are traveling when it's not TOO hot out - wear a pair of shorty nylons under the socks. The underneath sock/nylon rubs on the foot and the over sock rubs on the shoe. the 2 rub against each other -> no blisteres. It work great for me walking 10 miles / day on a European vacation a few years back.

 

[RaiseAStar]

I have tried every conceivable combination of shoes and socks in an effort to avoid those dreaded blisters. All I had to do was THINK about walking and my feet developed blisters....nothing really worked for me...UNTIL I found moleskin (I also read about it on Deb's site). Like RobinLyn, I will not go to WDW without it. As far as socks, I think all cotton is best, cotton absorbs moisture better than synthetics.

Kristina

 

[marcefaye]

I always wear "coolmax" socks (unless of course I'm wearing my Teva sandals - which ends up being most of the time). The "coolmax" socks are great...wisks the wetness away from your feet. Wigwam makes them and I'm sure other companies as well. I got them last year at Dicks Sporting Goods. They probably also have them at The Sports Authority.

 

[jmminarik]

Howdy,

I posted this previously, and not knowing how to link to it, I've copied it verbatim. Hopefully I'm not ignorantly breaking any posting rules. Avoiding blisters has become some kind of wierd passion for me.

If you want a more thorough blister lecture, you can read about it on the thorlo website.

Here's my old posting....

Using spray anti-perspirant should work, since the cause of blisters is friction and wetness. I can't think of what it is doing to the feet, since our feet are designed to sweat, but for short term cases its probably ok.

The best advice I've ever gotten is to get properly fitted walking shoes and to wear non-cotton socks.

The first bit of advice is to go to buy walking shoes at the end of the day, wearing the socks you'll be wearing in the shoes. If you've not been measured in a while, get a foot measurement which a braddock device. Its the thing with the slides, then try on a few pairs in the sizes around your foot measurement. Good walking shoes shouldn't be tight or require much of a break-in period. The toes shouldn't be jammed into the front of the shoe, and the widest part of the foot shouldn't be pinched. Don't expect the shoes to stretch much.

Almost any good brand of sneaker should work, though you'll find it tougher to find shoes which come in the wider widths (which is what most americans probably need more than narrower). The only major sneaker maker who I've found makes wide (eee or more) shoes is New Balance.

The second bit is to not buy socks with _any_ cotton in them. All it does is absorb sweat, compact, and stay wet all day. There are many different brands of non-cotton, 'wicking' socks on the market now. Most have acrylic yarns such as the cool-max brand, but they all work to absorbs sweat from the foot and wick it away. Some seems to wind up in the sneaker, but if you have 'crew' socks which come above the shoe, some will wick up and out and will evaporate naturally (which means you'll dissapate heat, unlike using anti-perspirant). Some 'wicking' socks are made with wool, which also wicks moisture to an extent, and if you're in a cold climate (not the case with WDW, but....) will keep you feet warmer since they dry from the inside.

The socks I prefer are made by a company named 'Thorlo', though Wigwam and other make similar quality socks. The thorlos' are more expensive ($8-12 per pair), but include extra cushioning at the pressure points (heels for example), and a nice open weave in the less impacted areas. They're supposedly designed to help with 'shear', which is the friction aspect of getting blisters.

Adding to this advice, some tips:

1) Bring two pairs of comfortable, well fitted walkign shoes. Alternate them daily, esp. if they get wet.
2) Change socks mid-day, giving both your feet and your shoes time to air a little.
3) Keep your shoes clean. Dirt getting into the pores of the leather or man-made upper will actually inhibit the ability of the shoe to dissapate vapor and heat. All you need to do is wipe them off with a damp cloth at then end of the day, or if you're anal like me, wash them with saddle soap. If you have suede, use a suede brush instead.

Finally, if you do manage to get a blister, make sure it gets cleaned properly, put a bandage on it, and use moleskin _around_ the blistered area to provide a buffer to keep the tender area from getting rubbed too much.

Hope this helps,
Joe

 

[skeezixspud]

If you have Marshall's stores in your area, they usually have Thorlos for about $3/pr.
These are seconds, but that won't matter with socks.

BTW; Thorlos have so much padding that they may make your shoes tight. Try them on with your shoes before you go.

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by skeezixspud
If you have Marshall's stores in your area, they usually have Thorlos for about $3/pr.
These are seconds, but that won't matter with socks.

BTW; Thorlos have so much padding that they may make your shoes tight. Try them on with your shoes before you go.

Thanks for the Marshall's tip...I know we have them in the Philadelphia area, but as we're not mall shoppers, never wind up at Marshalls.

As long as the 'seconds' nature of the socks are cosmetic, then yea, there should be no difference.

As with any shoe purchase, you should always try on the shoes at the end of the day while wearing the socks (et al) that you'd be wearing while in the shoes.

 

[skeezixspud]

A skipped stitch here or there, a slightly crooked stripe on the top, that sort of thing, nothing structural.

Just FYI, Marshall's stores are never in ordinary malls, though they do have locations in
some large outlet malls, like Potomac Mills. They are usually in strip centers, especially the sort that have several discounters together.

 

[adisneynut]

anymore ideas?

 

[Disney Talker]

I used to get awful blisters too..till about three years ago there. Before our 99 trip I started walking on a daily basis.not a huge length of time..two fifteen minute walks each day on my two breaks at work...I had surgery and was trying to make sure I was up to par for the long walks, it worked wonders and I have done it every trip before we go now.....Feet which are used to walking a lot, in the sneakers you are going to wear do not get blisters as often....

Lora...

 

[simba2]

I originally read about Thorlos on these boards and tried them. They are all I wear now. My feet used to kill at the end of a Disney day, but not now! I even wear them to the office on casual days with clogs. Try them - you'll never wear any other sock again! (And no, I don't own stock in the company!)

 

[LKS]

I bought the Thor-lo Lites - Walking. They aren't quite as thick as the regular thor-los (my shoes still fit!), but just as expensive. For no blisters, it's worth it. I like them so much I bought my husband the thor-lo Lites - running. Mine were $12 a pair at Just for Feet and I think they made my shoes feel really cushy and new. I've walked up to 2.5 miles in a day so far with them on, and no blisters. I need to go do a 4 mile or so walk this weekend to give them the real test. I also ordered my kids some coolmax socks from Lands End (on sale right now but still not cheap.) My 10yo said they "rock" and my 7 year old said they were the best, softest socks I have ever bought her and she is the pickiest child about socks. I may order some more after the rave reviews.

I will probably also try the anti-perspirant idea because I have been miserable with blisters on every Disney trip I have ever taken.

 

[cottontail]

Hi: Just curious, what are these socks made of, are they cotton?

Deb.

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by cottontail
Hi: Just curious, what are these socks made of, are they cotton?

Deb.

Nope...that's part of the benefit of them. They're made from an acrylic yarn with special knitting so that the shear (back of heel) and impact parts (ball, bottom of heel) of your foot are more padded, with less material and a more open weave in the areas (top of foot) that are less stressed.

Cotton is acceptable for clothing which is exposed to the environment...natural evaporative effects will dry the material. Its really not good for feet enclosed in shoes. The cotton absorbs sweat and moisture, compacts down, and keeps your feet nice and wet. That helps promote blisters and athletes foot.

The acrylic yarn socks which 'wick' moisture away somehow pull the moisture away from the foot, and theorhetically, up the sock to where it can evaporate away. Thorlo adds an engineering design to provide extra padding for impact and sheer.

THe later I can attest to as I had a pair of those cheap K-Mart sold Dr. Scholls shoes for work. I only ever wore then for work in an office, and while doing laundry the week after I got them, I noticed the socks had worn away at the back of the heel. I then wore the shoes with plain old cotton dress socks as an experiment, and sure enough the shoes were rubbing right where the achilles tendon attaches to your heel bones....and I got a blister.

Needless to say, i still wear thorlos. I don't wear or buy cheap shoes any more.

Be warned, as some one previously posted somewhere, they're thicker socks because of the padding...you'll probably need a slightly larger shoe to wear them.

I'm not sure of the rules for posting hyperlinks here, but if you want to learn more about thorlos in particular, the uri starts with www, ends in .com, and has the company name in the middle.


Hope this helps,
Joe

 

[Mish19]

Are Thorlo socks good for blisters around the toe area? Planning to go to
WDW in October and I'm not going to have blisters this time!! (LOL, I hope)

 

[jmminarik]

Originally posted by Mish19
Are Thorlo socks good for blisters around the toe area? Planning to go to
WDW in October and I'm not going to have blisters this time!! (LOL, I hope)

Without knowing exactly what around the toe means, as a general rule, yea they probably will. It is one of the areas with extra padding and of course, the wicking of moisture away action. I'm not sure about 'between toes' sorta thing though.

However, if you're getting blisters around your toes, you might want to check on the fit of your shoes. They should be snug but not tight around the ball of the foot, with plenty of wiggle room in the toe. Your toes should not hit the front of the shoe when you walk.

Of course, wearing good 'sport' sandals will obviate the need to worry about socks altogether. I'm just not a sandal type of guy though...barefoot (but not at WDW) or good shoes is the only way to go.

Also, there are other brands of socks out there...WigWam comes to mind...that offer coolmax or other acrylic wicking yarns...they just don't necessarily have the design that the thorlos have.

Hope this helps,
Joe