The Foot Treatment An Ultrarunner Says Is Crucial

Top ultramarathon runner, Krissy Moehl, shares her top tip for maintaining happy, healthy feet after hundreds of miles on the trails. Check out this advice from her new book, Running Your First Ultra. Yes, those are her feet (pre-pedicure!) in the photo.

I am a firm believer in regular pedicures for everyone. The polish is a fun touch (and either coats nails preventing black toes, or at the very least hides them), but it is the soaking, scrubbing, de-callusing (more on this in a second), moisturizing and massaging aspects of a pedicure that are the most beneficial. You can do this for yourself or pay for the special treatment at a salon; the point is to take care of your feet.

Calluses are feedback relating where the most stresses are being placed on your feet and there are a variety of opinions on what to do about them. Some feel they are hard earned and protect our feet, while other runners are disgusted by excess, dead skin. I feel there is a happy medium and I tend toward the less-is-more end of the spectrum. A blister forming under an excessive callus is even more painful than a surface blister. And if there is structural pain to the foot associated with your calluses, consider adjustments to your running form and footwear.

Related: 5 Ways To Take Care Of Runner’s Feet

To keep calluses to a minimum, but not completely removed, I find using the PedEgg (which is like a fine cheese grater for your feet) every 2-3 weeks works wonders (follow the instructions!). Finally, a personal secret to prevent black toes is to keep toenails clipped short and filed flat. I always clip, file and decoratively paint mine about one week out from a race or long run. Your feet do so much for you; it is wise to look out for them.