Foot/Callus Care
I have been having a recurring problem with my feet.
I practice barefoot and have been going through the following
cycle:
1. get blisters.
2. blisters harden into callus.
3. callus falls/tears off.
I can't seem to keep the callus from leaving the sole of my foot.
I don't want or need a "5 inch layer of pressboard", just enough
to allow me to practice without blistering all the time.
Any suggestions for pedicare?
- Keep 'em moisturized. Any decent moisturizer will do. The best
time to apply it is right after a shower of bath; it seems to be absorbed
better. It's also a good idea to get a pumice stone or foot file, and
use this to remove dead skin. If you do this, you'll develop nice smooth
callus that won't blister or tear.
-An old rowing remedy for callouses - you may not want to try it...
The basic idea is to tan your feet (rowing equiv is for the hands):
(1) Collect some of your own urine.
(2) Massage it into your feet.
(3) Allow to dry for about 3 minutes.
(4) Wash off and let feet dry again.
This should be done BEFORE the callouses start. Ie, now. It works, and the
1/4..1/2 inch build up of skin doesn't happen.
[An old boxer told me to do the same for bruises].
A more basic, less "kinky" approach is simply to go bare foot every day
on interesting surfaces (gravel, sand, bare wood, roads). Get a job weeding
on a farm and go barefoot (that's what I did as a boy). Moisturiser (which
softens the "leather" a little) would augment this approach, but JUST
moisturising (softening) makes a vulnerable, tearable skin (it tears on
carpet with pivots, for example) - so, some tanning, some how...