Chafing

December 13, 2004 3:04 AM

Joggers, Hikers and Marathon walkers, your attention please! I love to walk, but experience troubles with chafing. For particularly long walks (5 hours and beyond), I used to use a product called Chafe Eez, manufactured by a now apparently defunct company called Second Wind. [more inside]

This product was a thick cream in a squeeze bottle. For chafing (toes, thighs, anything that rubs) it provided not only some relief, but also was an excellent long lasting skin lubricant. A healthy blob of it would last all day, and it had a pleasant smell to it.

Now, sadly, it seems to be unavailable. I've tried a product called `Bodyglide', which seems quite good and gets glowing reviews, but is not really right for me.

Does anyone either know if Chafe Eez is available somewhere, or have a home made variant that works for them?

(My first post to MeFi! How exciting!)

posted by tomble to sports, hobbies, & recreation (10 comments total)

I've ran the London Marathon twice and in both cases a simple tub of Vaseline did the trick.
posted by ralawrence at 3:27 AM on December 13, 2004

Hi, I do very long races, in the 50-100 mile category. I haven't used bodyglide or Chafeeeze. Some of my friends use regular A&D ointment, but it stains. I get away with compression shorts (lycra) for everything longer than a marathon, and I've been pretty lucky on my feet. You could try Injinji socks, which many ultrarunners swear by, although they are not all that sturdy. If you are having specific foot trouble, you might want to check out Fixing Your Feet by Vonhof. He also has a free online newsletter.

If you would like more resources, even though I did not answer your question, feel free to email me via my member page.
posted by OmieWise at 6:27 AM on December 13, 2004

I'll second the Vaseline suggestion, I use it for weekend long walks in the Scottish Highlands and Welsh mountains and it saves me considerable pain.
posted by grahamspankee at 7:00 AM on December 13, 2004

I've often seen Bag Balm recommended by long-distance runners.
posted by mendel at 7:47 AM on December 13, 2004

I've used talcum powder, vaseline and duct tape, though not all at the same time, in that order of preference. When it gets really bad, I just wrap the affected portion of my body in duct tape. No more chafing, but it hurts like a sonofabitch when I tear it off a few days later.

I'm a long-distance backpacker. (AT '96.)
posted by waldo at 8:17 AM on December 13, 2004

When I volunteered on the CA AIDS Ride, there were big bowls of chamois butter [which they called "butt balm" but Googling shows me that this is a brand name for some diaper rash ointment which I don't think is the same thing] available at each of the rest stops for butt/thigh lubrication purposes.
posted by jessamyn at 8:53 AM on December 13, 2004

Sorry it's not right for you, but for others reading the thread, I can add my own glowing review for BodyGlide. I used it for my first marathon this year (which took me a LO-OOOOOO-OOONG time to complete, longer than the 5 hours you mentioned walking), and it worked like a charm. It's odd, at first, using something that comes in a deodorant-like tube in solid form, but it does the trick for me.

[On preview: wishing I could find some "Butt Balm," just on principle. Heh.]
posted by ChrisTN at 8:59 AM on December 13, 2004

Hi, tomble. There's a recipe to make your own here, as well as links to buy some of the other ones mentioned here already. They recommend something called Runner's Lube.
posted by iconomy at 9:10 AM on December 13, 2004

I used Body Glide as well, the stuff that applies like deodorant. I will say, that it doesn't smell too great. I'm not sure exactly what it smells like, but it's not good. It worked well for a couple half-marathons I did.
posted by jonah at 3:23 PM on December 13, 2004

Magnificent! Thank you all very much!
posted by tomble at 2:47 AM on December 14, 2004