Your experiences with shoes/feet during a rainy long run?

dcresider wrote: »

So I've ran for almost 20 years inconsistently with many half marathons under the belt, but I've never ran any of my longs run in the rain, not even in any of my races. I guess it's just sheer luck. Anyway, I have an upcoming race in December and who knows what the weather will be like. Does anyone have any experience with a wet running shoe? Blisters? ?Black nails? How do I protect my feet in the rain.

Black toe nails happen because your nails are too long and/or your shoes are too short. For the rest, I wouldn't worry about it too much. I've experimented with changing socks halfway through a long run, but once your shoes are soaked, there's really no point. Just wear good running socks (I prefer the Features socks), and change into dry socks and shoes right after the race.

I’ve run a few long runs and a half in the rain. I really don’t change anything. I’ve tried putting body glide on my feet before but didn’t notice any real change.
Afterwards I’d just stuff your shoes with newspapers so they dry and don’t stink

Aside from a bit of extra weight, I've never had any issues with rain. I do like a narrower, tighter fitting shoe and the thinnest sock I can find, for whatever that's worth. Running with a looser shoe and a heavy, wet sock seems like it would be less than ideal.

Last weekend I ran a trail half marathon and in the first mile we had to run through some standing water that was up to my calves. So my shoes and socks were totally soaked. It felt gross for about a mile after that, but then my feet dried up enough so I didn't notice it anymore. At the end of the race, my socks and shoes were still a bit damp, but I didn't have any blisters.

Last year I ran a marathon where it rained almost the entire time, no issues either.

Obviously things like blisters are very dependent on individual circumstances, but I've found over the years that when my shoes and socks fit well, running through rain/puddles doesn't really cause additional blisters for me.

I've lost a number of nails, had them go black, blistered, swollen toes, etc. I use mole skin to heal up.

I picked up trail shoes which have great drainage and switched to thin moisture wicking socks and don't have an issue anymore.

I just ran a Spartan Beast in the rain and wore a thin wicking sock under a heavy thick wool mud sock with some an old pair of running shoes with good drainage and had no issues.

If you're worries about your feet getting cold when wet you may also want to consider a wool sock (in winter I use merino wool socks) as wool stays warm even when wet.

I've put Body Glide on parts of my feet where I tend to get blisters. I assume you have good moisture wicking socks, which will help somewhat. I'd also just try to get those wet shoes and socks off as soon as you can after the run. And even though your question is about feet, I'd recommend a baseball style cap to help keep some of the rain out of your face.