Sore Feet

Hi All you keen Marathon runners/trainees. I'd appreciate some of your help and experience here. I have just completed my first Marathon in New York and it was a fabulous experience but, something I have never had before happened. Three of my toenails went black and are now looking as if they will come off! (including my two big ones - boo hoo) Is this normal? They are
still killing me over a week later. Is there anything I can do? I don't want to fuss with them without advice as I will only make them worse! Can't wait to get back into my trainers but they won't go on! This is the only thing stopping me! Help would be much appreciated.

Comments

  • Ouch! This may have been caused by your feet swelling from all those miles and your trainers became too small causing your toes to continually bash against the toe box of your shoes. Some people recommend going up 1/2 a shoe size.

    This has happened to me and I'm afraid to say your toe nail(s) do eventually fall off and it takes a bit of time for them to grow back but at least they do grow back.

    I wouldn't worry too much about getting straight in to running - the rest will probably do you a world of good and you'll be back in a couple of months hitting all those PBs!
  • MM, on one of my training runs for NY I ended up with a blackened nail, a bit sore but then tried to run Windsor the following week. Big mistake, turns out the reason why it was so painful it had become infected, this may also be the same in your case. When I ran London my nail just went black and grew out without pain or problems.

    So if your toes are inflamed and/or still sore then see your doctor.

    Something I then tried for my last few runs and NY was to use loads of vaseline around the toes (as well as all the other places the body rubs). The outcome, feet fine and the previous blisters etc no worse than when I started.
  • Martin unless they are infected don't worry about them, they fall off grow back, fall off grow back, they fall off grow back....if you get my meaning!

    I went up half a size because of this and it does relieve the problem a tad!
  • Martine, I did London this year for the first time and lost 2 toenails. My second toes are both just slightly longer than my big toes and it was both of these I lost the nail from (and that's even with going half a shoe size up). Mine stopped being sore after a couple of weeks, although it took quite a while for the nails to actually fall off. I just covered up with nail polish to make it look better!
  • Hi Martine,

    I'm sorry to hear about your painful toes. It's possible that the pain is caused by a collection of blood under your toenail, which in turn was caused by your toes bashing/rubbing/whatever against the end of your trainer in the race. Sounds yukky, but it's just what's turned your toe black.

    If they're still sore then it's possible that your GP might release the pressure for you with a needle. I've never had that done, but I've read that it can lead to instant relief. I've had 4 black toenails now, and 2 of them were excrutiatingly painful for a few days when they first started. After that they settled down, though, and began the long, long process of preparing to fall off.

    Ugh :-(
  • Thanks everyone for your help and advice. I was beginning to think I was some sort of freak! Turns out were infected and am now on antibiotics. I'd probably just have carried on and suffered without advice so ta very much!
  • Lost both my big toes after the marathon
    it took 6 weeks and a half marathon before it happened
    They are not growing back
    Anyone want 24 bottles of nail varnish?
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