Running on the Beach

[munising]

I will be in St. Martin again in a few weeks and like to run on the beach which is about 2.5 miles long. I ran barefoot the first year and had huge blisters on both big toes. The last several years I run in shoes and then barefoot the last quarter mile, making the barefoot distance longer each day. About the time I go home, I can run the entire beach barefoot.

Is there any way to toughen my feet up before I go. I live in Minnesota, so running barefoot outside is not an option (unless I want frostbite :eek:). Thanks.

[billycat]

hi there, when I was a teenager I used to play a lot of cricket (I'm in England, here, btw!) and my elbows would get ripped up from diving around fielding balls on hard ground. A tip I picked up is to rub a strong alcohol - meths, rubbing alcohol, that sort of thing, maybe vodka would do!! - into skin you want to protect. i used it on elbows and knees and it worked! So maybe a little on the balls of your feet and heels? Just an idea.
Happy running!

[stressmom]

Have you just tried extra socks?