Hardcore Runners and Their Bruised Toes

Oh yeah, Running. I've frequently had bloody socks at the end of a run, though I've never lost a nail. My last pair of marathon shoes were red from blood soaking through them,

My feet look really similar to hers, actually. They are calloused everywhere, and my toes are deformed in the same way. See how they go from skinny at the back to elongated and flattened at the tip? That's the same with me.

The way I see it, my feet take the brunt of my workout so the rest of me can be beautiful.

I managed to make it through a marathon with a couple blisters - no bruising! Buying shoes one size bigger helps a lot.

I'm six foot two and already wear a size 10. There is nothing bigger. Sigh.

When I discovered running, my shoe size grew by two in the first 6 months. It's been weird to watch my bones change in shape.

I've had a black toenail twice and get blisters every now and again. I'm used to my poor feet taking a beating.

@ Spacekatgal -
New Balance has larger sizes. My friend just bought an eleven - check them out.

Oh, I also lost a toenail during marathon training a few weeks ago. It wasn't bruised; it just came off randomly one day when I took my socks off. As unbelievable as this sounds, it wasn't painful at all (as evidenced by the fact that I forgot about it until just now).

Blisters yes, but toenails?! Yikes!

my horse stepped on and broke my toe last april. it's actually still a little ouchy (i'm terrible about "taking it easy"), but i have managed to run a lot since then, and even did my first tri last month.

i was shocked when i got a pedicure a couple months ago and they took the polish off and that toenail was black! i thought it would fall off or go away...but i just polished it and kept on going. and when i got another pedi 2 weeks ago...still black. kind of wondering if it will ever go away, actually, or if i'm just going to have to keep polish on it permanently so people are horrified!

SpaceKat.. At least your height matches your shoe size. I am 5'6 with a size 10 shoe. I look like a clown. I feel your pain.

I thought that was a really serious problem when I found that my right foot toe was completely bruished, that was when I first had my symptoms of arthritis around that area, and went to the doctor and he gave me quite a lot of osteoarthritis pills. I wasn't allowed to run or jump or do any high-intensity workouts, especially plyos, for around a month.

After that a month, there was this one day when all of a sudden the bruised toe (still severely blue in color, after a month!) just fell off like that. Just like that. Now I'm really hoping that it'll grow again, while my left toe is starting to get bluer each day! I'm certainly not proud of it, but I love running too much to give beauty toenails a chance!

Chole_bella - how did you do on NWM? The course was tough. I am getting a black toe nail (2nd toe on left) from this course. There's lots of downhill that I don't get used to, and I guess the pounding was taking a toll on my toe.

Lydialee - I agree, the course was tough! I was not used to the hills either. I mean, I tried to do hills in training, but the hills we have here in St. Louis are nothing like the ones in San Francisco! It didn't really affect my feet (except for a few new blisters), but my quads were KILLING me afterwards!! Its funny that when I thought about practicing hills, I always focused on building endurance to run up hills, and I never thought about getting my muscles used to running DOWN hills. Today is the first day that I've been able to walk down steps without pain.

chloe - same here. I let gravity to pull me down for the downhill portion on the first 13 miles. But, it got too hard on my knee and my toes later on, and I have to lean backward on my downhill.
By mile 23, I was very tired and facing the last uphill of the course - which is a bunny hill. I have to walk on that bunny hill, and then jog slowly afterward. My time was 4:27 - this is half hour slower than my time @ CIM last year.
But, I am happy with the necklace (wearing it now) and I like the tech shirt also.

I've trained for 3 marathons and have bruised a toenail once, but never had one fall off. I think it's because I buy wide running shoes. In real life I am in between an 8 and 8.5. In running life I wear an 8.5 wide. The larger toe box does WONDERS for saving the feet.

After a long training run for my marathon my second toenail slowly turned purple, then lifted up. Still hasnt fallen off even after i ran my marathon. Fingers crossed it slowly grows out

just ran my third NYC Marathon.. feet are a mess. Can't get a pedi for two reasons... one I am embarrassed for someone to touch my ugly feet and I don't want anyone touching my ugly feet.. Maybe next week! LOL

I'm getting ready to run another half marathon and hopefully do the Nike Women's Marathon in SF next fall, nothing beats getting a tiffany's necklace when you cross the finish line

along the lines of toenails, one of my good friends had her nail fall off after a marathon and she was in a wedding two weeks later. Some nail salon actually put a fake nail on it. She thought it was hilarious, I guess there are solutions for everything!

Every year I usually lose a nail..So gross but alot of manicurist around town will put an artificial one on once the nail falls off! I would to try to stay away from really steep down hills but I love to run hills! KILL THE HILL is my motto! So I have to suffer the bruises

I know this is common for runners, I've had it happen once while training for a half marathon...I must ask -- do we have to see the picture of the foot? come on fitsugar, could it be a "click here" to see? its really gross looking!