Red, swollen, itchy and painful toes - caused by cycling?

BeauMaximus

Since I started cycling 18 months ago, I had one middle toe get like this and now the two little toes are like it.
They are swollen hard, bright red on top side and Blanche to the touch. The skin is itchy and if I knock them on anything, the pain is intense and lasts about 30 seconds before even starting to subside. Iv never had anything like this before and am hygienic with washing them/socks etc. Iv googled it and lots of things came up from chilblains, AF, gout, reynauds syndrome etc. Has anybody else experienced this through cycling?
Thanks

centimani

Chillblains is the most likely cause....and i havnt found a way of dealing with it.
I get it most years, its intensely painful. I used to think it was cycling in the the cold causing it, but this year has proved otherwise.....the cold aggravates it, not causes it. I know that now because work commitments have left me with precious little time on the bike, i'm hardly on it at all....yet my chillblains have flared up again.

I do wear quite heavy workboots and it flared up the other day after several hours walking about.

The only thing ive never tried is the most obvious....going to the doctors. its that bad, I even considered pee'ing on my feet, which apparently helps...apparently. Never got past considering it i might add

Doctors is the only advice i can give.

remy martin

It sounds like chillblains.Your symptoms are exactly what I have experienced every winter for the last 4 or 5 years having never had any problems with my toes in previous years of riding.

Apparently, people are more susceptible to it if they are generally inactive and older, which is odd given that I'm on the go 6 days a week and started experiencing the pain when I was about 31. Its the one thing I dread about winter.

If you haven't already got them, you'll need good socks that still allow your feet to breathe. Last winter, I got some heated insoles after a really bad few weeks and being in constant pain. It was recommended to me by a fellow cyclist who rides the Alps regularly. He swore by them having used them for a few years. And I have to say, it was the first winter that my chillblains didnt drive me insane.

I hope for your sake it's not chillblains but if it is, at least there are things you can do to minimise the discomfort.

bugsrabbit

I've inherited these from my mother and they're bloody painful. I believe they are caused by poor circulation. I have been told that lying on your back with your feet in the air and pedalling helps :oops: but am yet to be convinced

zn533

These sound exactly like chilblains to me! I am young a fit but have always suffered from poor circulation.

Keep your feet as warm as possible during winter is the first step. The second part is not to let them warm up too quickly. The blood rushes to your toes so quickly that it damages the blood vessels. So, warm up your feet slowly, preferably by putting on thick warm socks when you get in and crucially, not having a hot shower until they feel warm. This works for me and I've been free of them for two years now.

I have some cream called "balmosa" which helped soothe the symptoms quite a bit.

I hope this helps. Obviously, if you still get problems, see a doctor!

diy

If its caused by poor circulation then being super fit probably doesn't help as a lower resting heart rate can worsen circulation issues.

fevmeister

I think overshoes and another pair of socks are in order!!!

ddraver

Man, I feel your pain. I had a shocker today and ended up cycling straight into a headwind with a hailstorm! I got so so cold and my feet went more numb than ever before, the pain when they came back to life in the shower was horrible enough!

I learnt a few tips MTBing in N wales.

-Seal Skin waterproof socks are worth their weight in gold, but you do need to wear something over the top or else water will run down your legs into them

-Winter boots have the same problem, to my mind they re not worth the money, just get a set of SS socks and some larger shoes. If you need to use some liner socks then fine....

-If your shoes are too tight you ll feet will get cold regardless of what you wear. Just get some new cheap ones if neccessary. You need to be able to move your feet in the shoes so you can wiggle your toes and such like. You may lose a bit of power transfer but you ll be warm! This is more important than whichever sock you use. Don't be tempted to wear loads of socks in a shoe as you ll have the same problem.

Hope that helps!

centimani

tonights ride, 2 degrees and frost's appearing on windscreens, but ive done an hour on the bike...socks, plus cheap thermal socks plus Diadora Chili Extreme boots...and for the first time, Aldi leg warmers......and no discomfort.
Previous rides i'd have been hurting, even after just an hour.
Leg warmers, its not rocket science, i always thought (as mentioned above) poor circulation is partly to blame, so having cold legs and expecting to keep your feet warm is a non starter. I'd been meaning to try leg warmers for ages....really nice to have warm legs tonight.

wjperrin

I too get chilblains. I've heard that urine helps the itching and pain, but yet to try that :P

BigLights

Just a thought, but don't discount a fungal infection sort of thing.

BigJimmyB

Urine DOES work.

Surgical spirit is a good alternative.

jezzasnr

and me. Type ii diabetic, so have become very aware of circulation issues with toes / feet.
I've taken to giving my feet a good going over with some moisturising cream, and if its v cold, a bit of linament mixed in, + the shoe / sock / legwarmer advice above. It seems to help, and i really should try to make it a twice a day routine. All just helps to stimulate circulation.

jouxplan

Sounds like chilblains, yes. I suffered horribly with chilblains as a teenager. I remember sitting in classrooms and crushing my toes with the heel of my other foot, trying to stop the itching - an itch which is like nothing else, more of an intense burn. I didn't work out the cause until I was in my 20s. It seemed to be related to several things: poor circulation, genetics (my Dad suffered), allowing your feet to become very cold, warming them up too rapidly, and allowing them to sweat in heavy socks.
You can't change the circulation thing, or the genetics, but you can work hard on the rest. I found that getting into a bath had to be done real carefully. If your feet tingle at all from the heat of the water, then get that foot back out QUICK! Think of the tingling as the chilblains forming, and you will soon get 'em out the water. Cool the water down, to a point where your feet do not tingle. For me, this is often a temperature that meant it was uncomfortably cold to sit in the bath. But once in, you can then raise the temperature. Ditto for a shower, though it is harder to detect when you have it too hot.
Overshoes and decent socks, obviously needed - cycling causes the coldest feet known to man in the space of 2 miles. Beware getting them too hot when not on bike and wearing big fluffy slippers!
I'm 48 now, and have not had the blains for about 20 years, thanks to the above. My mother in law did suggest the urine thing, but I could not bring myself to try it!
When they itch, DON'T scratch. Force yourself to gently stroke 'em (!) It works, but it requires an effort of will.

I have watched my 12 year old son start to experience chilblains, and it breaks my heart. This genetics business is pants sometimes. Still, at least he looks like me :-)
Best of luck.

centimani

zn533 wrote:

These sound exactly like chilblains to me! I am young a fit but have always suffered from poor circulation.

Keep your feet as warm as possible during winter is the first step. The second part is not to let them warm up too quickly. The blood rushes to your toes so quickly that it damages the blood vessels. So, warm up your feet slowly, preferably by putting on thick warm socks when you get in and crucially, not having a hot shower until they feel warm. This works for me and I've been free of them for two years now.

I have some cream called "balmosa" which helped soothe the symptoms quite a bit.

I hope this helps. Obviously, if you still get problems, see a doctor!

I guess different things work for different people because if my feet get too hot (off the bike), it aggravates it something chronic. Keeping my feet at a normal temperature helps, and keeping boots or shoes off whenever possible helps too.

jouxplan wrote:

Sounds like chilblains, yes. I suffered horribly with chilblains as a teenager. I remember sitting in classrooms and crushing my toes with the heel of my other foot, trying to stop the itching - an itch which is like nothing else, more of an intense burn. I didn't work out the cause until I was in my 20s. It seemed to be related to several things: poor circulation, genetics (my Dad suffered), allowing your feet to become very cold, warming them up too rapidly, and allowing them to sweat in heavy socks.
You can't change the circulation thing, or the genetics, but you can work hard on the rest. I found that getting into a bath had to be done real carefully. If your feet tingle at all from the heat of the water, then get that foot back out QUICK! Think of the tingling as the chilblains forming, and you will soon get 'em out the water. Cool the water down, to a point where your feet do not tingle. For me, this is often a temperature that meant it was uncomfortably cold to sit in the bath. But once in, you can then raise the temperature. Ditto for a shower, though it is harder to detect when you have it too hot.
Overshoes and decent socks, obviously needed - cycling causes the coldest feet known to man in the space of 2 miles. Beware getting them too hot when not on bike and wearing big fluffy slippers!
I'm 48 now, and have not had the blains for about 20 years, thanks to the above. My mother in law did suggest the urine thing, but I could not bring myself to try it!
When they itch, DON'T scratch. Force yourself to gently stroke 'em (!) It works, but it requires an effort of will.

I have watched my 12 year old son start to experience chilblains, and it breaks my heart. This genetics business is pants sometimes. Still, at least he looks like me :-)
Best of luck.

Thats my findings too.
The bath temperature bit is me to a tee.