[pct-l] Happy Thighs

[waynekraft at verizon.net (Wayne Kraft)]

Thigh chapping was one of the first topics covered by my old marathon coach, JR, during marathon training.

1.  Cleanliness is next to rashlessness. Keep yourself clean everywhere you can reach. EVERYWHERE! Don't be shy.  Whoever mentioned the diaper wipes has the right idea.

2.  Bodyglide is golden.  Slather this stuff everywhere you can reach.  EVERYWHERE! Don't be shy. And don't be loaning your Bodyglide to others.  Eeeeeewww!  You can use this on your feet, nipples, shoulders and anywhere else you want to minimize friction.  Bodyglide comes in very small, light tubes if you don't want to carry the economy size. You could put fresh ones in resupply boxes.

3.  Wear tight spandex shorts while running/walking, just don't run/walk into a biker bar. Unless it is really hot, I wear a pair of shorts with pockets over the top of the spandex. This is because I'm shy and and light colored spandex is a little, well, transparent.   I get tired of being treated like some kind of sex toy by hikers of the opposite sex.   If I am going to wear these uncovered I choose black as they are less revealing.  Or better yet, I have some spandex shorts from a company called InSport that have a very light & tight nylon brief sewed in.  I don't know where you buy these.  The InSport factory is in the Portland area and I always buy flawed ones direct and real cheap at their annual overstock sale at the factory.

Now, let's move on shall we to the fascinating topic of male nipple abrasion.  Again, this is nothing to be shy about and there is nothing wrong with your anatomy if you experience this.  I have seen elite marathoners crossing the marathon finish line in under 2:30 with nipples so badly abraided that there are two bright red vertical lines of blood running down the fronts of their shirts from their nipples to their waist.  Ouchy! Nipple abrasion is caused by the rubbing of your shirt against your nipples for hours until the skin is worn off.  Personally, I've only had a problem with this when I run more than 20 miles in the rain.  I've never had the problem while walking and I think that's probably because I tend to stay dry when I walk (umbrella or whatever) and the skin doesn't move as much against the shirt while walking as it does while running. Nipple abrasion strategies:

1.  Go shirtless. Problem solved. By the way, fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your point of view) I've never heard females complain of this malady (apparently bras prevent it) so they can keep their shirts on.
2.  Tape those nipples. You'll have to find tape with adhesive that won't come off in the rain and be brave about the hair loss upon removal.  There is a product called Nipguards used by runners (I'm not making this up) which you can buy at running stores or online (google it), but nipguards are kind of expensive for multi-day applications and, in my experience not much better than tape.

3.  Bodyglide yourself over the top of the tape.

4.  Wear a really tight, stretchy shirt that moves with your body.  I haven't found it necessary to try this. I am not the tight shirt kinda guy.  My son, Alex, the chick magnet football star, wears a garment called Underarmor that looks like it would probably do the trick and it looks really cool . . . on Alex.

Wayne Kraft