Run Like a Mother
I have yet to get them from running. Just lucky, I guess. But I have lost a couple from backpacking.
Former Bad Ass
This.
I've never had a bruising or black toenail. I know some people get them but I think it's a shoe issue (too small, or not enough toe box space).
That used to happen to me when my shoes were too small, but it's possible you could be wearing the right size and maybe the toe box just isn't shaped right for your foot. I can wear my correct size in Nike Free's, but the way that particular shoe fits just doesn't work for me and gives me a blood blister on my big toe. So maybe next time you're looking for shoes try a different brand or model with a differently shaped toe box.
Damaris
This. I've never had a bruising or black toenail. I know some people get them but I think it's a shoe issue (too small, or not enough toe box space).
Not always a shoe issue.
I have been getting them for years. Since I ran my first half marathon in 2003.
I have checked with my P/T, my local shoe store owner who is a multitime marathon winner and sports physiologist.
They both said some people just get them no matter what. I am one of those people. I lift my toes when running and
where I live is bascially all hills. I either run up a hill or down a hill on 75% of my run distance.
I wear a D width shoe with a wide box, one size larger than my normal shoes and have tried many different shoes
over the years.
Still get the black toenails.
I ate a word there that should have said most of them, I think, it's a shoe issue. Some people still get them no matter what, true, Beth.
I'm with Beth on this. I'm a size 7 in regular shoes and I wear 8.5 in Newton shoes. The box is wide enough, but I still get black toenails. That's just the way it is. As long as the shoes feel good to me and I don't have pain anywhere, what do I care if I have blacktoe nails? I think they're pretty cute, actually!
PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013
Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013
18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010
Smaller By The Day
Run in flip flops, you'll be fine.
Improvements
Weight 100 pounds lost
5K 31:02 Sept. 2012 / 23:36 Sept. 2013 (Same Course)
10K 48:59 April 2013
HM 2:03:56 Nov. 2012 / 1:46:50 March 2013
MARATHON 3:57:33 Nov. 2013
I wonder whether it has more to do with the way some people run (step, gait, whatever). I've always wondered about whether some people lift their toes when they step. I've caught myself doing that on occasion.
Also, I have found that if I let my toenails get too long (not even past the end of the toe) they will get caught up in the front of the shoe sometimes, so I assume that if I didn't cut it shorter, I might get some issues.
Or crocs. Or so I've heard.
kind of a big deal
you could try keeping your toenails trimmed really short and see if that helps. i'll start getting minor bruising on my longest toes if i slack on keeping them trimmed.
i still swear by pedicures. if i get a pedicure once a month, i'm golden.
delicate flower
Agreed. My toes were doing fine and I had no black nails. I bought a pair of Nike Elite+ and after one 10 mile run, I got two black nails. DAMMIT. The shoes were the right size but the wrong fit. They are now my gym shoes. I'm still waiting for those black nails to grow out. It takes about a year in my estimation.
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