UKC

Hi guys,

I'm starting to go hiking more recently and whenver i go above 8 miles ish chafing starts acting up between my thighs.

I'm not the biggest of people but obviously would like to avoid this,

I've been looking at compression shorts and skin lubes and was wondering if someone can give me any advice as to what would be best?

Cheers

Alex

In reply to Taer:

do you normally wear boxers? I find they chafe more then briefs.
suppose it could be your trousers material?

Chafing tends to happen more when you get sweatty also so perhaps wear shorts and see if that works?

You shouldnt need compression shorts for hiking. I believe bodyglide is meant to be useful, but as I say try and work out the cause before self medicating

In reply to Taer:

I sympathise.

First thing (apologies for stating the obvious), but sort your clothing first:

- No cotton or thick seams. This includes underwear if all possible.
- Wear the lightest fabric possible on your legs
- Get a belt, or otherwise ensure that your trousers/shorts are properly hitched up and moving freely, and not hanging low around your hips/crotch
- A pear of very thin light lycra shorts can help
- Generally make sure you are not getting hotter or more sweaty than necessary

I used to have the same problem a lot. Switching to old school running shorts with an internal brief for my summer hiking pretty much got rid of the problem. A pair of running tights is a good backup when the weather is cooler, but actually the smooth fabric and internal brief make running shorts a good undercracker choice even under light hiking trousers.

There are various lubes out there. I found Chamois Buttr really effective - tenacious! You can get it in most cycle shops or online.

Good luck.
Mark

In reply to ow arm:

I do indeed normally wear boxers, if I'm going hiking i tnd to wear my karrimor hiking trousers with zip off trouser legs.

Will try wearing briefs and i'll have a look out for the bodyglide,is that the stuff that's like a deoderant stick?

@ hamsforlegs

i like the idea of school shorts with internal brief,s ithink i have a pair of those still so will try those as well!

Cheers guys

Alex

In reply to Taer:

I was a martyr to "chafing" for years. Turned out it was nothing to do with the pendulous and abrasive action of my special parts but "jock itch", which is caused by a fungal infection and easily treated with Canesten. Have a look on Google whilst not at work.

In reply to Taer:

wear underwear made from man made fibres only - made for doing sports in. This is by far the best option.

In reply to Taer: For what its worth i do know when the army are doing forced marches they would use vaseline.

In reply to Taer:

Underwear is probably the answer here. Boxers are a no no for me when walking. Try and pick up a pair of something like this:

http://www.milletsports.co.uk/rugby/clothing/adult/pants/under-armour-origi...

The fabric should wick sweat away from the skin and also protect you skin from rubbing on your trousers or whatever.

In reply to Taer:

I use Rab MeCo boxers or Salomon shorts with an internal brief and have been chafe free since 2004. Sweat is the enemy! Shave yer parts!

In reply to Oujmik:

these look like exactly what i've just ordered from sports direct! so hopefully will help I never realised that boxers played such a large part lol, makes sense really though!

In reply to Turdus torquatus:

I'll have a look into this see if this could be playing a part!

In reply to Taer:
OK, I'm going to post this here as this topic is close to an issue I've had: again it strikes after walking, say for 5 hours. Chafing between the cheeks!

I'm not overweight (10st at 5'8'') and it used never happen (could walk 20+ miles, all day and no issue). Not a hygiene issue!

It has kept me from planning longer hikes. From web 'research', this cam happen with physically active people: runners, walkers etc. Pracitcal solutions? Similar to thigh chafing?

In reply to Flinticus:

Try Chamois Buttr and the old school short advice as above.
Chamois Buttr for this, in particular, in my experience (though I would guess it's quite specific to the individual!).

In reply to hamsforlegs:

Would it be applied before the start of a walk (awkward to do so on route!)?

In reply to Flinticus:

That's what I always did; just pasted it on when I was getting dressed. If I was doing a long car ride between dressing and starting out, I'd either just get changed at the start of the walk/run or do a bit of furtive 'down the pants' application!

One of the good things about the cycle balms is that they are quite sticky and tenacious, especially when at ordinary (not active) body temps, so tend not to get everywhere or soak through clothing like eg. Vaseline.

If you're worried about getting bum cream on your Jag's upholstery you can definitely apply it to (ahem) the most intimate areas when at home, and then just add a general smear before heading off on the walk.

In reply to blackcat:


Plus 1 for Vaseline. Also if you do chaff run Germolene onto the sore skin at night before you turn in.

In reply to Taer:

+1 for good quality cotton lycra undercrackers. I also find that some polycotton walking trousers can chafe after a few miles. If I am doing any great distance (more than a dozen miles) I will wear trackster treks as they never seem to chafe.

I know that tracksters are sooooo 90s but they are comfortable.

In reply to Taer:

I'll just second that proper underwear (probably sports underwear is your best choice, Decathlon has some which are quite awkward for first few minutes, but feels like nothing later!) and proper fit hiking trousers without seams in stress areas and good feeling material to your skin (cotton should not be used anyway, so it's up to you to find a good pair of trousers!).

In reply to Taer:
By the by, if anybody wants one im selling some UnderArmour compression shorts search my posts

In reply to Taer:

Im currently going through an experimental phase, to try and work out whats best for avoiding chaffing, as ive got a 2 day mountain marathon looming this summer, and sore bum cheeks is something which seems to stop me more than aching legs!

Today I ran in man made fibre shorts (cheap football shorts actually) and i went commando!. I also used a thin film of vaseline in the usual areas. After a 13 mile run, in relatively warm conditions, I have no chaffing at all! Its the best result ive had so far.

I've tried lanacane, which was also quite good, but didnt last as long as the vaseline did today.

I'f i've already got chaffing, i find a good smothering of E45 over night sorts it out.

In reply to Taer:

Try Vaseline, it works well for me, you usually get chaffing if you get either wet from rain or sweat, you'll need to apply in good amounts before you go out, also keep it topped up during the day as it will wash away during the day as you sweat.

Your pants can also cause issues; this though is something you'll need to experiment with as we are all different where clothing is concerned



Jason

In reply to Taer:

My 2P:
Talc as a preventative- smells better than hikers ballsack too
Vaseline on hotspots
E45/Savlon and a good wash overnight on any chafing you do get - take wet wipes if multidaying
Underarmour or similar, wet cotton boxers are torture

In reply to Taer:

i posted a thread on here a while ago about walking underwear it might help

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=575691&v=1#x7641908

In reply to Taer:

Trousers with a gusseted inseam (ideally full length not some pansy diamond shaped crotch panel) really help, although some styles may make you look as if you have shat yerself.

And boxers with the same.

In reply to Taer:

vaseline rubbs off with me.
bodyglide works really well. used it on hadrians wall appllied once in the morning.

In reply to Turdus torquatus:


Well, having read this post over a month ago and having tried everything from Vaseline to bodyglide to about ten different types of underpants, I thought I'd check this out. I can report back that after a couple of years of also being a martyr to what I thought was chafing, I am free! Canesten did indeed clear it all up in a couple of weeks thanks to this little nugget of info. What a relief! Thank you.

In reply to blackcat:


I thought the op was looking to avoid chafing rather than bum his mates