Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Chafing Question

I am embarrassed to ask this question, but I could use some sage advice. During a long conditioning hike I had trouble with chafing where my thighs were rubbing together. (I am not overweight and I was not hiking in the buff.) Also my shorts did not seem to be the culprit as they have no seams in the area of the chafing. By the end of the hike I was walking like a cowboy to keep the chafing to a minimum. My questions are do other people have this problem and how do they deal with it? Is Vaseline a good means of combatting this problem? Any advice would be aprpeciated.

Hi SpankyBob! (someday you're going to have to explain the origin of that name :-) ...anyway, try a search using the word "chafing". There was a thread some time back called "400 pound hiker" and there were a few suggestions that might help you.

I thought I was the only one that had this problem! It's an odd topic to be discussing, but 'I feel your pain' , literally. I've had success by switching to wearing cotton boxers instead of jockeys. Just be careful when sitting down - no free shows please. And Vaseline helps too.

During long runs I always Vaseline the "WEAR" spots. In several run "goodie bags", we've received "Aquaphor" which also works well. Once you find all of the wear spots, just lube them up before your run or hike. I also Vaseline my toes and heals. Good Luck on your hike.
Dan

I took a group of High School kids backpacking for a week in Colorado a few years back, and one of the guys brought some Gold Bond with him. With in the first few days several of them had developed chaffing, and all began to use Gold Bond. They all agreed it worked and made hiking that much better. Try it out!

try coolmax or capilene boxer shorts like these:

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductD...0&langId=-1

this stuff also works ok to smooth the area w/o petroleum:
http://www.sternoff.com/bodyglide.html

last but not necessarily least, you may need to fight a fungus with one of these:

http://www.drugstore.com/templates/stdpl...amp;trxp1=25768

& don't sweat

I use sports boxer-briefs. Basically, they're lighter weight than compression shorts, but heavier than normal boxer-briefs. I've never had any problems with chafing while wearing them. Plus, they keep "the boys" in place. :-)

I used to have the same problem. I know this is going to sound odd, but there is a product that I swear by. It is called "Bag Balm". It is in a green tin. It's original intended use was to be used on dairy cattle, for chafing. They sell it in drug stores, and I think that I have even seen it at Target. Many people use it for diaper rash on their children. If it is good enough for a baby's butt, it will be good enough for your own gear.

I bring it with me on the trail. Apply it in the morning, and you should be fine for the rest of the day.

Tre

I do not have this problem, but I agree with Tre that Bag Balm is the best thing that ever happened to my childs bottom. It works great overnight.

Synthetic boxer-briefs are the answer. I just picked some up at REI before my recent Whitney five-day. They got rid of all the chafing/discomfort problems I've had in the past.

agree with duct tape---Went to REI.com-ordered "wicking briefs"--a synthetic boxer shorts--some sort of black nylon--- ~$20.00 each. Used to have bad chafing problem- Thighs would hurt after 5-8 miles--now can do 15 miles a day no problem. Best $40.00 ever spent.

I agree with the snythetic comment. Wear synthetic boxers or briefs and a wicking synthetic type of shorts to keep you dry. I used to have huge chaffing problems until I switched and now have had no problems.
As for which style to wear, boxers or briefs.....depends!

I wouldn't be embarrassed about this topic. It's a big issue with long distance runners who apply gobs of vaseline to nipples and thighs to reduce the friction. Check with your local running shoe store. They usually have underwear to prevent chafing. I wear either Nike Dri-Fit or Andiamo polyester shorts. They are like the tight fitting shorts bicycle riders wear (without the padding). Not very flattering on most people but effective.

I am not embarrassed to say I use A&D ointment. You are basically dealing with the equivalent of diaper rash so consider any of those remedies.

I used to have this problem wearing regular cotton boxers or briefs. I now wear midweight REI MTS boxer briefs and have had no problems. They work great and are fairly cheap at 17.50/pr. I also have started doing some endurance racing and duathlons and was having chaffing problems. I have started using Glide and it works great. It is not petroleum based and cleans up easily and does the job. It comes in a deoderant type stick. Basically put it anywhere you have rubbing. You can pick this up at any good running store or online. Good Luck.

I want to thank everyone for their suggestions. I went for a small training workout yesterday and had no problem with chafing. I have switched to boxer briefs which helped a lot. I also found a product called BodyGlide at REI. A few of the earlier posts mentioned it or alluded to it. The stuff glides on like a deodorant, but is intended to eliminate chafing and blisters. Granted that my workout yesterday was not very long, but considering how chafed I was to start I felt little or no discomfort. Here's a link to BodyGlide at REI. I hope it helps some other unfortunate sufferers.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductD...gory_rn=4500610