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Sweaty ass feet

thestrangebrew1

thestrangebrew1

Diamond Member
My feet sweat when I'm in almost all shoes. I prefer flip flops whenever possible. Sometimes I'll have to go out in the field for work and I'll just wear work boots. I just got a pair of Carolina steel toes and good god my feet and socks are drenched when I take them off. Not any odor yet, but I can feel them sweating as I type this. Any tips or tricks to get me feet to stop sweating or at least lessen the perspiration? These boots are super comfortable for me so I'd rather not have to go out and get a new pair.
 
What helps prevent the smell is to take a washing soda based feet bath once or twice a week. When you do it regularly, your feet will no longer have an odor.
 
Shoes that breathe! Even with the steel toe, you can get cloth/mesh sides that allow air in there. Not-too-thick wool (or even special moisture-wicking material) socks will also help pull some of that sweat away.
 
William Gaatjes said:
What helps prevent the smell is to take a washing soda based feet bath once or twice a week. When you do it regularly, your feet will no longer have an odor.
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My feet only smell when I wear synthetics on my feet. Wool socks, leather boots, minimal insoles, no stink.
 
Thanks all. I'll look into some of these suggestions. I'm not too keen on putting deodorant on my feet just yet. I'll look for moisture wicking socks first! All my socks are cotton.
 
lxskllr said:
My feet only smell when I wear synthetics on my feet. Wool socks, leather boots, minimal insoles, no stink.
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+1

Used to be standard issue in the military for combat boots, I imagine it still is.

078-maicbs1.jpg


Are many types of course.

Was going to say something along the line of a jungle style boot also, but it sounds like you like the boots.
 
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lxskllr said:
My feet only smell when I wear synthetics on my feet. Wool socks, leather boots, minimal insoles, no stink.
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I have that too. I only use cotton socks. The synthetics elevate the temperature of your feet and the bacteria that live in the pockets of your nails will thrive. I had smelly feet long ago( at least 15 to 20 years ago) for a short while after using socks with a 25% nylon and 75 % cotton mixture. I always buy socks that are at least 80% cotton. But i really like to look a little further and prefer 85% or higher. Anyway, after those synthetic socks, i took a washing soda bath for a few months every week because the bacteria got into my shoes. Ever since, i really do not have any problem with smelly feet. I do however have more pair of shoes that i rotate. That way, i make sure my shoes stay fresh. And when it is summer, i spray my aftershave on my feet as well before putting on my socks. That way, when i do start to get sweaty feet, my shoes give of this aftershave aroma of Calvin Klein. 😎
 
Yea the boots are comfy, just doesn't breath very well (at all?). I have a pair of redwings that don't have mesh and my feet don't sweat nearly as bad as these, but these are much more comfortable.
 
I have the same problem. Unfortunately the main thing that seemed to help me was changing the footwear I used. I've been wearing these lately and they're worlds better than anything I ever had before. They've got some kind of anti microbial insole that may be partially responsible, but they also breathe better than anything I ever had before, including athletic shoes. They do come in steel toe, but they're kind of flimsy. I don't know how long a pair would last you if your job is particularly hard on boots.
 
It was quite the revelation for me when I discovered that cotton is a terrible material to put on your feet. I've been wearing wool socks every day for years now (even in very hot weather) and my feet have never been drier or more healthy.
 
DougK62 said:
It was quite the revelation for me when I discovered that cotton is a terrible material to put on your feet. I've been wearing wool socks every day for years now (even in very hot weather) and my feet have never been drier or more healthy.
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+1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wool

In addition to clothing, wool has been used for blankets, horse rugs, saddle cloths, carpeting, felt, wool insulation (also see links) and upholstery. Wool felt covers piano hammers, and it is used to absorb odors and noise in heavy machinery and stereo speakers. Ancient Greeks lined their helmets with felt, and Roman legionnaires used breastplates made of wool felt.
Wool has also been traditionally used to cover cloth diapers.[citation needed] Wool fiber exteriors are hydrophobic (repel water) and the interior of the wool fiber is hygroscopic (attracts water); this makes a wool garment suitable cover for a wet diaper by inhibiting wicking, so outer garments remain dry. Wool felted and treated with lanolin is water resistant, air permeable, and slightly antibacterial, so it resists the buildup of odor. Some modern cloth diapers use felted wool fabric for covers, and there are several modern commercial knitting patterns for wool diaper covers.
Initial studies of woolen underwear have found it prevented heat and sweat rashes because it more readily absorbs the moisture than other fibers.
 
DougK62 said:
It was quite the revelation for me when I discovered that cotton is a terrible material to put on your feet. I've been wearing wool socks every day for years now (even in very hot weather) and my feet have never been drier or more healthy.
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I've recently switched to wool when I'm wearing my boots for work (I have to wear steel toe 🙁). The only pain in the ass is finding 100% wool socks. There are some brands that say wool, but don't even crack 10%
 
I have sweaty feet ever since I can think....

* LEATHER SHOES

Real leather, untreated, as natural as possible....quality shoes make the biggest difference.

The sweat has to go somewhere. Most sneakers/sports shoes today are made with synthetics, and even a lot of leather shoes don't work right, eg. when the insole doesn't really wick away moisture....or when the leather is treated, say with gore-tex. ("Water Proof", yeah right...if the shoes are water proof, moisture cannot go anywhere obviously)

I just got relatively expensive shoes from the UK (Clarks), I absolute love them, they are also extremely light and after an entire day my shoes/feet feel and smell fresh....this is very rare because I really sweat a lot.

So and once you get the right shoes...then of course socks...also 100% natural, either cotton or wool.
 
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DougK62 said:
It was quite the revelation for me when I discovered that cotton is a terrible material to put on your feet. I've been wearing wool socks every day for years now (even in very hot weather) and my feet have never been drier or more healthy.
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Wow..that's interesting, will look into that.

Edit: I just learned there are "bamboo fiber socks", they are supposed to be awesome for sweaty feet.
 
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You guys have to moisturize your feet. It isn't really "sweat", it's more of an oil. This is caused by the toes drying, the body fights this by pumping oil out. This of course attracts the bacteria causing odors.
Flexy, they make awesome WP leather boots, I've been romping through puddles ankle deep, they do fine. And my feet do fine as well.
Lots of bad advice in this thread.
 
I had the same issue, I ended up buying some slippers that are very thin and let the feet breathe better than shoes, now I can just take my feet out and put them back in quickly. I guess that's not really an option if doing physical outside work though where steel toe is required.

Heard certain socks can help too, but problem with specialized socks is they usually only come in like 1 or 2 pairs and the store will only have a few packages. Socks is one of those things that you want to have in bulk so you're not constantly having to do laundry.
 
Red Squirrel said:
Heard certain socks can help too, but problem with specialized socks is they usually only come in like 1 or 2 pairs and the store will only have a few packages. Socks is one of those things that you want to have in bulk so you're not constantly having to do laundry.
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I do my wash once a week. 7 pair of socks isn't an egregious burden.

Tip... I bought a bunch of nice wool socks from Marshalls this past jul season. I'm guessing they'll have them every year. Some, but not all were marked as irregular, but I couldn't find flaws. They were steeply discounted from retail; avg price was ~$8/pair. I'll be checking them out next jul, and hope to score another year of socks.
 
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