Next, remove some strips (you can just tear it off, no scissors required) of Leukotape from the cover roll and apply them over the ball of your foot, heel, and other susceptible areas. Make sure you’re not forming any creases or leaving any gaps in the areas you’re covering. You don’t want to circle the foot entirely because you don’t want to restrict blood flow. Zinc oxide tape is non stretch adhesive sports tape. A variety of sports taping applications use it. In particular, it is used for support straps which protect ligaments and restrict joint movement. Often referred to as “finger tape” it is predominately used for fingers. This is most popular within martial arts, in particular BJJ where grappling is heavily involved. Make a small hole at the edge with a sterilized pin or needle. Sterilized the pin by passing it through a flame. Non stretch sports tape is also perfect for foot taping, for example, preventing blisters and arch support taping for Plantar fasciitis. Tan Tape

When dressing a burst blister don’t remove the surrounding skin (this process is called de-roofing) as it protects the healing skin underneath. Allow the fluid to drain and cover with a dry, sterile dressing. NHS choices recommend hydrocolloid dressings, such as duoderm. They have more info on treating blisters and applying dressings.The more powerful adhesive in rigid strapping tapes provides additional support and stability and prevents injury. However, this adhesive may cause medical reactions in certain individuals. In these cases it may be necessary to wear a hypoallergenic fixing bandage between the tape and the skin. Latex Free Zinc Oxide Tape An effective, short-term measure is to cover the foot and affected area in petroleum jelly. This should provide some relief from pain as it protects the skin and lubricates. However, as the heat from your foot melts the petroleum jelly it runs away and is ineffective. Draining a blister It may be that the blister is so large that the pressure build up is painful and you feel you really need to pop it. Or, just as likely, you need to run for an event or training and it’s too painful. This is where there is an argument for ‘popping it’. When you run it’s quite likely it will pop anyway, so it may well be safer, and less painful to do this in a controlled, relatively sterile manner at home then you can then dress it afterwards. Or, you could go to your GP or Practice Nurse for them to aspirate and dress it. Again this would be sensible and what I would recommend in an ideal world. I do however know runners, and there is little chance they’d see their GP about a blister! If you do choose to pop your blister at home then wash the foot thoroughly first and use a sterile needle.

Protective. It protects the skin surface of the feet from the effects of constant rubbing, offers thermal insulation and reduces friction levels. If you do get red or painful areas on your hands during an outing, try to loosen or change your grip to avoid a blister developing. Unless the maximum level of support is required, avoid applying the tape directly to the skin. Applying pre-wrap first, and then using zinc oxide tape over the pre wrap will help to prevent blisters. Tiger Tape Zinc Oxide gives you that firm support for joints and muscles, providing restriction of movement or immobilisation, depending on the taping technique applied. This rigid sports tape is great for strapping the knees, ankles, elbows, shoulders, wrists, hands and fingers, providing a strong and secure hold so you FEEL READY to perform. Zinc oxide strapping is used quite a lot in sports and is essential to have in any pitchside sports first aid kit .Experienced race doctor @isitaboutabike who has looked after runners and their feet on 100 mile ultra marathons was hugely helpful and offered lots of excellent advice, Ensure that the area to which you intend to apply the tape is clean and free of moisture, oils or lotions. These foreign agents can compromise the effectiveness of the adhesive. The tape will then be less effective in providing the joint support required;

Zinc oxide tape is suitable for professional athletes, hikers, sports lovers, physiotherapists and countless more. Due to its antiseptic and stabilising properties, it is commonly used to assist in wound healing, joint stabilisation, prevent injuries and limit bruises and blisters. Nothing can stop your love for movement. If you don't wish to carry around a big roll of leukotape, you can wrap a section around a hollowed out and cut-in-half writing pen or wrap some around a lighter. You could even cut strips and put them on plastic-based film sheets. Blisters do nicely doing nothing! Doing things may help keeping going in an event or to return to training again comfortably ASAP. Once blistered my favourite is to pop/aspirate (using sterile needle and syringe) tape down with mefix* on dry clean skin, and apply Vaseline over that.” ZINC OXIDE TAN is made from a rayon cloth, which provides unrivalled tensile strength. It is 3x stronger and more durable than ZINC OXIDE WHITE, which is made from an organic cotton cloth. Cotton is more lightweight, pliable and comfortable to wear.

Applying Zinc Oxide Tape

Based on the original sports tapes that have stood the test of time, our Tiger Tape Zinc Oxide proves to be as popular as ever from amateur to professional sports. Extremely versatile and available in various widths that you can split even further to any size that FEELS RIGHT. If you are interested in taping and strapping techniques then take a look at our taping techniques videos Phase 1 of blistering is when a hot spot starts forming. This is usually when you start noticing signs of friction. Zinc oxide is a chemical compound of zinc and oxygen. It is often used in medicine for skin and wound treatment due to its antiseptic properties.

Phase 2 actually requires draining and treating the blister, so your best bet is to take action before it gets to this point. Ensure that boots fit properly, and are broken in. During the breaking-in phase, they will rub, so only wear them for short periods (head to our guide for how to break in hiking boots for more on this).There should be some movement in the boot as you walk. Different lacing up-patterns will keep the heel more or less secure, so experiment until you find the right balance. It also pays to invest in a pair of the best hiking boots you can afford: good quality boots are designed to fit better and can break in faster than cheaper options. Watch out for signs of infection –these include swelling, redness surrounding the blister, yellow/green discharge or pus from the wound (not to be confused with normal transparent yellowish fluid you might expect from a blister) increase in pain and excessive heat from the area. Compeed Blister Plasters are a good option – they expand in response to friction to protect the area. As a general rule, the trainer should position the patient’s joint in the range of motion in which the joint will be stabilized.Do not have any wrinkles or bumps in the tape as these may cause blisters themselves. Make tiny cuts in the tape if needed to allow a better fit. Instep The general rule is to keep it clean and keep it covered. Usually a blister will go down of its own accord within a couple of days; if it does burst then treat as above. Aside from its ability to treat minor skin irritations, Luko tape adhesive bandage strips are excellent for a handful of reasons, including: Protective I chose the taping technique illustrated in the video below, as it covered all my weak points. If you develop hot spots in other places you may need to extend the covered regions. Pre-Taping for Blister Prevention If you want to cover your whole foot, bend your foot pointing upwards and start at the base of the heel working your way up to just before your toes with overlapping strips. Add smaller strips for your toes then add a long strip from the inside of your foot to the outer side.