Blister Prevention

19/08/2026

🦶 If you have a bunion and you’re getting blisters, you already know how hard it can be to find shoes that feel right.

It gets to the point where it is not even about finding the “perfect fitting” shoe. For many people, that shoe simply does not exist.

It is about optimising forefoot width as much as you realistically can, and if blisters are still happening, the next step is to match the prevention to the exact blister location.

If the blister is along the lower edge of the bunion, get two large oval ENGO Patches and apply them using the 2-patch technique. One patch goes on the shoe upper over the bunion area, and the second goes on the insole or shoe base where that lower edge is being loaded. This gives friction relief around the bony prominence without adding bulk inside an already tight shoe.

If the blister is on the outside of the big toe, a gel toe sleeve can help by cushioning and absorbing shear around the toe. Or, an ENGO Patch on the insole at the matching site may be a lower-bulk and longer-lasting option.

If the blister is between the toes, on the top of hammertoes, or on the outside of the pinky toe, gel toe sleeves are a great option. Or see a podiatrist for a more customised toe orthotic.

With bunions, the most useful blister prevention usually comes from combining the best shoe fit you can realistically achieve with a site-specific strategy that reduces shear where the blister is actually forming.

Do you have a bunion and get blisters? Where do they show up?

12/08/2026

👟 Kids are masters at slipping shoes on without undoing the laces.

They squash the heel down, wriggle the foot in, and off they go.

Or they do tie them up, but not firmly enough.

Either way, loose lacing can create a real problem: the foot slides forward inside the shoe.

That matters because a shoe can technically be the right size, but still behave like it is too short if the foot is sliding forward with every step, run, stop, kick or direction change.

Here is a simple test.

Take the insole out of the shoe and have your child stand on it.

First, check the length. There should be at least the width of their thumb between the end of the longest toe and the end of the insole. If you've got that, your shoe isn't too small. Well done!

Now look at the foot impression on the insole. That shows you where the toes actually sit in real life. If you have less than the width of their thumb here, the shoe is not being laced up firm enough.

Often, the shoe size is great, but the foot impression tells a different story. The toes are much closer to the end than expected because the foot has been sliding forward inside the shoe.

That forward slide can predispose kids to toe blisters, bruised toenails, nail trauma and general toe irritation.

If the shoe size is right but blisters are still happening, look at where the blister forms. That location will inform which prevention to use.

If the back of the heel blisters, an ENGO Patch on the heel counter can help. If a toe blisters, check whether the toe box has enough room and whether the laces are holding the foot back properly. If there is enough room and the shoe is secure, a gel toe protector sized for the child’s toe can help.

Do not just wait for the shoes to “soften up” or for the child to "grow into them."

Sometimes the issue is not the shoe itself. It is the foot sliding forward because the shoe is not secured properly.

Does your child slip their shoes on without undoing the laces?

05/08/2026

🦄 I recorded an entire Office Hours session dedicated to busting blister myths.

There are 17 of them. And some are so deeply embedded in blister advice that even health professionals repeat them without questioning them.

Here are three worth rethinking:

Myth: Reducing friction means reducing rubbing.
Reality: Lowering friction actually means sliding will happen sooner. That is a good thing for blisters and blister-prone areas. It means your skin can move in sync with the bone underneath, instead of being locked in place while blister-causing shear builds. It's actually how lubricants and ENGO Patches work.

Myth: Hydrocolloid blister plasters prevent blisters.
Reality: Hydrocolloids are dressings. They are useful for one blister stage: the deroofed blister. They protect already-damaged skin. Yes, they can eliminate rubbing at the surface, but they do not eliminate blister-causing forces. They simply spread them out over a slightly larger area. Put one on a high-shear site before a blister forms and it may simply become part of the problem.

Myth: Blisters are caused by your shoe rubbing your foot.
Reality: If this were true, nobody that wore socks would ever get blisters - your sock is covering your foot the whole time. It's physically impossible for that to happen. So why do runners, walkers, hikers, footballers, netballers, basketballers, skiers, etc get blisters when they are all wearing socks?

The real issue is what is happening underneath the skin surface. Friction holds the skin, sock and shoe together long enough for the bones to keep moving inside the foot. That mismatch creates shear distortion in the skin, and that is where the blister injury occurs.

There are 14 more myths covering causes, prevention and treatment in the full blog post.

Read the full breakdown at blister-prevention.com/blogs/treatment/office-hours-blister-myths

Which blister myth do you hear most from patients, athletes or friends?

28/07/2026

🚶 A walker contacted me with the same complaint I hear often:

“I keep getting blisters on the back of my heels. I’ve tried different shoes, socks and dressings, but they keep coming back.”

Here is what the assessment revealed.

She was treating them as back-of-heel blisters, but they weren’t actually on the back of the heel. They were posterior heel edge blisters.

That distinction matters.

The blisters were occurring along the back edge of the heel, where the skin was being loaded against the curved, slightly rough heel cup of her insoles. The shoe fit was reasonable, and the usual “back-of-heel” prevention strategies had not solved the problem because the main issue wasn’t the shoe heel counter.

It was the shape and texture of the insole heel cup.

So we changed the load.

We swapped the contoured insoles for flat Spenco Rx Comfort Insoles with no heel cup. That removed the curved edge that was concentrating shear at the heel margin.

We added an ENGO Patch to the shoe to reduce friction at that point, just to make sure of it.

And I suggested she experiment with shortening her stride length a little, because overstriding can increase the load through this area of the heel with each step.

All three changes had the same goal: reduce shear load in the skin.

Result: the blisters never recurred.

This is why blister location matters. “Heel blister” is not specific enough. Posterior heel, plantar heel, and heel edge can all have different causes and need different prevention strategies.

This is what a blister consultation does. It finds the cause that is not obvious.

If you need this expertise, make an appointment with your local podiatrist. Or book a telehealth consult with Rebecca at blister-prevention.com

Have you had a blister that kept coming back until you found the real cause?

21/07/2026

👧 Kids are tough. They will run, kick, jump and play through discomfort without saying a word. By the time they mention their heel hurts, the blister is usually well underway.

Junior sport creates the perfect conditions for heel blisters. Growing feet in shoes that are either slightly too small or slightly too big, or not quite broken in. Add the heavy heel landing of netball, the stop-start of basketball, or the constant running of football and soccer, and the back of the heel can become a high-shear zone very quickly.

ENGO Heel Patches are designed for this exact problem. They stick to the inside heel counter of the shoe, not the skin, creating a low-friction surface where the sock contacts the shoe.

That means less gripping at the sock-shoe interface and less shear building up under the skin at the back of the heel.

They are especially useful for kids who blister in school shoes, football boots, netball shoes, basketball shoes, hiking boots or any shoe that repeatedly causes that same sore spot at the back of the heel.

The key with kids: get ahead of it. If they blistered last season, they will likely blister again this season unless something changes. Check their shoes, check the back of their heels, and put prevention in place before the first game.

Do your kids get heel blisters during sport? Which sport and which shoes? Share below and I’ll suggest what might help.

14/07/2026

✅ ENGO Patches are simple to apply. But a few small details make the difference between a patch that lasts 300+ miles and one that lifts after a week.

Here are 5 tips for a perfect application:
1. Clean and dry the shoe surface first. Dust, lint, lubricant residue, and moisture will all compromise adhesion. Wipe the area with a clean cloth. If the surface is particularly dirty, a quick wipe with rubbing alcohol helps.

2. Place the patch where the blister forms. Make sure you leave a 1cm margin on all sides to allow for the bones that are moving within your foot, and your foot that might move in your shoe. You can trim to fit if needed.

3. Press firmly for 30 seconds, especially the edges. The adhesive bonds with pressure and warmth. So wear the shoe for the next 30 minutes to maximise adhesion. Gently warm the patch with a hair dryer first if you need your patch to be a little more conformable.

4. Do not forget the other shoe. Most people blister on both feet, even if one is worse. Apply to both shoes for consistent protection.

Save this for your next application. And if you have any application questions, drop them below.

09/07/2026

07/07/2026

🏐 Netball creates some of the highest shear loads on the ball of the foot of any sport. And most players just accept the blisters that come with it.

Here is what is actually happening.

During a sudden stop, pivot or change of direction, the skin, sock and shoe grip together but the bones inside the foot keep moving - forward, backward or side to side. Those bones are the metatarsal heads - where your foot bends. They are pressed down and slide under the skin while the skin surface stays still. This is a high-magnitude shear event.

Now repeat that hundreds of times per game, on a hard court, in shoes designed for grip. The skin cells fatigue and separate. Bang - blister.

The court surface and shoe outsole are designed for maximum traction. That is great for performance, but it means friction is high everywhere. And the ball of the foot, where the metatarsal heads are most prominent, bears the brunt.

What works: The easy fix is an ENGO Patch on a 3mm Spenco insole, perhaps with some pressure deflective felt padding (adhesive felt donut pads) on your foot or under the insole to redistribute pressure away from the most prominent metatarsal head. For players with particularly mobile or prominent metatarsals, a podiatrist can assess whether orthotic intervention helps.

Do you play netball or treat netball players? Where do they blister most? Share below.

30/06/2026

🔨 If you wear work boots for a living, you have probably accepted blisters as part of the job.

Steel caps. Stiff leather. Long shifts. Hot conditions. It feels like the boots are built to blister you.

But here is the thing: blisters are totally optional... from day 1. Even in the toughest footwear, the hottest of climates and the extremes of foot structure.

What most people do: bandaids, Compeed, tape, or just tough it out.

What actually works: depends on where on your foot.

For example, an ENGO Patch on the heel counter lining or insole creates a low-friction surface that lets your sock glide instead of grip. It lasts months of daily wear, even in hot, sweaty conditions. You literally won’t get those blisters, even on the first day. Hint – get the rectangle patches.

For toe blisters in steel caps, gel toe protectors absorb shear where there is a concentration of pressure and movement – like the hard toe cap.

You do not need to suffer through it. You just need to match the solution to the spot.

Know a tradie who thinks blisters are just part of the job? Tag them below.

30/06/2026

A lot of people assume that if their skin is thick and callused, they're protected from blisters. It seems logical. Tougher skin should be harder to damage.

Sure, callus protects against abrasion, which is a surface-level, superficial-to-deep wear injury. But a blister is a completely different injury. It's an internal tear under the skin surface, caused by shear distortion between the bone and the skin surface.

Callus doesn't stop shear. The bone underneath is still moving. The tissue between bone and skin is still being stretched. The skin is doing its best to deal with it by thickening.

Here’s the kicker… calluses are a blister predictor. A very obvious clue that shear forces at this site are already high. If you increase your activity level suddenly, this site is very likely to blister.

The callus is evidence of the problem, not a solution to it. I’m sure you’ve seen or heard about blisters under calluses.

Have you assumed callus was protecting you? What do you think about this reframe?