Question re shorts with liners...

[Valerie226]

For hiking I wear lightweight nylon shorts with the underwear type liners, think it's microfiber. same type of shorts most people wear for running I think. they are very soft and comfortable, usually. but several times now I have gotten irritation along the elastic of the liners. the elastic is not exposed, there's nothing rough, but wowie, I am sore. Red, raised and swollen irritation 2-3 inches long onboth legs. We were glissading down some steep snow so got wet and there was maybe some friction? these shorts dry faster than any others. I don't know what is happening but I sure would like to prevent it. any ideas?

[badunnin]

Try Bodyglide. It's a lubricant that comes in a stick (like deodorant) and athletes use it to prevent chafing. I get it at my local running store, or at REI, but you could probably get it at any sporting goods store. :)

[Leslie Ferguson]

Another option for lubing up before you put your shorts on is stuff called "Aquaphor" - made by the folks who make Euceril. A little more vaseline-like than Body Glide and it can stain certain fabrics (I think it has more petroleum based lubricants than Body Glide). The up side is you can get it at most good pharmacies/drug stores. I've used Aquaphor for most of my half and full marathons and it's kept me chafing free.

Have fun and I hope you find something to prevent chafing.

Peace,
Les

[Valerie226]

Thank you both! We have both body glide & aquaphor and have used them for many things, but not this. We plan on hiking next week when conditions will be similar & I'll try one side with each product & see what works best. Thank you!
I was worried I was developing a latex allergy or something but maybe it's simple chafing. Do you usually need to reapply or is one application good for the day?

[Leslie Ferguson]

I didn't think of a latex allergy but it doesn't sound like that would be the case here because you'd probably have the irritation in other places too, like the waistband. But that thought brings up the question of how you clean those shorts? I used to wash my shorts with very mild detergent and as the shorts aged and the fabric became rougher I started to develop an irritation in a couple places. I attributed the irritation to the soap though because once I stopped using that soap the irritation went away. FWIW (and not too graphic I hope) I don't typically wash my short with soap and water in the washing machine. I normally wash my shorts (if at all) in the shower and use either regular soap (currently using Dove) or maybe shampoo (but I try to avoid that because of potential issues with the fabric and soaps in the shampoo) and rinse the shorts out thoroughly.

Back to your question though, depending on how much you perspire I'd say Aquaphor would last most of the day. Since I'm not a Body Glide person I'll have to defer that one.

I hope you have a good hike and let us know what the outcome is.

Les

[Valerie226]

I have several pairs of these shorts and have worn them for years. I don't usually sweat much & these dry so quickly that sweat is barely noticeable. but this trip there was a lot of steep snow & we descended by sitting & sliding on our butts(glissading). the snow is wet, you get really wet. much wetter than I'd get sweating. took couple miles walk out to get dry completely and it was a very hot day, probably close to 80 up on the snow. so maybe it was a combo of factors. hot, wet, and a long walk.
DH uses body glide for friction issues & I just didn't recognize this was probably the same issue. I have a tube of aquaphor that I could take along on the next trip in case the first application wears off.
I doubt it's detergent but will keep it in mind if these products don't help. Thanks for your thoughts.

[Valerie226]

just reporting back... DH & I did another similar hike. he used body glide & I used aquaphor and neither of us had the slightest problem. turns out he'd had some irritation last time too but hadn't mentioned it. Thanks both of you for the suggestions. I'm so glad it wasn't anything more significant that chafing! good to know that either product will work.

[Leslie Ferguson]

Glad to be of assistance and doubly glad that it wasn't anything more than chafing. Thanks for the feedback on using either lubricant.

Les

[Valerie226]

Les & badunnin; Just bringing this back up because this was SO successful. DH and I went on a backpack this weekend. It was warm, the pack heavy, and by the time we got where we wanted I had 3 inch welts on the upper inside thighs from the shorts elastic. Didn't notice til we stopped but by then it was obvious and unpleasant. OUCH!! BUT.... thanks to asking beforehand I had a teeny tube of Aquaphor like 1/4 oz, but it goes a long way. Spread it on the welts and by morning it was much better. I reapplied it & we hiked all the next day with no discomfort. It seems like aquaphor or body glide work but since I haven't been bothered lately I opted for the one in the smallest container.
It's weird... we've been on 10-15 hikes since I asked the question back in May without a problem and worse conditions but this weekend "it" was back. Not very predictable. But.... this time I was ready. Thanks again for your advice. valerie

[Leslie Ferguson]

Thanks for the feedback and an observation from years of running and off and on chafing issues. Funny thing about chafing - you can do everything "exactly the same way everytime" (or so you think) and you'll get chafed. Most of the time I get chafed now is because I get the material in my clothes/socks/camelback etc. aligned just right and get chafed. Lots of times there never any indication I'll get hit until after the fact (like the spot I've got on my shoulder from my Camelback recently. It took my having someone hold the pack when I was taking it off and indicating where the chafing was. That way I could find the folded over seam and nylon webbing that was causing my abrasion. Once I did that I was able to mitigate the ridge and also able to know exactly where to put the Aquaphor the next go around.

Glad you've found two things that help you when you hike. Did I note Arlington WA? What a beautiful place. Where do you hike? Reason I ask - we were just in The Dalles and my family used to be from the middle Columbia Gorge area (now they all live in the SW hills in Portland).

Take care and happy hiking.
Les

[Valerie226]

Hey Les... Yes. arlington WA. It's nice here. the mountains are lovely. sometimes heat, bugs, cold, rain are issues but mostly we love where we live. We used to live in vancouver, wa on the columbia and hiked some in the c. gorge. very nice, but we like the cascade mountains better, especially the washington mountains. so we moved further north! there are mountains that NEED to be hiked!

Can't figure what was different this time. same shorts. similar weather. wearing a backpack rather than a daypack but I've backpacked many times too. So go figure... it doesn't happen often enough to pre- lub but it's worth carrying a little tube of aquaphor. I know body glide comes in a small container that would work too. I will make it a regular thing to take 'cause it's unpleasant. it gets red and swollen and even more prone to getting chafed more. Today it's 90% gone. Without the aquaphor it would have been a miserable, ruined trip. Anything that hurts with every step is going to ruin a 10 mile hike for sure!