I have never been a fan of doubling up on socks unless it was for warmth. I spend a lot of time hiking and running in crappy terrain and I found that wearing good socks, good/appropriate shoes and taking care of you feet have worked better for me then using two pair of socks. The operative phase being “worked better for me: and you may find something works better for you. This post will probably go WAY beyond the answer you were looking for… but I can’t sleep…

I have feet that blister easily; I have discovered a few techniques that work very well for keeping my feet blister free and happy. After one of my Ironman where my feet were basically destroyed; my girl friend, mom and a MD friend all bought me the same book; Fixing Your Feet, by John Vonhof which is an excellent resource. In the years since that first Ironman I have also had the opportunity to work at a number of ultra-marathons and have continually perfected my foot care techniques. Besides spending the money on GOOD socks I have found a few keys to keeping your feet happy:

• Tie your shoes. This seems simple, but tie you shoes so that your feet move as little as possible. A simple change in how I laced my shoes (see picture) made a huge difference in foot movement (and thus a reduction in blister reducing friction).
• Keep your feet clean and dry. This is often easier said than done. Here in AZ, I almost always wear lightweight/breathable running gators when out on the train for any period of time to keep the dust and rocks out. Dirty feet are more susceptible to blisters from the increased movement and friction.
• Stay hydrated in hot weather. Seriously, dehydration increases the chance of blisters.
• Use powder or lubricants. Even baby powder from the drug store works, but if you can get a powder designed for blister prevention (like “Blister Shield”) or skin lubricants designed for endurance sports (like “Body Glide”) . I always use Blister Shield for hikes/runs over an hour or so. I personally don’t use a skin lubricant, but I have seen it do wonders for ultra-marathoners.
• Pre-tape your feet. If I know I am going on a hike/run that is going to be rough on my feet, I pre-tape my feet with Kinesio-Tex tape and spray on skin adhesive. Once my feet are taped… I spray the feet completely with the pre-tape skin adhesive and “glue” my socks to my feet. The socks still come on and off really easily and this pretty much guarantees me happy feet.

These methods may be more then you need to do, and simply buying quality socks (Smartwool socks are some of the best) and keeping your feet clean and dry will be enough for most people.