Toe Caps

I'm not going to kid you, the following is gross.
You know all those times you wear sandals and feel obliged to explain "Yeah, I'm a runner..."? Because other people have ten toenails and you do not? Remember?
Thing of the past, my little gazelles!

Toe caps are the best. I love them. I had tried everything - different socks, different shoes, different sizes of shoes, lacing techniques - yet every summer when my mileage really started to inch up, some rogue toenails would take the ball and go home.

Toe caps are little silicone... toe-sized condoms, really. (You were warned.) They come in packages of four and are easy-peasy to use. They're thin enough that once they're on, I honestly don't feel them. But they're thick enough to negate the necessity of cutting the toes out of my shoes. Because that was an option, believe me.

They retail for between $12-14, which may seem like a lot. They last a long time, they're washable and so, so worth it. They do tend to stretch out a bit, so I just make sure that I always put the same ones on my big toes and everybody's happy. I wish I'd found these a long time ago.