Black toes from cycling??

[spokewench]

When it is hot, your feet can swell and could cause the shoe to be a bit too small in those conditions. I can think of no other reason your toes would get black unless they were being rubbed by the shoe. So my guess is, the heat caused your feet to swell and your toes rubbed the edge of the shoe

[mayanorange]

I had my toenails turn black after a long concert standing in boots. It took weeks to really fully develop, so it was a bit of a mystery until they got darker and I realized it was bruising. Be very careful to keep them protected and clean so you don't get an infection in the damaged tissue. I reinjured my left big toenail before it was fully healed from the bruising- caught it on something and nearly ripped it off- and it's never fully recovered- I still get lifting in that nail a couple years later.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Roller skaters and roller bladers get this problem frequently. They get it because it is crucial to have a very snug fitting boot for serious skating and blading. The result is that sometimes the pressure on the nails is too much and damages them. Sort of like a black eye but worse in a way.
It's pretty certainly due to lots of pressure on the nail.

[VeloVT]

I have lost many toenails from running. Yes, I have learned to buy shoes bigger, but it's not just the length of the shoe for me but also the toebox height and shape, where seams are/are not, etc... Once I find a pair of shoes that doesn't cause blisters (which I get at the mere mention of the word) or toenail bruises I stick with them until they are changed or discontinued.

However, I would tend to think that with cycling shoes, you would be more likely to get black toenails from shoes that are *too big** than shoes that are too small. Because cycling shoes are very snug, your foot really doesn't move around in them much, thus there is not much opportunity for you to bump your nails. If the shoe is to large and your foot *is* moving around, there is more opportunity to cause trauma to the nail. (OK, I admit that I am making this up as I go along...).

Is it possible that your shoes have stretched???

[ny biker]

I keep my toenails ridiculously short because otherwise too much pressure on them causes pain during long rides.

They used to hurt when I had cycling shoes that were so snug that I eventually decided they were too small, and they still hurt with my current shoes which are not at all snug.

[TahoeDirtGirl]

I am not sure if my toenails turned black because they always have polish on them (I started this a year ago) and a few months ago, one fell off...then the other. I thought I might of gotten a foot fungus but my second toes are longer than my first and after one ride with thicker socks, I noticed the top of the toes kind of hurt. Now I make sure I only ride with the 'sock guy' type socks not the thick running socks...

[emily_in_nc]

CA,

I have had black toenails on both big toes simultaneously from running shoes with too short/small a toebox, but never from cycling shoes, even my Sidis (which I have since sold), which were about 1/2 a size too small for me. I've heard of people getting black toenail from running, hiking, and tennis, but not from cycling. Very curious! I will warn you, it takes FOREVER for the blasted things to get back to normal. I'm over a year out from mine, and they still aren't what I'd call 100% normal. They aren't black but are more ridgy and uneven than before. I was lucky that neither of my toenails fell off, but be prepared that that can happen too. Google "black toenail" for more information than you every dreamed possible!

Congrats on doing the MS 150!

Emily