A surprising shower…😳

[Xedweb]

Jumped in the shower this morning and you can imagine my surprise when I suddenly felt like my nipples were on fire. In my panic I checked the shower gel bottle to make sure I’d not inadvertently covered myself in drain cleaner by mistake, but that wasn’t it. Then it slowly dawned on me that yesterday I did my longest run so far (60 mins) so maybe I’m having my first encounter with Runners Nipple. It didn’t bother me immediately post-run but has manifested itself in a rather stinging way since 😂 Been Googling for treatment & prevention suggestions but I’d be grateful for any advice from the seasoned runners on this forum too 😃

[Bruch1]

Oh wow that sounds painful. Haven't suffered from that myself (yet) so can't recommend anything. My sports bra is quite tight - a devil to get on and off 🤣 so hardly any movement or rubbing. I hope you find some relief soon 😊

[Jools2020 Graduate10]

Chafing is horrible! Only happened to me once - the stitching on my running vest caused it on my side under my arm.

Check the material your running top is made of - should be moisture wicking, definitely not cotton, and it shouldn’t be too loose.

I was really daft! I put some Vaseline under my arm where it had chafed. In itself, that wasn’t daft. But then I decided to put a plaster on it. Well, of course the plaster wouldn’t stick because of the Vaseline 🤣. Once I’d had another shower to wash off the Vaseline, the plaster thing did work! And once the top had been washed, the stitching round the arm softened and I never had another problem with it causing chafing.

You can get anti chafing cream to help prevent it, but to help it to heal you might consider covering with suitable tape or dressing while you are running.

[Xedweb Graduate10 in reply to Jools2020]

Thanks Jools2020, good advice 😃

[drl212 Graduate10]

The things you learn on this board: exercise induced rhinitis, runners trots, and now runners nipple.

All the best. I hope you find some relief!!

[VS1975 Graduate10]

Bit random but I have covid a few weeks ago & surprisingly this was a symptom. A friend who doesn’t run also had the same. Are you feeling ok otherwise? We are both females.

If it is runners nipple I have no remedies (sorry don’t get it) maybe try some plasters? 😊

[Dexy5 Graduate10]

Thankfully with close fitting sports bras I don’t think us ladies suffer from this, but you do have my sympathy. I know how painful chaffing can be after a a bad choice of shorts, and often you don’t know until that shower.

It could be down to the shirt or what it had been washed in. I have seen men in long races where their nipples had bled. Try a different technical shirt (wasn’t in non-bio and no fabric softener). If that doesn’t work you could try putting micropore tape over your nipples pre-run (after your recovery) . My husband uses Glide to stop shorts chafing, so that may work for you too.

Good luck!

[Mummycav Administrator Graduate10]

ouch!!

[RollingPea]

Was your shirt brand new and unwashed? Sometimes new clothes have irritants in them left over from the manufacturing phase. This might have caused the rash? Any such irritants are removed on the first wash. Whether or not this is relevant to your situation, I hope you have found a way to treat your reaction.

[nowster Graduate10]

I haven't experienced it… yet.

I have close-fitting soft "skin friendly" tops from Decathlon which have never irritated my nipples. I use those in summer, and have a close-fitting compression top (UnderArmour ColdGear that was on offer several years ago) as a base layer for winter use.

Perhaps my chest being a bit hairy also helps?

I'd also consider using skin-friendly stretchy Kinesiology Tape to make some nipple guards.

[limberlou Graduate10]

maybe try Sudafed cream ( for nappy rash) . Sorts most things out. Also a compression top should prevent this in future runs .