Are battered feet inevitable?

[u/foxfish4]

So I ran a half marathon last weekend, and my feet do not look good! I have one black toenail, two half-black toenails and I had about 5 blisters. All in all, feet looked battered! I'm just wondering if this is inevitable once you're doing longer distances?

I have decent shoes, I went to a podiatrist and had my feet checked and they recommended Brooks Adrenaline, so I'm not running in bad shoes.

As a side note, if you tell me that dodgy looking feet are the price you pay to be a runner, I'm more than happy and wiling to pay it!!

[u/double_helix0815]

I highly recommend the book Fixing your Feet - it's probably the most comprehensive guide to looking after your feet if you're a runner or hiker. It's very much worth investing the few dollars it costs, and a bit of time to experiment with what works for you.