Chub rub.

This happened my last year of college, when my self esteem was picking back up and I didn't freak out at the thought of people looking at me.

It was one of the first really warm days of summer and I figured "Hrm I think I'll wear my new denim skirt!" So I wear the long denim skirt, a brown tank top (a size 24 arm out there in the sunlight? gasp.) and a new pair of brown suede flip flops from Old Navy. Cute!

I did a lot of walking while I was in school - from home to class, from class to work, from work to class, back to work, from work to home, etc. So I set out on my day, feeling cute and summery. There's a little friction between the thighs but not painful.. yet.

I go about my day, cool and comfortable in my summery outfit. While walking the two miles home from work, things start to get a little.. erm, warm. Keep in mind that I was also wearing a brand new pair of suede flip flops that hadn't been broken in.

By the time I was in the final stretch of my journey, I could barely walk. The friction between my legs was reaching the point of sheer and utter torture and my feet hurt so badly I wanted to lay down and cry.

But I made it home. I don't know how, but I did. I hobbled up to my room to check out the damage.

Welts. Actual welts between my legs! I remember it all very clearly because I had to ice my thighs and everything. Incidentally, those flip flops have since become my staple summer footwear.

Anyway, lesson learned - if you have any kind of Chub Rub (and if you're reading this, chances are you do) and plan on wearing a skirt, USE PROTECTION. Or you shall feel the wrath of the Chub Rub and it will be unholy. Oh, and break in suede shoes before wearing them out. Two lessons learned.

Comments

[bran]

ah yes. i know this all too well. i lived in new york city one summer, and was at a similar level of, hm, not terrible self-esteem, since i'd actually lost a few pounds while i was there, due to 3289 degree days and walking everywhere. i'd also gotten a new denim skirt, and i decided to wear it to a rock show in central park. a rock show in the summer means sweat from the heat, sweat from dancing around, sweat from being packed in with five billion other people. all of this sweat does not just live under your arms, you know? so things got sort of dicey by the end of the night. the weather after the show was beautiful, so my friend wanted to walk back to my apartment, which was a bit of a hike. i was all for it, except, you know, i was feeling the burn. but i obviously could not tell my teensy tiny friend, "oh, hey, um, my enormous thighs are chafing, could we take a cab?" so i went with it, and as we went on, i began walking stranger and stranger, and it got almost penguiny by the end as i sort of rocked to and fro to avoid putting my legs together at all. my friend asked a couple times, "are you okay?" and i would say, like, "yeah, my leg is sore, though. must be from all the rocking out!!" when we FINALLY got home, we had dinner and she eventually left, at which time i drew the coldest bath i could manage and sat in it, crying. i kept frozen washcloths on my thighs for the next day or so. now i always make sure to wear bicycle shorts under my skirts to avoid hot burny death.

and now i am so embarrassed i am going to die. good morning and hi! i'm new to your blog. :o)

[Mariann]

So... I've heard about using baby powder, but what are the other options for "protection" against chub rub?

[Betsy]

The girls on the fatshionista community on livejournal are recommending a deodorant-stick-like product called Body Glide created for runners. I ordered some, it could be worth checking out. They also found some clever little pataloon things online that are like slip-pants in two lengths.

[Colleen]

I've never heard of that, Betsy. What a good idea, would definitely cut down on the bulk of wearing an extra garment under your skirts.

I have a pair of soft, stretchy bike short type things that are actually a "shaping garment" from the Avenue. They don't suck me in (which I prefer because hello I like to breathe) but they smooth things out and protect my legs from themselves. They feel like a nice, somewhat thick pair of tights. I really like them.

A lot of people rave about Spanx but I haven't tried them, mostly because I think they're over priced. Torrid carries them now but the Spanx website has a better size selection (last time I checked anyway)

I'll have to do a post about Chub Rub protection next :D

[Colleen]

Oh! Bran - thank you for sharing your story! I was hoping people would *come out* with their chub rub stories since it's obviously a problem for a lot of women! Thighs that don't touch freak me out, seriously, I think it's weird. Nothing to be embarrassed about here, I promise. :)

[Cecily]

Several years ago someone gave me an excellent tip for this: deoderant/antiperspireant (I'm such a lousy speller, that's probably wrong). Seriously.

I use it on my inner thighs and the, er, fold between my thighs and, um, parts. It totally eliminates the sweat there and keeps me from having the welts. Egads, they hurt. I'd share a story but it's happened about a million times to me. Oh! But the WORST is when I wore a "slimming" pair of underwear and then got sweaty and walked a lot. Horrible, horrible, horrible.

I will have to look into Body Glide. That makes sense too.

[kerri]

I agree Spanx is pricey, but must say WORTH IT. They last forever, smooth out the jiggles and wiggles, and are soooooo comfy. Plus, the added and very important bonus of no chub rub. LOVE 'EM.

[KelliAmanda]

I wear some "exercise shorts" under my skirts - got them at Target, and they're cotton/lycra blend, so breathable. They don't show under my skirts (I don't wear tight or short short skirts, though), they cut down on sweating, and they keep my thighs from chafing. Plus, they were pretty cheap.

[bella]

Deoderant really helps? I had NO idea. Thank you for this post and all the suggestions. Boy can I relate!

[annika]

i swear by my pantaloons that i bought at catherine's. i don't usually wear skirts any shorter than my feet...so i don't know how they would work with short skirts...but they are absolutely wonderful. they are fairly cool in the summer, never ride up, and chub rub is a sad memory!

[Lori]

That new stuff that Monistat came out with to aid chafing really does work. It goes on like a gel, but ends up feeling like a soft powder. It last quite a while. The tube is pretty small for the $7.00 pricetag, but the probably know there's nto much else on the market.

Before fiding that, I used good old petroleum jelly, which worked like a charm, but was kind of slimy.

[rena]

ok, who has been in the situation where you hope no one is looking so you can do the crab walk back to your car or wherever it is that you are going. I tried the new monistat stuff but it did not work out very well. And I have tried spray on deodorant but I broke out in a rash and that was not very pleasant. But so far the best thing I have found is petti-pants which are like shorts made from slip material and you can find the anywhere that slips are sold. I personally get mine from jcpenny and you can adjust the length.

[Ducky]

Oooh! The chub rub!! Egads! In my experience, deodorant/antiperspirant didn't work at all...at least, not when you're doing A LOT of walking. Baby powder laughed in my direction and didn't help at all. I finally went on the hunt for pantaloon-like things to wear under my skirts (especially since I was leaving for Africa and wanted skirts AND walking). Anyway, I found some Fruit of the Loom (I think) "pajama pants" at Wal-Mart that come right above my knees and are thin enough I hardly realize they are there. Sometimes I wear them as my underwear so as to not have too many layers going on. I'd be interested in other places to find slip-pants or pantaloons...I'm a size 26 or 28 usually so pantaloon like objects are sometimes scarce.

[Hopefulloser]

Hello! This is me kneeling down to kiss the floor of this website and screeming "halaluha, I'm home!"

I wear a biker short type of contraption. Powders and lotions tend to rub away for me.
:-) hopeful

[Periwinkle]

Wow, you all have some complicated solutions to the Chub Rub ... I just wear tights/pantyhose under my skirts, and always have!

[bonoist]

Body Glide is wonderful. I highly recommend it!

[Glib Gurl]

Comment #1 - Another vote for Monistat's body chaffing cream. I use it almost everyday and it has been a godsend! One tube lasted me almost the entire summer - and I wear skirts almost everyday!

Comments #2 - More than the chub rub, I want to hear about how people reacted do you when you dared to *gasp* go sleeveless with your size-24-wearin'-self! Did you feel self-concious? Did you get compliments? Stares? Inquiring minds want to know ;)

Signed, Another size-24-wearin'-sista

[ladymathematician]

The Monistat stuff. It changed my life. I love skirts, and I used to try anything...baby powder - didn't last. vaseline - no pain, but slimey. shorts - had to have multiples because they'd get all sweaty and extra layers and extra hotness...
I bought one tube of the Monistat stuff at a drugstore, and then went online and bought 10 tubes. I gave some to my best friend, my mom, my newly post-partum friend that had never experienced chub rub before she gained 80 lbs with her baby...I love it love it love it love it. I always have some in my bag. It is god.

[crow]

The Body Glide stuff for runners works wonderfully -- first thing I've found that has let me wear skirts without exercise shorts (which are ridiculously warm in TX in summer)

[littlem]

You women are much more devoted to the cute and stylish than me. I wear pants at all times (even evening pants) unless forced kicking and screaming, at which point I wear DKNY pantyhose. Like iron, they are, but I HATE skirtedness and so negate the cute with the scowl on my face.

[Jenny]

Glib Girl: when I was size 24 I wore tank tops all the time (I've lost weight, but don't worry, I'm still fat!). In the summer it just gets too hot, and I'm not going to sacrifice comfort just so someone else won't have to look at flabby arms. Deal with it, bitches, I say.

When it comes to skirts, I'm a die-hard bike-short wearer. Why risk the pain of unprotected chub-rub?

[Mo]

These are great ideas but can anyone recommend something specifically for sweating while wearing pants? Those unsightly sweat stains are not my best feature!
Thanks

[Jul]

You guys (girls) are GREAT! As summertime approaches, it is wonderful to find all these suggestions to help a girl deal with a very uncomfortable problem. I've avoided skirts & dresses for years. I will try every one until I find what works best for me. Thanks again!

[Sam]

These comments helped me get some exercise. I am a 20 y/o male on the border between fat and obese. Whenever I would run, usually after 10 minutes into it chafing leads to rashes which leads to welts if I continue. Earlier today I applied some deoderant/antiperspirant (Right Guard Sport: Fresh {clear gel}) and ran/walked for 50 minutes. No chub rub problem at all. Thanks for the advice ladies!

[Missy]

I had never even heard or considered the idea of chub rub until this past memorial day. I recently gained a lot of weight by switching medicines and within a month jumped from a size 10 to a 14. Well I went walking all over philly on monday and at the end of the day not only did i have huge welts and sore thighs but I have these really weird long raised red marks. Anyone ever get that and is there anyway to make them go away?

[Sally]

I just stumbled onto this website looking for another product. I am a retail store owner, a size 18-20, and have the chubby thigh thing going on. Just thought you all would like to konw there is a product that goes up to a size XL, which I can wear comfortably called "Smarty Pants". They are meant to be worn as underwear. I wear them under all my skirts and gaucho pants. They keep me dry, as they wick moisture away from your body, and they are seamless, so there are no seam lines under your pants/skirts. Their tag line is "Isn't it time you changed your underwear?" I think you can do a Google search for Smarty Pants and find their website. They are pricey, but worth it in my book!

[Carolyn]

A related problem: My jeans wear out quite quickly where my thighs meet. I always used to wonder why everyone else's jeans wore out at the knees - mine never lasted that long. I thought everyone's thighs touched. Sadly, those days are gone. But I really hate it when I find a cool pair of jeans I love, and before I know it I can't wear them without exposing my thighs to the world.

[jean]

Hi All!!
I recently started running and experienced "chub rub"--I tried everything--Bodyglide seemed to just stick the skin together--if you lengthened your stride--it stopped working--Monistat left a powderey residue--so I developed my own product--(who better???)--after many different samples--and many misses--I've finally found a formula that works....Look for it on shelves in April 2007. Just an FYI--I get the 'dreaded rash' while wearing pants too!! Wearing Spanks or pantyhose also causes chafing--anybody else have that problem???