Dry skin home remedies.

I'm currently living in the Las Vegas/ Henderson area and trying to deal with the winter issues. I'm not a Vegas native and not used to the dry winters here; I'm used to the wet northern Nevada winters and can handle the cold just fine. My problems are with the dry desert air that seems to destroy my skin. I get really dry and flakey and develope cracks on my knuckles, heels, and various other body parts and it tends to have some affect on my climbing and ability to climb. I'm just curious if anyone else deals with this annoying issue and has any insight on how to adjust my body more for the dry desert living. Anyone in the Vegas, Arizona, southern cali, other desert regions that can offer insight please help.
I just want to add that I'm fairly new at this forum posting so please forgive me if I post in a wrong section or am slow to respond. Technology doesn't like me as much as I like to depend on it these days.

VASELINE is my choice... apply liberally!

DRINK HEAVILY!!!!
Farmers Freind hand salve is awfully good but vasaline would work just as good. I find my skin problems come more from dehydration. I don't get too thirsty in the winter so & tend to drink very little and that combined with the dryness of New Mexico kills me. Try to drink more than you would in summer, you may be OK. Also taping splits on my fingers even when not climbing seems to retain the moisture at that area. For heels keep your feet real warm(sweaty?) - no sandals, socks & shoes or slippers when you may normally be walking around without

A. Naked Bee Hand Lotion

B. Climb On bar

C. Rejoice is silky smooth nirvana

Try lotion or bag balm. lather the hands up and then put them into plastic bags.

Diet? Drink more water. Also, you may try eating more oils, especially coconut oil and olive oil. Anything you fry, ever again, or with high heat, use coconut oil. Anything cold, use olive oil. Chug that shit.

For those painful splits that go all the way through the epidermis: super glue.

It rubs the lotion on its skin...

...Or else it gets the hose again.

I use aquaphor (similar to vaseline but without the stigma) for my hands and feet. Chalk is really bad on my hands and cuticles and in some cases even dipping my hand once in metolius super chalk (there is an additive) will cause my cuticles to bleed. It literally eats away at my hands... So daily I apply aquaphor to the backs of my hands. Also it's good for the ugly calluses that are on my toes.

Chris Wenker wrote:For those painful splits that go all the way through the epidermis: super glue.

I have to second this. Super glue is the only thing that keeps me climbing when I have those nasty splits. Always good to have in your kit for other cuts too. Or to keep someone from being able to unlock their car when they return to it. Not that I would ever......i just read it somewhere .....works pretty well in any keyhole for that matter.

I do try to stay well hydrated year round. All my friends and family make fun of me for walking around with a gallon of water everywhere I go. I usually drink that everyday, so I'll start trying some of the different lotions and Vaseline youve all listed.
I do have one of the Climb on bars but haven't used it much outside of small cracks on my hands. Is it any good as a large area lotion?

Super glue is a very handy! Ive used it to shut many wounds. The medical glue doctors use is awesome for large gashes as an alternative to stitches.
Looks like I need more oils in my diet and start rubbing the lotion on my skin or Jon will hose me haha. Thanks everyone.

Wow you seem to have this dry skin thing figured out. I get my usual cracks and splits that I can deal with it's just the overall dryness of large areas I hate. My arms, hands, feet, face etc. I've never been a fan of using lotions cause I've had a hell of a time finding a good one that doesn't make me feel oily or greasy but I haven't tried some that are recommended on here yet so I'm gonna give them a shot and see how it turns out. As for you taking a break to let your body adjust, my body has had plenty of time for that, I'm just unusually a dry guy I guess.

Bonnie's Balms. Specifically made for climbers. Bonnie and Richard are as good of folks as there are.

bonniesbalm.com/

Use one a them girlie soaps with moisturizers. I also keep some lotion by the sink and lube up my face, ears, neck and hands pre bed- all the sun exposed spots. Gotta take good care of your skin, or get slowly uglier. Sunscreen bitches!

Prevention is the best method to deal with it. Once you start cracking, now you have to heal. Once thats happened, spread on the grape seed oil. You can get a big bottle for a few bucks and it'll last awhile. Grape seed oil is known for having excellent regenerative properties and it a little bit "dryer" than many of the other oils.

Joshua Tree Climbing Salve - is my Vaseline alternative...

I lost my glasses and now I keep hitting my head on shelves and getting awful headaches. What can I take to get rid of the headaches?

Really is crazy how the body becomes adapted to the geographic climate that one resides.

I used to race road bikes and spend my winters living in Tucson. Every seasone without fail i would get a wicked case of allergies that was quite a bit like the flew. It would last 2-3 weeks and was brutal. In the end i started to take freeze dried stinging neteles and it helped quite a bit.

The dry skin also got me but not as bad as you are suffering. I say stay hydrated like wicked way over hydrated and each lots of olive oil.

Garrett -- I live in Colorado and we have the same dry air. I would suggest upping the amount of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil in your diet. You need to moisturize from the inside, and one of the most important nutrients is high-quality fats that not only improve the condition of your skin, but also prevent you from losing moisture through the skin.

Lotions and creams are OK for short-term use to let the skin heal, but in the long run putting lotion on your skin impedes your body's ability to produce moisture itself. FWIW, I eat fish regularly, and take 2-3 fish oil softgels with each meal (6-9 grams daily), and my skin doesn't crack anymore.

Garrett Wilson wrote:Wow you seem to have this dry skin thing figured out. I get my usual cracks and splits that I can deal with it's just the overall dryness of large areas I hate. My arms, hands, feet, face etc. I've never been a fan of using lotions cause I've had a hell of a time finding a good one that doesn't make me feel oily or greasy but I haven't tried some that are recommended on here yet so I'm gonna give them a shot and see how it turns out. As for you taking a break to let your body adjust, my body has had plenty of time for that, I'm just unusually a dry guy I guess.

Not what I would recomend for dry hands but for other dry skin I really like using aloe. The more pure the better. You can get a decent one 99% pure at trader joes and it hydrates your skin and leaves NO oil or grease feel.