FAQ

We formulate for skin that works: hands, feet, muscles, and joints under real load. Everything is paraben-free, sulfate-free, and non-toxic, and built around athlete routines — overnight repair, night-before sweat control, session-day protection.

No, and we won't claim otherwise — "organic" is a specific certification we haven't pursued. What we can tell you plainly: paraben-free, sulfate-free, non-toxic formulas, made in Bend, Oregon.

Anyone whose skin takes a beating: climbers, lifters, grapplers, riders, skiers, hikers, guitarists, gamers, nurses, mechanics, gardeners — if your hands or feet work hard, this is for you.

Your skin barrier is the outermost layer — a mix of cells and natural oils that holds moisture in and keeps irritants out. When it's damaged by cold, chalk, harsh soaps, or constant friction, skin gets tight, red, rough, and cracks easily. Repairing it means two things: stop stripping it (skip harsh, sulfate-heavy cleansers and very hot water) and replace what it lost with a rich cream, ideally overnight when skin does most of its repair work.

Slightly damp skin. Applying within a few minutes of washing traps the water still in your skin, which is exactly what humectant ingredients like hyaluronic acid need to work with. On bone-dry skin in dry air, a humectant has less to pull from — which is why good formulas pair them with oils and butters that seal moisture in.

Mostly water content. Lotions are the thinnest and absorb fastest but do the least. Creams are thicker and better for daily repair on hard-working skin. Balms are the heaviest — mostly waxes and oils, minimal water — which makes them ideal for spot-treating a specific crack or split rather than covering large areas.

Both help, but night does the heavy lifting. Skin repairs itself most actively while you sleep, and a night-time application has eight uninterrupted hours to work — no washing, no chalk, no gloves. If you only build one habit, make it the overnight one.

Staying hydrated matters for your whole body, but drinking extra water won't fix dry skin on its own. Dry, cracking skin is usually a barrier problem — moisture escaping faster than skin can hold it — and that's solved topically, by sealing moisture in and avoiding the things stripping it out.

For athletes, over-moisturizing is a real concern — not because it harms skin, but because soft, saturated skin grips poorly and tears more easily under load. That's why timing matters: heavy repair at night, lighter products before a session. Soft hands aren't the goal; durable hands are.

That's delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) — it typically peaks 24 to 48 hours after hard or unfamiliar training, especially anything with a lot of lowering under load. It's normal and it fades. Gentle movement, massage, and warmth tend to help it feel better; complete stillness often makes it feel worse.

The general rule: heat for stiff, achy, tight muscles — it increases blood flow and helps tissue relax. Ice is more often used for acute swelling right after an injury. For ordinary post-session soreness, warmth plus massage is the usual go-to. Anything sharp, swollen, or worsening deserves a professional look rather than a home remedy.

Five to ten minutes per area is plenty, and consistency beats duration — a short session most days does more than one long session a week. Work until the tissue feels warmer and looser, not until it hurts. Sharp pain is a signal to stop.

Not really — the evidence for stretching preventing DOMS is underwhelming. What stretching and mobility work do offer is better range of motion and a body that feels ready to move. For soreness itself, gentle activity, massage, sleep, and food do more.

Magnesium is essential to muscle function — it plays a direct role in how muscles relax. How much absorbs through skin from topical products is still debated, so we treat topical magnesium as a supporting ingredient in a recovery formula rather than the headline. The massage itself and the warming botanicals do the most visible work.

Surface dryness and small cracks usually improve within a few days once skin gets consistent overnight moisture. Deeper splits and torn calluses take one to two weeks, and they heal fastest when the edges are filed smooth so they can't keep catching and re-opening. Anything that looks infected — spreading redness, warmth, pus — needs a doctor, not a cream.

File the raised edges so they can't catch, treat the crack directly (Split Balm or Split+), protect it with tape — a dab of super glue gel underneath if you need to keep going — then rebuild overnight with Repair Cream. The full fix-it shelf is in Cracked & Split Skin Repair.

With a consistent overnight routine, most people feel a real difference within days — skin repairs quickly once it has the moisture to work with.

Cold air holds less moisture, indoor heating dries it further, and skin that loses enough water turns stiff — then normal movement cracks it, usually at knuckles and fingertips where skin flexes most. See Winter Hands & Working Hands.

You can't wash less, so recover more: a light, fast-absorbing layer like Hydrate during the day, and the heavy rebuild overnight when your hands are finally off duty. Night application is the single highest-value habit — for nurses, mechanics, cooks, and every other hard-working pair of hands.

Usually sweat. You heat up on the climb or the bootpack, your hands sweat inside insulated gloves, then you stop moving — and damp skin loses heat far faster than dry skin. Managing moisture the night before often does more than a warmer glove. See Cold Hands & Feet.

Heels carry your full weight on thick callus; when it dries out, every step splits it. Yes, file — gently, on dry skin, regularly — then treat cracks and rebuild overnight. See Cracked Heels & Foot Care.

Apply a rich repair cream before bed, cover with clean socks, and sleep. The sock keeps moisture against skin all night — the fastest route to soft heels most people never try.

Repeated friction and pressure. Skin responds by thickening to protect itself — which is useful, up to a point. Calluses become a problem when they build unevenly into raised ridges that catch on holds, bars, or strings and tear off. The fix isn't removing them, it's keeping them flat and even.

No — peeling resets your progress and risks raw spots. File edges smooth, tape tender areas, and let skin keep building. See Calluses & Flappers.

Trim it, protect the raw skin with Split Balm or Split+, cover it with tape (a dab of super glue gel underneath if you need to keep going), then rebuild overnight with Repair Cream.

Most players build comfortable calluses in a few weeks of regular practice. A daily toughener like Tip Juice and a smooth file speed the process and prevent the peel-and-restart cycle. See Musicians' Hands.

Yes — a thin dab over a small surface crack seals and protects it so you can finish playing. Minor cracks only, not open or bleeding wounds, and let skin repair overnight with a good cream.

Yes — Performance and Dry are non-aluminum, formulated for hands and feet that need to stay healthy while staying dry. See Sweaty Hands & Grip.

The night before. Overnight application gives the formula time to work, so hands stay drier through the next day with less chalk and better grip.

Palm and sole sweat glands respond heavily to stress and concentration, not just heat — which is why hands go slick before a hard move, a big presentation, or a match point even in a cool room. It's normal physiology, and it's manageable.

Yes — same products, same routine. Controller grip, mouse palms, and WASD hands all benefit from the night-before application just like climbing does.

Drier skin means less friction, and less friction means fewer blisters — moisture management is one of the most-recommended blister prevention strategies for hikers, runners, and ruckers, alongside good socks and taping hot spots early. See Sweaty Feet & Blister Prevention.

The night before — overnight application means feet stay drier through the next day's miles, no mid-trail reapplication needed.

Ten minutes of massage does more than almost anything else: warming Massage Cream worked into tired hands and forearms, an acupressure ring for pumped fingers, and rollers or cupping for the bigger muscle groups. The full system is in Muscle & Joint Recovery.

Warming botanicals like chili oil, black pepper, ginger, and turmeric create a heat sensation that competes with the feeling of soreness, while arnica and willow bark add traditional anti-inflammatory support. The act of massaging increases local blood flow — the cream and your hands work as a team.

Ordinary soreness is dull, symmetrical, and fades over a few days. Pain that's sharp, localized to a joint or tendon, swollen, or that gets worse under load is a different signal — worth a medical evaluation rather than another lap. See Joint & Tendon Support.

Yes — it's a common cold-day warm-up habit, complementing (not replacing) a real warm-up. Daily use is fine for most; use a small amount, avoid eyes and broken skin, wash hands after. See Warm-Up & Desk Tension Relief.

The combination is what works: the warming sensation eases the feeling of tightness while massaging increases local blood flow. Five minutes on the neck and traps at the end of a desk day goes a long way.

UPF 50 fabric blocks roughly 98% of UV rays and never needs reapplying — cover up once in the morning and stop thinking about it. Sun hoodies, rashguards, and lip protection live in Sun Protection.

Cool the skin, then soothe and rehydrate — aloe calms while hyaluronic acid pulls moisture back in, which is exactly what's in Hydrate. For severe or blistering burns, see a medical professional.

Easily. UV passes through cloud cover, and snow reflects a large share of it straight back at you — which is why spring ski days produce some of the worst burns of the year, often in spots people never think to cover.

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