Pruney Hands

You’ve probably stayed in a pool or bath long enough that the skin on your fingers or toes wrinkles. That’s what happened to English rower and two-time Olympic gold medalist Alex Gregory—but way worse!

After retiring from competition, Gregory didn’t hang up his oars. Instead, he joined the Polar Row expedition, which aimed to be the first team to cross the Arctic Ocean in a human-powered vessel. In August 2017, Gregory and five other athletes rowed for 14 days. They battled icy temperatures and massive waves to travel 966 kilometers (600 miles) north from Norway’s mainland to the tiny island of Jan Mayen, where they cut the mission short after their solar-powered navigation equipment died in overcast weather.

When Gregory finally reached the shore, he removed his gloves and got a good look at his hands. They were almost unrecognizable. “I was a little surprised,” he says. Gregory was suffering from a condition called “warm water immersion foot,” which can affect the hands as well. It occurs when water gets trapped on the skin by gloves or socks. “When the skin is left in this condition for hours, the top layer, called the stratum corneum, absorbs the water. It becomes soft and easily damaged,” says Maya Debbaneh, a dermatologist who treats skin disorders at Union Square Dermatology in San Francisco, California.

Luckily, the condition is temporary. Gregory’s hands started to return to normal a few hours after they dried out. “Reflecting on the experience now, I’m truly amazed at what our bodies are capable of,” he says.