All my life (including the army days) I've struggled with blisters and hot spots on the balls of my feet. As I've been recovering and not riding I've been doing a bunch of walking and hiking in the mountains. I tried the Injinji sock liners on a whim and they have been a total game changer. For most walks I wear them with a thin cycling sock over top and no blisters or hot spots or any kind of issues.