Podcast: Download (Duration: 26:34 — 27.2MB)
Show Notes: Episode 120
Today on the First 40 Miles, your car has a mechanic, but when it comes to good body mechanics, it’s all up to you. Find out how to prevent injury in today’s top 5 list. Then on the SUMMIT Gear Review, a piece of backpacking clothing that goes before the base layer. Next, a zero gram solution that will support your lower back while you’re taking a quick break. And we’ll wrap up the show with a little trail wisdom from the Bible.
Opening
- The twinge in lower back that led to a lesson in good body mechanics
- Preventing injury through good body mechanics
Top 5 Body Mechanics Rules for Backpackers
Keep your pack weight close to your back
- Heavy stuff against your back
Lift with your legs
- Lift with your knees, not with your back
- Your feet should be apart, with one foot slightly in front of the other.
- Hold your pack close to your body before you hoist it on
Engage core
- That means drawing your navel into your spine—or tightening those abdominal muscles (the same ones you tighten when you give a foreceful breath of air out)
- This instantly provides stability and support to your back muscles and helps prevent back injury
Keep things loose—not locked up
- If you feel your shoulders tighten, bring them down
- If you feel your calves tightening, take a few minutes to stretch them when your body is warmed up
- Bend, don’t lock knees—that’s part of keeping it loose
- That weight can cause you to tighten up your shoulders and arms
- If you feel your shoulders tightening up, take your pack off for a few minutes, roll your shoulders, and then tuck them back
Don’t hunch over
- Hunching is a natural tendency when you have a load strapped to your back.
- When sitting, resist the urge to sit in a hunched position
- If you can, give yourself some extra support behind your lower back—either with a backpacking chair or today’s backpack hack of the week
- When you slouch, it puts an unhealthy strain on your ligaments, spinal joints, which enhances your risk injuries
- The more you slouch, the more the spine loses its ability to distribute shock evenly, causing stress on your vertebrae
SUMMIT Gear Review: Exofficio Give-N-Go Underwear
Structure
- 94% Nylon / 6% Lycra Spandex
- Diamond-weave mesh fabric
- Flatlock seams
Utility
- Quick-drying
- Treated with Aegis® Microbe Shield™ which makes them odor resistant
Mass
- The weight will vary based on cut and style, but the material is very stretchy, very lightweight
Maintenance
- Machine wash cold, Wash with like colors, No bleach, Tumble Dry Low or Line dry in shade
- Or handwash in camp (not directly in a stream)
Investment
- $18-30
- Depends on what cut and style of underwear it is
Trial
- The Exofficio Give-N-Go underwear is the #1 most popular line among backpackers—travel and wilderness.
- Top of the box says “17 countries, 6 weeks, 1 pair of active underwear. (Ok, maybe two.)”
- This underwear has some really great features that make it popular with the thru-hiking crowd, and those features definitely transfer to regular ol’ backpackers–folks who want something lightweight, comfortable, quick-drying, odor resistant, and breathable.
- The folks at Appalachian Trials did a great review of ExOfficio Give-N-Go…http://appalachiantrials.com/gear-review-mens-womens-exofficio-underwear/
Backpack Hack of the Week™: Zero Gram Backpacking Chair
This is a great way to rest your back when you’re ready to sit and take a break.
Take your pack off, and take a stick or trekking pole, and wedge it against your pack in between the shoulder straps. The other end of the stick should be wedged up against the base of a tree or the bottom of a rock.
Now you can lean back on the side of your pack (the side without the shoulder straps), and it should cradle your back perfectly.
http://popupbackpacker.com/my-favorite-backpacking-chairs/
Trail Wisdom
“Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.”
–Genesis 13:17