F
For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here. (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation) |
---|
Not thinking about things is what I try to do when I am on the camino. It is all the years of thinking that got me on the Camino in the first place!I just walk.
I don't think about it.
Yep, I learnt quite a few years ago and have not yet forgotten what to do!I just walk.
I don't think about it.
I am experimenting with the Alexander Technique in preparation for my Camino. Lots of resources online. I can't vouch for it yet, but it gives very specific advice on posture, movement, balance, gait, ascents/descents, etc.
I might give Alexander a try, too. My thought with the "push-off" technique is to mix in a different walking style to wake up some unused muscles and relax some overused ones. I'm concerned that the gait I've been using all this time, while okay for the golf course, might fail on a 500 mile walk.I am experimenting with the Alexander Technique in preparation for my Camino.
Very wise approach. Sometimes unwise to analyse something so intuitive too closelyI just walk.
I don't think about it.
I think this limb length discrepancy could cause problems on a prolonged Camino walk. I believe it would be best to consult a podiatrist to make custom orthotics to correct this. It may take several weeks to receive the orthotics, so maybe you don’t have enough time before your Camino. In that case I think a heel lift would be an excellent idea. Sooner or later there is a good chance that inequality of length is going to cause you some problems.Just thought of another gait change I should try. From a childhood accident, one leg is short by maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch. I never thought much about it but then I've never walked 500 miles. Might be time to put a lift in there from time to time and change a few spine angles. Thoughts?
There is some evidence that taking shorter steps reduces strain on the ankle etc allows you to place a foot flatter. I use walking poles and have learnt the hard way that waking more slowly is best. It’s not necessarily the first few weeks, it’s how you are after 4-6 weeks. The CF means around 1,000,000 steps. That’s a lot of work for our jointsUsually I walk with a normal/like-there's-a-stick-up-your-ass stride but sometimes I'll switch to a more athletic/in-the-hood gait. The hood gait uses a strong pushing off with the ball of the back foot. As I practice for my camino I try the push-off gait but it requires concentration and after a few minutes I'm back to my old self.
There is a lot of literature I've seen on the subject of pushing off for walking so I am not really looking for internet meme or links about that. But if anyone here really walks that way (push-off) or tries to, or used to, would you say how you do it?
I agree! I believe it’s more than the deltoids and triceps that get a work out when using trekking poles properly. I believe the alternating push from your arms induces a twisting moment about your torso and as a result also gives you a work out to the pectorals, abdomen (tummy), and lateral’s. Trekking poles are not meant to be used like cross country ski poles.Get yourself some trekking poles. Adjust them to the proper height for you. Take them out on some training walks. Learn to use them effectively, in a smooth rythm and they can aid greatly in walking more efficiently and they also give your arms and shoulders a good workout. I wouldn't walk a Camino without them.
Nor do they do much good strapped onto a backpack.Trekking poles are not meant to be used like cross country ski poles.
Your body has adapted - be careful in changes, take advice, but just before a Camino is likely to be a bad idea.Just thought of another gait change I should try. From a childhood accident, one leg is short by maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch. I never thought much about it but then I've never walked 500 miles. Might be time to put a lift in there from time to time and change a few spine angles. Thoughts?
I love how physical walking the Camino can be and the positive nature it has on my body and overall fitness. I always get leaner, more tanned and stronger when I do the 800+ km's. The first few days on the Camino when I use the trekking poles I feel the soreness in my hands, forearms and some in the shoulders. My body getting fit. After a few days it goes away.I agree! I believe it’s more than the deltoids and triceps that get a work out when using trekking poles properly. I believe the alternating push from your arms induces a twisting moment about your torso and as a result also gives you a work out to the pectorals, abdomen (tummy), and lateral’s. Trekking poles are not meant to be used like cross country ski poles.
Just thought of another gait change I should try. From a childhood accident, one leg is short by maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch. I never thought much about it but then I've never walked 500 miles. Might be time to put a lift in there from time to time and change a few spine angles.
Yes, it could be genetic. My grandpa told me that during the great depression the sidewalks were so packed with men looking for work he had to stand with one leg on the curb and one in the street. He ended up with one leg longer than the other, though, which is the opposite of me.If you have any Scottish ancestry you could claim you have some haggis blood in you?
The haggis is reported to have shorter legs on the left than right, to assist in running anti-clockwise round the Scottish mountains
Or dragged behind you as I have seen many timesNor do they do much good strapped onto a backpack.
The only different ‘technique’ I have ever used was when doing ‘Nordic walking’. You have special poles and you do sort of ‘push off’ them… Is that what you mean?Usually I walk with a normal/like-there's-a-stick-up-your-ass stride but sometimes I'll switch to a more athletic/in-the-hood gait. The hood gait uses a strong pushing off with the ball of the back foot. As I practice for my camino I try the push-off gait but it requires concentration and after a few minutes I'm back to my old self.
There is a lot of literature I've seen on the subject of pushing off for walking so I am not really looking for internet meme or links about that. But if anyone here really walks that way (push-off) or tries to, or used to, would you say how you do it?
I loaded my pack with the recommended 16 lbs and took off for a test walk on a local hiking trail.. I added a adjust-a-lift to the right heel. After 3 miles I noticed some right hip pain. I'll try again in a few days without the lift. Maybe, like you say, best stick with what you know.Your body has adapted - be careful in changes, take advice, but just before a Camino is likely to be a bad idea.
Can you comfortably walk that trail with no backpack weight? Have you considered adding weight and distance in a gradual manner?I loaded my pack with the recommended 16 lbs and took off for a test walk on a local hiking trail..
To do this randomly, if after 50 years of walking without one, seems a bit rash.I added a adjust-a-lift to the right heel.
Sounds like you have changed a few spine angles. Might not be a great idea.change a few spine angles. Thoughts?
I had some orthotics prescribed to compensate for my leg length differences, a long time. I didn't like them, maybe I should have persisted for longer - how long ??I loaded my pack with the recommended 16 lbs and took off for a test walk on a local hiking trail.. I added a adjust-a-lift to the right heel. After 3 miles I noticed some right hip pain. I'll try again in a few days without the lift. Maybe, like you say, best stick with what you know.
Might have been the trail though, not the trail walker
Good idea, with leg length differences we always worry about walking in circles.I had some orthotics prescribed to compensate for my leg length differences,... I do prefer to pick the right part of the road camber on long sections of Camino paved road walking.
I agree about shorter steps and a flat foot placement. 500 miles of waking is tough on the feet, so I try to just pick them up and put them down with a minimum of “action”.There is some evidence that taking shorter steps reduces strain on the ankle etc allows you to place a foot flatter. I use walking poles and have learnt the hard way that waking more slowly is best. It’s not necessarily the first few weeks, it’s how you are after 4-6 weeks. The CF means around 1,000,000 steps. That’s a lot of work for our joints
Hope this helps
Mark
I might give Alexander a try, too. My thought with the "push-off" technique is to mix in a different walking style to wake up some unused muscles and relax some overused ones. I'm concerned that the gait I've been using all this time, while okay for the golf course, might fail on a 500 mile walk.
Changing things up a little might prepare the feet, shins, spine, etc in the way that, say, taking a probiotic or a vaccine prepares the body for changes to come. Emphasis on the "might."
Definitely a visit to the podiatrist. They will assess your foot, walking style and can give immediate advice and temporary inserts if you don't have time for porper orthotics. I have had an ongoing foot problem that I have managed myself for years but in prep for VdlP this Sept sought advice. Turns out to be a Mortons Neuroma. The orthotics, acupuncture and advice gives me the best chance of completing my 2022 Camino.I think this limb length discrepancy could cause problems on a prolonged Camino walk. I believe it would be best to consult a podiatrist to make custom orthotics to correct this. It may take several weeks to receive the orthotics, so maybe you don’t have enough time before your Camino. In that case I think a heel lift would be an excellent idea. Sooner or later there is a good chance that inequality of length is going to cause you some problems.
I know the feelingI agree with the posts above about sticking to your current gait, or to at least get many months of practice in with a new one as the Camino isn’t the place to discover new gait injuries.
But the bigger problem, at least with my gait, is that if I do it for too many hours along the meseta I appear to transcend time and space.
Good luck with your toes and the ball of your foot. I agree the Camino is not the place to start walking different and I'm not sure you want to wake up amused muscles.I might give Alexander a try, too. My thought with the "push-off" technique is to mix in a different walking style to wake up some unused muscles and relax some overused ones. I'm concerned that the gait I've been using all this time, while okay for the golf course, might fail on a 500 mile walk.
Changing things up a little might prepare the feet, shins, spine, etc in the way that, say, taking a probiotic or a vaccine prepares the body for changes to come. Emphasis on the "might."
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?