Isle Royale was not especially tough (although a few in our group would differ). No up to your butt bogs and generally cleared portages. I'm having a hard time understanding why I got so beat up. Rigorous and faithful working out all winter should of put me past that or so I had thought.

All I can come up with is I didn't stretch. My daily workouts include 5 minutes of warm up and 5 minutes or so of stretching. My canoe trip included zero warm up and zero stretching.

My back was the most troubling issue. Perhaps having to lay on a camping mattress during an exceedingly cold and rainy spell contributed to my issues. Got tight, then cold and "bing".

Anyways, I'm over 50 (52 in a couple of days...........my great gal picked up a few suick's and floro musky leaders for the b-day.....what a woman :) ) and not as limber as I once was. If you are over 50 it might be a consideration for you as well.

Always warm up before stretching. Run in place at a low level or easy jumping jacks just to get the blood flowing otherwise the stretching could cause an injury. Thought I would pass this on for some contemplation.

Stretch you achilles tendons too!  Mine snapped in two. 

Then again, we 50-somethings are not in geezer-land yet, but we can see it from here.  The slippery slope to decrepitude gets steeper after 50.  So one might argue that guys like us who are in denial just have to face it, get over it, and accept that some of the aches and pains are unavoidable if we want to keep doing the things we love!

But still stretch, and take your vitamins.

prouboy

I have a few years on you guys (62) and know from working out for years as well as having a friend who is a Exercise/Fitness professional, that the latest research says that you get the best results by warming up slowly but do you stretching at the end of exercise or for us paddlers, after camp is set and the chores done.

Don't get me wrong, stretching after your warm-up won't hurt you any, its just that latest research has shown that it doesn't protect you from injury as the experts used to think.
A cool-down and good stretching session after a workout is the Gold standard now.

A couple of things I've learned over the years that might help people both at home and on the water.

Most people after a nights sleep, wake up, and either jump right up or after a few minutes of contemplation are up and moving. The same people if they work out would never consider jumping right into their exercise of choice without warming up. So why after 8 hrs or so of lying in a horizontal position with your blood pooling in various areas of your body dependiong on sleep position, would you just jump right up before at least loosening up/stretching a little?

Ever watch a cat? When the awake, they stretch, roll around a little bit before they start moving. We should do the same.
Every morning at home or in camp, I roll on to my back, take a deep breath, and while slowly exhaling reach my hands over my head while pointing my toes try to elongate my body as far as it will go.

Then I take a deep breath in and slowly exhale while using my hands to grab the back of my knees and very slowly bring my knees into my chest. Hold for a few easy breaths, feeling your hamstrings/vertebrate slowly release in your lower back. Exhaling, slowly extend back to your starting position. Do that a few time and you won't believe the difference when you roll out of bed/ air mattress.

On paddling trips, your upper body/arms are warmed from paddling, but your legs/lower back are tight from sitting.
When I hit the portage, I take my paddle and hold it behind my head and do a few trunk twists similar to what knowledgeable golfers do. In the same position I take a big breath in and slowly bend sideways, not bouncing, just let gravity be your guide. First one way the the other, a few times is all you need. Last but not least, I set my paddle down and taking a deep breath in, I use my hands sliding down my pants front to slowly bend forward, knees straight but not locked out and try and let my hands slide down as far to my ankles/toes/ground as I can get without forcing the stretch.

The key to doing this safely is to keep your stomach sucked in as far as possible and hold it in going down and back up.
Don't hold your breath, just breath in/exhale slowly and deeply as possible without straining.

Often what we perceive as lower back tightness, is really tightness is our hamstrings ( upper back of legs). These 2 stretches will help loosen them and in turn loosen the tightness in our lower backs from prolonged sitting or sleeping in one position all night.

Last thing that will help keep you injury free is when 2x portaging like the majority of paddler do, is take the lighter load across first :-? I know that may seem counter-intuitive to many, but the lighter first load will allow you to warm up your body properly, give you more flexibility if you encounter obstacle on the trail and actually make the heavier second load safer and easier to handle.

Or you could just find some nubile young portage girls that can carry 245# canoes and sign on as the cook and campfire builder ;D
Until that happens, I don't think you'll regret trying the suggestions I mentioned. ;)

Thanks for the excellent suggestions Solotripper.  I'm determined, once I'm back on my feet again, to do whatever it takes to NEVER be out of commission, or to be on crutches again.

I've read my injury, ruptured achilles tendon, is common among 50-something guys who play active sports like racquetball, tennis, or basketball. 

Shame on me for thinking I was 35!

prouboy

Your more than welcome P-boy.

I know what it feels like to be hurt.
When I worked in commercial construction and before I became a exercise person, I hurt my back from trying to lift something I had no business even attempting.

I have two disks in my lower back that are questionable.
I didn't need surgery, I found a good Chiropractor that helped me rehab.

About that time I got into exercising and found that strengthening my core and warming up before/ cooling down/stretching afterward would keep me relatively injury free.
The times I've hurt myself was because I ignored my own advice and found out that the price you pay for not taking the time to do the right thing is far greater than the time you think your saving by not getting your body ready for whatever stress your planning on putting it thru.

Having a chronic injury or surgery isn't my idea of fun. The old adage about an ounce of prevention being worth more than a pound of cure is a truth that's better learned from others mis-fortunes than personal experience ;)

Being a bit younger, the future is starting to look pretty bleak! You can put me in the category of do what I say and not as I do.

As always, I have learned almost everything from most of you and give the credit back to where it belongs, but I will try to share a few random thoughts...

ST is right on the money. You can get a much deeper stretch at the end of a workout. Although, spending 10-20 minutes first and last thing each day when needed seems to help me quite a bit for sleeping on the ground. I feel it in my hips and lower back the most and sometimes will do a gentle stretch both sitting and lying down in the tent. Stretching in view of the lake can be pretty relaxing.

Canoe butt is no laughing matter  ;). Also, using your core muscles in an almost countless repetition to paddle and then asking those same muscles to support your frame while you portage a pack and canoe can take its toll... not to mention the lack of a good chair as well as sleeping on the ground?

There is probably no substitute for proper exercise, but besides paddling and portaging all day it seems to me that it may be hard to prepare your body for a canoe trip? *Perhaps MP can tell you more about that*

Stretching should never hurt or cause injury. I have found several ways to stretch that are completely different from what 'we' were taught in school/sports, perhaps now a bit dated, but they work well for me. Sneaking up on a muscle with a short and gentle stretch (until) with the idea of persuading it to release some of its tension is a good way to get in tune with how you are feeling. You can come back and try for a little deeper stretch after that initial release. If you try pushing too far you may get the opposite results then what you are looking for, **especially if that area is already hurting**? You might increase the time and range as you get more into it. The idea here is to take is slow at first and learn to listen to what your body is telling you.

Using opposite muscles against each other is another way to force the relaxation you desire. When one muscle contracts, the opposite muscle is forced into a stretched position. If you are stretching your chest for instance, make a conscious effort to contract the muscles by your shoulder blades at the same time. Gravity or light weights can also be used to help tire a muscle just like being in traction  ;)

If any of this sounds new or interesting perhaps check out these books? each one has something good to say and I could not possibly get by without them:

Stretching, Bob Anderson

Stretch and Strengthen, Judy Alter

Active Isolated Stretching. Jim and Phil Wharton (this one is a little different then what is described above)

From geezer-land. ST says good things, as do several others. Stay active -- better than a last minute effort to get in shape. As I look back on my life and its activities (and I once was a marathon runner), I wish I had started yoga when I was 19 or 20. I recommend it to all.

A_A,

The older you get the more you realize that youth is truly wasted on the young ;)
Staying active as you say is the key, but it's also never to late to get in better shape and better overall health.

Since 75% of our health problems are lifestyle/diet related, adopting a better eating plan and just a daily walk and some stretching afterward will go a long ways.
Yoga is an excellent way to keep strong and limber and proves you don't need to beat your body into shape to get in shape.

Biggest drawback to entering Geezer-Land when it comes to exercise is that you don't bounce back as fast from a hard workout.
When your new to exercising and especially if your older, you fall into the " no pain/ no gain" trap.
There's a big and very important difference between physical fatigue and real pain.
People of all ages, especially older ones need to ease into an exercise routine and make stretching afterward as much of a priority as the exercise itself.

More people start and stop exercise programs becasue they try to keep up with the " Jones" in the gym, rather than listening to their bodies. Once hurt they more often than not, decide exercise isn't for them :(

There's something for everyone, you just need to find it.

Good point about trying to keep up with the "Joneses" at the gym. I've seen lots of folks come, then leave because they could not lift what some lift, or bend the way my yoga instructor bends -- no way. Lifestyle is not a competitive event.

And I don't work out in hopes it will let me live longer. I work out because it lets me live better.

Ancient_Angler wrote on Jul 14^th, 2011 at 3:14pm:

And I don't work out in hopes it will let me live longer. I work out because it lets me live better

Best reason ever! With the rising health-care costs and less services for your dollar, we all are going to be paying more as we age. Just like with your car, you can pay for maintenance/oil change, or ignore the warning signs and pay for surgery/rehab/ drug prescriptions. Even if you don't care about the " quality" issue, who doesn't like to save a buck?

I'd rather be looking at a hot/fit yoga/fitness instructors butt than have a overworked/underpaid doctor looking up mine ;D

Core core core, stretch at dinner ...cool I do have some good habits!

I also isolate when I lift- lift then twist never both at same time.

Your core has a ton to do with one's balance; as does depth perception and vision...noodle on that during tonight's stretch  ;) ;) :-?:-?

Everyone says don't twist...........somehow I can't picture getting a big pack on without some twisting involved.

Ahhhh.........lift then twist.............I dunno..........I always seem to do it all in one motion (maybe that's why my back was hurtin)

How about grabbing the boat? Lean out and over and lift!

I've seen lots of people lift/put on heavy packs with varying degrees of success.

Many people stick one arm thru a pack strap and try to pull it on like a jacket, twisting as they lift, then flounder to get the other arm in.

If you have a lot of upper body strength, you might get away with it, but most people will eventually hurt themselves struggling with a heavy pack.

I've seen people stand behind pack and attempt to roll pack up and over their head and slide both hands thru shoulder straps. Works okay on areal light pack, a heavy food pack, not so much :P

When I'm with others, I like the pick up their pack by side straps as they get into shoulder straps. Much safer and easier than going it alone.

Solo, I like to use the bow of my canoe to sit pack on and then turn, squat slightly and slide into straps. A big rock/log will work too.

Canoes are where it's really about technique, not brute force. Bending your knees, keeping your back as straight as possible and as you reach across the yoke, you twist your trunk and snap your hips at the same time.

I don't claim to be an expert, I don't get enough time on the water, but people who do and know the right way to pick up a canoe or pack, make it look like child's play.

I saw a little 100# College girl at a canoe rental outfitter for Algonquin Park, pick up and portage a tandem Royalex canoe while her much larger, stronger male counterparts struggled to get it overhead.

It's all about leverage and balance. Power comes thru your hips/legs just like in baseball/football.

This explains it very well. I'd say it's as much about being flexible and proper technique than anything else.

  (You need to Login or Register

solotripper wrote on Jul 14^th, 2011 at 10:24pm:

Canoes are where it's really about technique, not brute force.

Yep, should be an olympic event.

Good link!

Bowing the pack, never thought of that. The sharing of info always contributes to knowledge.

Me I face the old pack, towards the part that rides my small back. Grasp the sides or handles and hoist to my knee. Then slip my right hand/arm into right shoulder strap. Bend ever so slightly to let the pack come to rest upon my back. Then slip the old left arm in , make some adjustments. Off I go. Its an old backpacking technique.

When shouldering a boat: a little momentum generating bouncing off the thighs can help. The old bridge technique can help too, as can the deck rest...the former is how I built the strength to shoulder the Chestnut solo back in the day; I only had maybe 30-35# on that barge.

looks like I do it all wrong.............

I face the pack...........cross my hands grabbing opposing straps and swing the whole shebang up and around while grunting the words "up kimba" with a slight indian (from india ;) ) accent

I brace the side of the pack with a forearm while I slide one arm in and then the other. A smidge tricky I rekon but I usually do OK unless I forget to slacken my shoulder straps. Quite a bit of twisting and lifting though.

I probably do the boat all wrong to I bet. I just lean over and grab the thing. I might have to re-think that now since I am thinking about adding a "real" backrest. I have one coming from eds canoe. All wood and cane with no blasted side straps which I have always been leery of should I have a spill (entanglement hazard with the batman belt). Problem is the blasted thing weighs a ton at 4lbs. I'm thinking of doing some surgery on it so the backrest part just hits my lower back instead of upper back. Maybe I can shave a pound.

My solo bell is starting to get heavy. 2 rods and reels, depth finder, brackets to hold GPS/compass/pliers and now an incredibly heavy backrest and a backpack with 7 lbs of lures.

It will be worth it if my back does better. I like the idea of cutting it down, perhaps it won't get in the way when I paddle and I'll have it when I fish or just need to kick back and stretch. I spend a lot of time in the boat and not so much in camp.

Time to man up and stop whimpering about 55 lbs of boat and gear on a portage. Back in the day guys routinely portaged 80lb boats as a matter of routine and didn't think nothing of it. 

Quote:

Quite a bit of twisting and lifting though. I probably do the boat all wrong to I bet. I just lean over and grab the thing.

I bet the majority of people do the same thing, whatever they learned ( right or wrong) and until you get a nagging injury or worse don't give it a second thought.

I know I did until I tweaked my back and found that "man- up" doesn't always translate to " wising-up" ;)

Over the long haul, technique will always beat brute strength. Sadly most active people wish they had learned that before they developed those nagging injuries or serious ones that keep them from doing what they love.

The proper canoe lifting link is a good example. If your just muscling your canoe up, your asking for lower back problems. All the stretching/ exercises in the world can't make up for bad technique. You may get away with it for awhile but when it catches up to you it won't be pretty :'(

Add in the weight of a heavy pack and sooner or later you'll pay the price. I'd be willing to bet that if you took a few minutes to compare the difference between the proper technique and just grabbing and going, a reasonable person would have to conclude they were working waaay harder  and un-safer than need be ;)

I would be interested to see how others would get my pack on and I mean that in all humility. I can't really see many alternatives that look or sound good to me.

I detest the thought of someone helping me and I can't quite see setting the pack on something (other than the tailgate of my truck ;) ) and getting in. Setting it on my knee?!?! I dunno. None of it has the right ring to my ear.

Mu buddy who is bigger and stronger than me can't muscle my pack on the way I do it so I guess I must have some sort of strategy in place that seems to work.

I should bring my stuff over to your place ST and see how you would do it. (I'll buy you a hamburger ;) ). Marlin sounds like he has it going on to but the last time I weighed my pack it came in at just a hair shy of 80lbs and setting it on my knee first sounds counter intuitive. Seems to me a little momentum is required although holding it out to the side with a forearm can be a bit awkward sometimes but I get it on 9 out of 10 times on the first try.

Why not the tailgate of your truck? From ground, you squat, keep back straight, grab side grab handles/pack strap loops and use your legs to lift to tailgate, then slip in.

In woods, you have bow of canoe, rocks/logs. Anything you can use to lessen the strain of bringing a heavy pack from it's lowest position.

Facing the pack straps, lifting with them and setting the pack on one knee, then inserting your arm of choice is far easier than bulling it up from the ground with most of the strain on your arms/upper-body, lower back if your not lifting with your legs.
I can and will take it up that way, if there's no alternative but I avoid it if I can. Your beating yourself up when you don't really need too.

80 lbs is way more than I would want for my pack. Are you 2x portaging with pack 1x and canoe separate, or are you 1x portaging?  I'd consider heavy food pack, and a gear pack with the canoe, changing that when the food pack lightens up.

If your buddy is bigger and stronger than you and can't muscle your pack the way you do tells me that you do have a technique that works for you, but it doesn't necessarily mean it's a technique that's good for your body ;)

The Voyagers carried loads that most of us couldn't even get off the ground. They also had short life expectancies and I would bet spine/hip problems that probably left them in chronic pain after their tripping days :'(

You said the Isle Royale trip really put the hurt on your body? Imagine what 2 weeks or longer will do in the WCPP?
I have to think it will be much more strenuous and if your body revolts on you, where will that leave you :'(

On a solo trip the heavier the load, the greater chance of injury, whether from the weight or a inadvertent slip/fall.
I understand detesting someone/ something helping you, but like the old Bible proverb says, Pride really does go before a Fall. Or as my Dad use to tell me, " Learn to work smarter, not harder "  ;)

I just started putting my pack on as Solotripper suggested on my last trip. It was smooth and easy.

fine, I'll see how Ben uses ST's tricks putting his pack on in a few weeks when we share a shuttle and have a few days together on Murdock.

To me it sounds like a process fraught with never the right log, rock or hill to plop your pack on in order to get in. I might take a closer look at putting it on the bow. On the other hand that would put quite a bit of strain on my knees squatting and then getting upright. I suppose I'm just being stubborn as I have been putting my pack on my way for a very long time.

Back issues have been getting my attention though. Yea my pack is pretty dang heavy. I might triple the first 10 days especially since after the first few days the portages are fairly short. 

marlin55388 wrote on Jul 15^th, 2011 at 2:09pm:

Bowing the pack, never thought of that. The sharing of info always contributes to knowledge. Me I face the old pack, towards the part that rides my small back. Grasp the sides or handles and hoist to my knee. Then slip my right hand/arm into right shoulder strap. Bend ever so slightly to let the pack come to rest upon my back. Then slip the old left arm in , make some adjustments. Off I go. Its an old backpacking technique. When shouldering a boat: a little momentum generating bouncing off the thighs can help. The old bridge technique can help too, as can the deck rest...the former is how I built the strength to shoulder the Chestnut solo back in the day; I only had maybe 30-35# on that barge.

That's how I look at a pack at a portage sans some big rock. The canoe goes up with the big mussels and confidence is key.

FWIW - MT. I can't fathom where you put all your new stuff much less how you'll find it. Stuff is heavy. I'll save the joe atlas joke for another time in deference to the family.

The new system was actually quite pleasant last trip DB and I probably don't have more "stuff" as anyone else  ;).

My main pack is sealine pro pack. Cavernous and waterproof with padded straps and padded belt I have run one since I started canoe tripping. Although I might not take it to the barrens it performs quite well in tamer environments despite objections from cliff jacobson (whom I have great respect for) who advises against them based on durability issues. I am still using the same one for going on a decade and it's still watertight. Bear vault (breakfast stuff), bag, tent, tarp, and clothes duffel goes in as well as small duffel for odds and ends (light, first aid, writing stuff, personal effects etc.)

I have replaced the tubular sealine dry bags with watershed duffels (NRS carries them). No more digging trying to find stuff. The size I have chosen accepts each theme based duffel. One duffel has all the cooking stuff. One duffel has my raingear, bug shirt. Another duffel has strictly foodstuffs.

The watershed has an airtight ziplock style rubber sealing system which is watertight to 30 ft. Watertight is also airtight which adds another layer of bear protection especially since I ground my food. I lash one duffel on top of my pro pack and hand carry the remaining 2. Yes I do have 3 or 4 minutes of preparation time at a portage but what is the rush?

I will be curious to see how the duffels hold up. They look to be more delicate than a sealine dry bag. But so far I am pleased.   

"strength", confidence...1 in same. PMA ...positive mental attitude.

I'm glad Ben found my tip useful. I hope MT gets something from it as well?

I know you have bad knees. Even if you don't bend them at all, pulling a heavy load that's partially off the ground is far easier than one that's sitting flat.
I would be willing to bet that more injuries occur lifting a heavy pack and sitting it back down than actually carrying it.
I always try to use one of my tips whenever possible. I'm also not adversed to leaning against a suitable object and taking the pack off, letting the object of opportunity take the majority of the weight.

All the exercise/stretching in the world can't reverse the aging process. At best we can slow it down. Sooner or later just bulling the load and not using technique will catch up to you.

I'm sure you like most of us want to be paddling well into your Golden years. Anything you can do to minimize wear and tear on your body we/you would be well advised to consider, even if it becomes a case of teaching a old dog new tricks.

With bad knees, your always have to wonder will they give out at the worst possible time? Sooner or later good knees or not we all take a tumble. Carrying a 80 lb load makes the odds of you maybe hurting your lower back even greater.
A simple muscle pull is painful enough but over the counter pain meds might get you thru :-/, slip a disc, your in real trouble especially solo.

IMHO you have a few options. You can lighten your load which you probably don't want to do ( I like my comforts too), or you can find a way to distribute the load a little more evenly.

Now to the real burning question ;)

How does one take a sleek solo Kevlar canoe that weighs in the low 30's and turn it into a bloated 55# one  :-?

That's like turning Christie Brinkley into Kirstie Alley :P
They both might get you there, but which would you rather lug around ::)

mastertangler wrote on Jul 16^th, 2011 at 12:47pm:

The new system was actually quite pleasant last trip DB and I probably don't have more "stuff" as anyone else  ;). But so far I am pleased.

No offense intended MT! It just seems to me you became enthused and went on a buying binge. Been there done that - learned my lesson well. Lost of those old things still work if not better. Oddly enough, some fall in the "what was I thinking' category and others in the 'I'm glad I bit when they were available' camp 'cause they don't make 'em anymore.

You did buy a lot of new stuff recently if I'm not mistaken. Personally, I'd forget where I put it all. But, then again, they addressed your issues and not mine if that makes sense.

I have no problem with whatever it takes to make it work for individuals unless they simply want the latest and greatest. Then I expect it's their own damn fault 'cause they didn't take the time to read the manual.

No offense taken DB...........I'm currently broke and it's all your fault. Follow my twisted logic while I enter the current American thinking of "it's not my fault".

If you hadn't built this website then I wouldn't of gotten involved and I would of been content with what I already had. But upon hearing and seeing (via links) all the new shiny products I invariably succombed to the irresistable temptation to upgrade. I had no choice in the matter whatsoever ;).

ST I'm a bit peeved whenever I lift my partners boat. He is a minimalist and barely has anything.

I wear my fishing pack....probably 10lbs
seat.......which I'm P.O. about coming in at 4lb
2 rods and reels
depth finder
holdzit tool holder (awesome!) which holds pliers and spreader
both paddles 1 zav and 1 bending branches

so there it is.............all of a sudden my light boat is perhaps a bit heavier than I would like. It's fine though as long as their is an actual portage trail. I never set it down on the toughest portage on Isle royale (.8 mile swithbacks up and over the greenstone ridge). No problem. I wouldn't want to bushwack with it though. It would need to be nearly empty for that gig.

Hopefully you won't encounter any portages more difficult than the one on Isle Royale.

I know how gear tends to accumulate. Every trip I say why am I taking this, I've yet to use it. I'll leave it and maybe take something I wish I had before but didn't.

You can guess the rest. I end up wishing I had what I left and the circle continues ;D

It's like fishing gear. Trophy fish aside, you could probably bring Yellow and White Jig-heads, say 1/4-3/8 ounce and the same color in Twisty tails and catch all you'd need for meals and sport.

I know that's heresy to many, but I know I've caught the Grand Slam on them and bet others have too. Still it's fun to bring stuff and try it out. I'm sure the Fishing Industry can use the support ;)

No! Dude, you have only yourself to blame! Can I blame you for all the red on this time sensitive link at the moment?
  (You need to Login or Register
As much as I'd like to ... can any size/shape/color PFD save us from all this idiotic knee jerk ugliness? ;)

On the other hand, it seems stuff's on sale again lately.... Remember the laughter we heard while playing musical chairs as a kid? It's like dodge-ball ... shoot the wabbit.... Those childhood games that have now been all but outlawed made us all the more nimble Jack. Good company is always relative.  And sometimes takes a leap of faith.

But here we're talking mother nature and She has only our best interest at heart. And when she does get pissed, you can usually pretty much assume it's not personal even though it may seem otherwise from time to time.