[at-l] Osprey Aether 60

[MedusaJ at aol.com (MedusaJ@aol.com)]

In a message dated 1/17/2005 5:08:19 PM Eastern Standard Time, Jim Bullard <jbullar1@twcny.rr.com> writes:

>At 03:47 PM 1/17/2005 -0500, MedusaJ@aol.com wrote:
>>At it
>>s lightest, with full food, my pack only weighed 19.2, and was under thirty
>>even when I got all my winter gear back, so I know it's not weight. ?Which
>>leaves me with three theories:
>>1. ?I screwed up my back with the first pack, and now there's something
>>irreconcilably wrong with it.
>>2. ?The Osprey was just as bad for my back, either because it didn't fit, or
>>because it wasn't a female pack.
>>3. ?My back muscles (traps and lats) are too weak.
>>
>>Did anyone else have a problem with serious back pain on the trail? ?I'm
>>planning a PCT thru-hike for this summer, and I'm planning to take the 
>>Osprey,
>>mainly because I have no money to experiment with. ?And I have no health
>>insurance to see a doctor. ?Any advice? ?Could it be a lack of back 
>>strength? ?Or do I
>>need a new pack? ?And if I do, how do I find one that fits?
>
>Can't help with the fit question but if you suspect it's a problem of back 
>strength I suggest that you work on that. Here is a good fact sheet on 
>strengthening your back, hips and other core muscles 
><http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/fact/thr_report.cfm?Thread_ID=17&topcategory=Spine>. 
>I find that working on core strength improves your balance too. And here's 
>one for a downloadable book on eliminating pain 
><http://www.reliefmart.com/pain-book.htm>. It's only $3.95 so it isn't a 
>budget buster. Another thing to consider is your sleeping pad. Nothing will 
>do my back more damage than a bad night's sleep. Your problem may have 
>nothing to do with the pack.


So you do think it's possible that it's a matter of muscle strength?  I'm planning to work on my back and core strength before I leave again this April whether or not it's that, so we'll see if it helps.  I never really have problems sleeping, so I doubt it's that.  Thanks for the links, too.  Anyone else have any thoughts?  It's the most frustrating thing to have pain that you can't explain, diagnose, or fix.  After a while everyone stops believing that it's real pain.  Only you know that it is.

Marzipan
AT04