Training Plates for Balance

[Tackle]

20 hours ago, Lozart said:

...as opposed to plates for fitness!

 

I've been thinking about getting some plates to put in the back pouch of my plate carriers just to balance out the load (being front heavy wreaks havoc on my back!). Can anyone recommend anything? Probably in the 2kg kind of area.

Having a back problem myself I sympathize with you, 

BUT adding weight to try to offset weight that's causing you pain is never gonna work, it'll just add to the wear & tear on your back & lead to more problems in the long term.

The only real solutions are to reduce your load out or change/alter your load carrying kit, bit like your modern Bergen's, the belt system designed to spread some of the weight to the hips, crucially below the spine, where more common weight related injuries occur.

Sorry to piss on your bonfire, but if wearing certain kit is causing you pain, likely to become long term, then it's time to reconsider said kit 🤔

[GenuineGerman]

2 hours ago, Adolf Hamster said:

 

Was more a case of keeping options open for getting things cut, not a problem atm as ours is still running.

Generally don’t tend to do commission work but we are r&d testing at the moment so might be able to do something there 

3 hours ago, Lozart said:

 

Control systems? Sinumerik by any chance?

We have our on project software that works with IGEMS and Libellula for the Waterjet. Then plasma we use mach4 with our post processor however may use pronest in the distant future. Apart from that we use mainly omron parts. 

[Lozart]

27 minutes ago, GenuineGerman said:

 

We have our on project software that works with IGEMS and Libellula for the Waterjet. Then plasma we use mach4 with our post processor however may use pronest in the distant future. Apart from that we use mainly omron parts. 

 

Ah cool, we're an integrator for Omron Industrial Automation but more in the production lines type stuff. We're also used to seeing Sinumerik on a lot of CNC type stuff so wondered if that was what was driving your machines!

 

 

1 hour ago, Tackle said:

Having a back problem myself I sympathize with you, 

BUT adding weight to try to offset weight that's causing you pain is never gonna work, it'll just add to the wear & tear on your back & lead to more problems in the long term.

The only real solutions are to reduce your load out or change/alter your load carrying kit, bit like your modern Bergen's, the belt system designed to spread some of the weight to the hips, crucially below the spine, where more common weight related injuries occur.

Sorry to piss on your bonfire, but if wearing certain kit is causing you pain, likely to become long term, then it's time to reconsider said kit 🤔

 

Very good point, well presented. I'll have a bit more of a think.

[GenuineGerman]

3 minutes ago, Lozart said:

Ah cool, we're an integrator for Omron Industrial Automation but more in the production lines type stuff. We're also used to seeing Sinumerik on a lot of CNC type stuff so wondered if that was what was driving your machines!

Awesome, place I work isn’t the biggest company and mainly focus on light industrial. The biggest bed size we do is 4x2m down to 610x610mm 

[trojan1106]

I and a lot of my friends have the multi curve training plates from Travail, and would recommend them.
I know he was ill before Christmas, a lot of that bought on by stress from someone in the community slandering him personally and professionally.

Worth contacting him first with your requirements.

[Oneshotscott]

23 hours ago, DRay said:

There is a Bootneck airsoft team that play around Plymouth that have a drone. I haven’t seen them use it for dropping kit (I don’t think it has the lift capacity for it) but they do use it for ISTAR which is pretty cool/very frustrating depending on whether you are playing with them or against them. 

One bb to those rotors......then slip away into the shadows and begin a SERE exercise until they've cooled off.

[concretesnail]

have a look at a padded load belt and harness setup. i have a warrior molle harness and belt that works really well and keeps weight off the chest but stable and still has the back for hydration pouches.

[Lozart]

14 hours ago, concretesnail said:

have a look at a padded load belt and harness setup. i have a warrior molle harness and belt that works really well and keeps weight off the chest but stable and still has the back for hydration pouches.

 

I had pretty much exactly that setup a while back (Condor belt though). Sold it because it just didn't work for me.

 

So the thing is, while yes, belt rigs move your weight to your hips which is better, I just prefer having my mags on or about my chest. My belt setup has two pistol mags, one rifle mag, dump pouch and holster (it's a two part "shooters belt" style one). For most woodland games I run a variety of chest rigs - micro fight style ones, Mayflower Gen IV and Gen V style ones, a couple of Warrior ones - depending on how the mood takes me and what gun I'm running on the day (if I'm lugging the SAW about I quite often ditch the chest rig completely).

 

I'm more likely to run a plate carrier for CQB sites primarily for a bit more protection (I'm turning into a bit of a wuss in my old age) but while they have dummy plates in they don't outweigh the mags, flahbangs etc on the front. Which is why I said the plates were for balance. Now, I am aware that the extra weight will potentially cause an issue for my weary old bones but truth be told the "tactical crouch" I seem to naturally assume these days puts far more strain on my lower back than the weight I'm carrying, the issue is more that the PC slips forward unless I have it set so tight it's just impossible to move well in it. Hence the idea that if I could balance out the load then I can avoid that issue.

 

As I said when @Tackle mentioned it above I think I need to have a long hard think about what I'm doing and how.

[concretesnail]

I'd certainly look awaiting the rear plate for a bladder of some kind then, use it as a way of adding weight to the rear of the carrier. But use water so you can fine tune the weight. If you don't want it sloshing foam can be used as soft baffles.

I have a source bladder in the plate pocket if my was901 back panel which worked a treat balancing epg gas mags for my masada.

[Lozart]

57 minutes ago, concretesnail said:

I'd certainly look awaiting the rear plate for a bladder of some kind then, use it as a way of adding weight to the rear of the carrier. But use water so you can fine tune the weight. If you don't want it sloshing foam can be used as soft baffles.

I have a source bladder in the plate pocket if my was901 back panel which worked a treat balancing epg gas mags for my masada.

 

I'll give it a go, I have a bladder that should fit the zip on panel on my AVS so I can test it out!

[Sneaky]

Some bricks?

[GeorgePlaysAirsoft]

I think fitness is worth considering here. Lower back pain is no fun, and whilst I don't think a counterweight is dead weight, i think if it were to get worse the solutions of 1) take weight off your front 2) put weight on your back will only take you so far. Firm no offence intended here but if there is added weight on the front of your torso which isn't kit related, it may be worth investigating. Likewise some exercises for the "core" and pretty much the entire back would be good, i think. as ever there is the proviso that you don't want to over do it as exercise can absolutely make it worse. easy to say exercising for airsoft is "try hard" but i genuinely can't think of a better reason to exercise than making the things you enjoy easier and more comfortable as you get older (and we all are so nothing personal)

 

edit: not completely convinced belt kits are just factually better, perhaps for a multi day event where the walking vastly outweighs the shooting. for your average shoot em skirmish id rather have nothing around my hips at all just for the sake of mobility and comfort. 

 

[TheFull9]

Tackle is 100% correct.

 

What do doctors and physios (ie people with serious education and training) tell overweight people with joint issues all the time?  To lose weight.  So adding any extra dead mass to your kit is almost certainly going to have negative effects.  Any excess weight on your body puts more pressure down on your entire system, joints being the areas that will compress and endure the most egregious effects from that compression.

 

Use fewer/lighter magazines, only carry what's truly necessary and spread it around you so it balances.  Personally I've mostly found that hydro bladders on the back will cause plastic midcaps on the front of any gear to rise up excessively if anything.  After all these years experimenting I mostly use either a small chest rig with basically only a few mags up front, or a compact PC with a small bladder on the back and the rest spread around the front/sides/to a belt.  Spreading is kind of the key word here, force = pressure/area.  You'll find with most load weights in airsoft that drinking from your back won't have that much effect on kit balance when considering the friction against your torso; just top it up a bit once or twice in a day and it'll be fine.

[Lozart]

Right, plenty to think about there. Thanks for all your input!

 

@GeorgePlaysAirsoft there's definitely some non-tactical front loading going on  no offence taken! I could for sure work on my fitness. It hasn't helped that airsofting was my most vigorous form of exercise so the last year has been pretty detrimental to that! Thing is though that when I was lighter, while I could run further (marginally) faster I still ended up with lower back ache about midway through the afternoon. 

 

Anyway, going to look at redistributing and seeing how I can spread the load a bit.

 

Cheers all!

[Tackle]

1 hour ago, TheFull9 said:

Tackle is 100% correct.

 

[Oneshotscott]

 I don't mean any disrespect to anyone when I say this but the average airsoft plate carrier/chest rig doesn't weight that much when its fully loaded with water, mags, misc items and should not result in back pain (I'm talking for a grown man here).  I would strongly advise that you take a minute to call your GP and see a physio regarding this.  Shifting the weight from the shoulders to elsewhere is a quick fix, as is reducing the weight but non of these will ultimately clarify what the root cause is of this pain.   Airsoft or not you have an problem with your back and if not fixed now...well it could creep up on you and become a game/hobby ending injury.

 

Be wise and call your GP.  It isn't like we can actually play airsoft at the moment is it?  I hope you receive the treatments necessary to return your back to full health/strength so we can all shoot you on site one day (not in the back though..)

[Lozart]

12 hours ago, Airsoft123 said:

 I don't mean any disrespect to anyone when I say this but the average airsoft plate carrier/chest rig doesn't weight that much when its fully loaded with water, mags, misc items and should not result in back pain (I'm talking for a grown man here).  I would strongly advise that you take a minute to call your GP and see a physio regarding this.  Shifting the weight from the shoulders to elsewhere is a quick fix, as is reducing the weight but non of these will ultimately clarify what the root cause is of this pain.   Airsoft or not you have an problem with your back and if not fixed now...well it could creep up on you and become a game/hobby ending injury.

 

Be wise and call your GP.  It isn't like we can actually play airsoft at the moment is it?  I hope you receive the treatments necessary to return your back to full health/strength so we can all shoot you on site one day (not in the back though..)

 

Hey man, thanks for your concern (genuinely).

 

Your point is very valid so let me address it. I'm 50, overweight and not as fit as I still think I am (I used to be a contender!!!!). I have a number of ongoing musculoskeletal problems that I've had regular treatment for, some of which may be exacerbated by my weight but most of which aren't. For example, my lower back is buggered as a result of spending the vast majority of my career sat at a desk/in a car/on a cable drum with a makeshift table on site. When I discussed it with my osteopath (check him out, he knows his shit https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-harrison-94a34728/) I asked if my weight was the issue and he said that it was maybe 5-10% of the problem. Sitting at a desk fucks you up, fact. I also have ongoing neck and shoulder issues from multiple car crashes and mountain biking injuries. I have buggered knees from years of cycling in old school clipless pedals that didn't allow for enough movement of the foot on the pedal and an imbalance between the inner and outer muscles in my thigh which pulls the kneecap out of alignment. The one issue I do get that's entirely weight related is plantar fasciitis and that is well under control.

 

So yes, there are medical issues that I'm trying to alleviate by looking at how the balance of my kit can be improved while also addressing the underlying causes. One of the main things that physios and osteopaths will drive into you regarding loads is to make sure they're evenly spread (backpack instead of a shoulder bag for example), particularly if the pain is coming from being uneven not just from being too heavy. My  reasoning on the plates was along the lines of putting a single plate of an equivalent weight to the gear on my front into my back plate pocket to even it out and remove that imbalance. Now, we're not talking about a lot of weight here (maybe 1.5kg) but in pure mechanical terms a load doesn't have to be unbalanced by much to create a problem.

 

Anyway, thanks to all for your input. I have lots of info there to go away and mull over!