(partial) Farewell to Arms

Doesn't feel awkward or unnatural to not swing your arms whilst you walk? Well, i guess i can relate some. On the Camino in Spain, i earned a rep for being known as the grocery bag guy, cause so often i was seen carrying same with my arms (because my pack was neither large, nor comfortable enough). But, would have preferred having my arms free.

In any case, sounds like it works great for you, and i can see where it would take some of the weight off the spine. I take it you don't use hiking poles or the like?

Just.

It feels more natural for me to not swing my arms. I may be a bit unusual in this regard so this technique wouldn't work for some/most others.

I've tried poles but don't like them after about a minute of use.

There is a bit of back and forth shoulder movement that occurs as I walk.

My T-Rex style of walking also allows me to use a wide backpack because I don't need to swing my arms behind me.

I also hang my arms from webbing when using cardio equipment at the gym (stairmaster, treadmill, elliptical trainer, etc.)

I'm a bit of a hunch back so the arms I selected tend to hang toward the front of my body. I think this puts a bit of a strain on my back. Having an arm couch in front of me allows the arms to nap while I'm walking.

Trekking poles give similar benefits, and a whole lot more.

I know some pack companies (ULA comes to mind) have on occasion advertize hand loops, and I have even seen a video or two extolling this method, so it isn't weird. I suppose the flip side is I should probably consider how much my addiction to trekking poles may be due to giving my hands something to do. :-)

When I ran cross country in high school, weirdly, I felt like I had a hard time with where I held my arms, as I would get pains in my shoulder muscles if I "did it wrong". Strange that doing it "wrong" could even be a thing, but I thought so at the time.

You could carry a baby in the front one : )

> Doesn't [it] feel awkward or unnatural to not swing your arms whilst you walk?
Nope.
In fact, I often have my thumbs hooked into loops on the top adjuster straps. That seems to take some load off my shoulders and give me better balance.

Cheers

Totally off topic, but I just wanted to say I love that you have a 30 rack of natty light in the backpack. Haven't had that stuff since college.

Jerry,

On one backpack trip my sister's Italian Greyhound (Enzo) needed a lift. He rode quite comfortably on top of the front bag. I really enjoyed having him there. We could walk nose-to-nose. Very cute dog.

Never pegged you as a Natty man.

"Next challenge will be to transfer the weight of my heavy bulbous head to my waist."

People tell me they think I've got my head buried up my arse most of the time, so perhaps that's an idea for the weight transfer you seek…..

Ok, I agree to be the straight man and you can provide the punch lines from now on.

You are much better at it than I!

Nice MYOG.

For reference, see also Aarn body packs. Front pockets/packs swing freely and are carried on the hip only (through small stays in each pocket if I remember correctly).
http://www.aarnusa.com

These seem like a good idea, but they also seem to need a body over 6' high to actually work. I am not that high.
Even so, you can't see your feet and the front pockets are problematic (to say the least) in scrub.
Getting gear in and out of the tall thin body is … difficult.

Cheers