Gel bed review

I have added another post to the sub-blog about the composite gel - memory foam - spring bed (by Kaymed) that I bought earlier in the year. This http://gel-beds.blogspot.com/ will take you to the latest report where you can get my current thoughts on this bed.

Hiking jacket, boots and wicking T shirt

Several weeks have passed since I purchased the hiking gear and I have now worn the boots, jacket and T shirt in a variety of weather conditions and on some very variable terrain.

The jacket really is great and the more that I wear it the more impressed I am by it.

The manufacturer is Keela and it really does live up to “and beyond” my expectations. At the time I thought that £100 was a lot of money for this garment, but now I feel that it was excellent value for the money. Only last week I found yet another hidden pocket that I previously did not know existed and the clever way that you can access the various pockets whilst keeping the jacket in weatherproof mode is clever rather than (as I suggested before) gimmicky.

The boots do not score quite as highly as the jacket in my book. They are made by Salomon and, whilst they are very comfortable and waterproof – and for that matter breathable, I do have some reservations about them.

The main problem is the quality of the grip in muddy, leafy or slippery underfoot conditions.

This problem may in part be of my own making as I bought these boots based on a recommendation from the seller that was based on my description of their anticipated use.

At the time I did not envisage doing much walking in the rain, let alone walking in 3 or 4 inch deep mud, or a slippery mush of leaves and dirt. I think that it may therefore be possible that my application of these boots is harsher than their use is made for, but even so their inability to give me a good footing when my wife’s similar (and by another manufacturer’s) boots do, gives me some disappointment.

The big problem with these boots is that the tread clogs up very easily and consequently becomes a smooth slippery surface. With my wife’s boots the smaller gaps between the projecting tread seem more able to eject any collected debris as she walks. This means that I sometimes feel my foot starting to slip on terrain that she has a vice like grip on. All told “slightly” disappointing.

The wicking T shirts are excellent. They do the job very well and, in combination with the jacket, it is very easy to manage your bodies heat so that you never feel too hot or (so far at least) too cold.

Hiking boots and wicking clothing

Since my last blog I have worn the hiking boots that I mentioned a few more times and they really are good.

Wicking T shirts and Jacket

I also got a couple of wicking T shirts which, to my surprise, really do seem to keep you dry. I think that they are just very good at drying or evaporating sweat, however, whatever the mechanism, they do work.

The key feature to these T shirts is the materials that they are made from which are all man-made fibres and this means that they cannot absorb water. This also means that when you sweat the water molecules cling to the fabric (rather than absorb in to it) and then evaporate away quickly. Simple, but effective.

An expensive waterproof and breathable jacket that I got hold of has yet to be put through its paces properly. I have been out in it in light rain and it certainly kept me dry, but it has yet to face a down pour. This winter should give me ample opportunity to test it to its limits.

The breathable properties of this jacket are something that I have yet to be convinced of. I have no doubt that, if I simply wore the jacket on a bare body, it would wick sweat and water vapour away, however quite how this process can work when someone is wearing several layers of clothing is something that I need to experience to believe.

This jacket is interesting in several other ways too.

It is an “all bells and whistles” jacket with vented areas in the underarm zone, adjustable cuffs, several pockets for phone, maps etc, a wicking lining, some kind of “snow” protector, a very adjustable hood that folds away into the collar, various tighteners and pulley straps, double zips that allow the top of the jacket to be zipped up whilst the bottom is open, and separate zips and cuff attachments to enable a fleece to be fitted (zipped in to) the inside of the jacket. The list goes on, but how much is gimmick and how much is usable clothing technology remains to be seen.

I will come back to this jacket and no doubt the boots and T shirts as I discover and experience more.

Walking footwear

I recently bought a pair of pretty expensive hiking boots and it is interesting to contrast the wearing characteristics of this kind of footwear with regular good quality shoes.

Naturally these boots are more robust than regular shoes and they are weatherproof and breathable. However, they are also much more structural in their construction and this means that there is, e.g. very little flexing of the sole.

Initially this seems almost at odds with sneakers or trainers, but the value of this soon becomes evident when you wear them on rough or rocky terrain.

Very little of the harshness of the surface actually reaches the foot and the combination of a tough and comparatively inflexible sole along with a higher upper makes them very supportive.

So far my experience of this kind of boot is limited to a couple of walks, the longest being eight or nine miles up hill in one direction and down in the other. But the walking surface was variable, a bit of road, a bit of rough bridle path, and fields, so there was a good mix of things to experience.

The other feature of this kind of footwear (that I touched on) is the high upper that extends to the point just below the ankle. This takes away a lot of unnecessary muscular and balancing work from the muscles in the feet and lower leg and consequently makes walking less stressful. Put simply you can walk for longer without tiring, strain, or injury.

To obtain more information about this (and other) kinds of shoes and boots take a look at the info site http://www.orthopedic-shoes.net/hiking-boots.html or do a search on hiking boots or walking shoes.

If you are thinking about buying some serious walking footwear, inform yourself first before you spend your hard earned money.

Gel mouse mat

A while ago I mentioned a gel mouse mat that I was trying out and, having had it for about 3 months, I am now in a better position to comment about it.

The mat is basically circular, but with one side flattened out and including the addition of a raised gel pad.

You rest your wrist, or ball of the hand, on the pad, thus elevating the level of the fingers as they wrap around the mouse.

I have persisted with this mat since buying it, but I honestly cannot say that I find it any more comfortable or easy to use than a regular flat mouse mat. In fact I would go as far as to say that it can actually make my wrist ache if I am using it for prolonged periods of time.

I assume (possibly incorrectly) that there are some ergonomic and muscular advantages to this kind of set-up, but in truth I have not checked out the facts.

Whether or not I will continue to persist with this mat I have yet to decide, but in my case at least I do not feel that I have gained any real advantage from using it.

Some feedback

It is a couple of weeks since my last entry, so I will give some feedback on the Kaymed gel bed that is now a few months old.

I am sure that this bed offers good support and assists my back, however my sleep patterns are still often disrupted and I do sometimes awaken with mild back discomfort or tightness.

I have also started experimenting with a contoured memory foam pillow which I “do not” find uncomfortable and which clearly does have a profile that works for my head and neck. It does take some getting used to and it is no good if you like to rest an arm under the pillow, however I do think that it has helped my sleep. The one that I am using is pretty firm, but it is also short on depth which is ideal for someone over 6 ft using a standard double length bed.

Other orthopedic products that I bought were the chair, gel mat and gel foot insoles, the latter of which have hardly been used, but which have still disintegrated.

Pretty disappointing given that I have provided them so little use and only weight about 185 pounds.

The multi adjustable chair is superb and I remain convinced that this item has dramatically improved my back’s health. I am also convinced that, aside from the height adjustment, the most important feature of one of these chairs is the seat tilt function. This function places you in a position where you automatically lean forward and support your own back and where the weight of your upper body is adequately supported on the chair. I would recommend this style of ergonomic chair to anyone.

The mouse mat is odd. To be honest I find the projecting gel support more of a hindrance than a help, even though I have persisted with it for a couple of months or more. This, no doubt, has ore to do with personal preference that anything else.

Disrupted sleep

Having spent a night away sleeping in a different bed I have become all too aware of firstly, the value of a good mattress and secondly, the difficulties of adapting to a less supportive mattress than the one that I am accustomed to.

The mattress that I slept on on Saturday is one that I have used a number of times and it is fairly new, hardly ever used, and a super king in size. Even so the change from the multi material body shaping mattress that I sleep on every day to this spring-only mattress was enough to make sleeping a difficult activity.

This highlights two factors. The first is that I had clearly adapted to a less than ideal bed support and the second is that it would appear that once you are “spoilt” with a good mattress it becomes difficult to get a decent night’s sleep on anything less. This is a minor problem in itself.

Also interesting was a conversation that I had with my in-laws (whose home we were visiting) and who both believed that a firm to hard bed was the best for the back and who both genuinely do sleep their best on a very firm mattress.

What this highlights is not the fact that some people are misinformed about beds and mattresses, but rather that we all like and adapt to different types of bedding and that what works for one, or is even recommended by “experts”, may not be right for someone else.

For my part I would certainly recommend a bed with some kind of memory foam, Latex foam or Gel structure as a top level comfort and support level, but this is not to say that it would work for everyone.

It is also interesting to note how many people are dissatisfied with very expensive beds by Tempur, Kaymed etc when so many other owners (like me) will extol the virtues of these beds and argue that their higher cost is money well spent.