Note postures: BACKPACK                BODYPACK

A BACKPACK has 4 Biomechanical flaws.

1. A backpack creates forward lean.

Because all the weight is behind, leverages are created which increase the forces acting on the body above the weight itself. For example a 16kg load exerts loads closer to 20 kg on the body. These forces are concentrated in an unbalanced way on particular body parts forcing you to lean forward substantially to keep your altered center of gravity centered over your feet. The heavier the load, and the deeper the side profile of the pack, the more you must lean forward to maintain balance. This bent forward posture increases muscle tension throughout the body, especially in the neck, shoulders, back and thighs. Your gait patterns are affected and more energy is consumed with each step.

2. A backpack exerts backwards and downwards forces on your shoulders.

If you loosen the shoulder straps on your backpack the pack falls backwards.

You keep the shoulder straps tight to prevent this, maintaining a downwards force on your shoulders. You oppose the backwards force by bracing your shoulders forward into the shoulder straps. This consumes energy and tires the body. For people with a short torso the tiring effect is magnified due to the same size lever acting over a short backlength. Hence the growing worldwide problem of back injury in children from carrying heavy loads in school backpacks.

3. A backpack places substantial weight on the back of the hips and none on the front.

With no balancing weight on the front of your pelvis a rotating force is createdon your pelvis, forcing your pelvis downwards at the back. You use your muscles to resist this force. This is one of the reasons that lower back pain is common for people who carry heavy backpacks.

5. A backpack is like a lever on your back, making body movements unweildy.

Because the center of gravity is well behind that of your body, the load acts as a lever resisting the natural flow of body movement. This effect is most noticable is sports which require a lot of body movement, such as skiing. Your balance is completely altered by the backpack, and once a turn is initiated, the load behind wants to keeping on swinging around, reducing your control and jeopardising your balance.

A FLOWMO BODYPACK solves all these biomechanical problems.

  1. A FlowMo Bodypack restores your natural upright posture:

As weight is balanced in front and behind, no leverages are created. The forces acting on the body are only those of the weight itself. By choosing the largest volume Balance Pockets available for your pack model, and by packing your heaviest most compact items in the Balance Pockets, and your light bulky gear in the pack, you can achieve a body centered load Now the center of gravity of the load exactly matches that of the body, both horizontally and vertically. There is no forward lean. Strain is eliminated.

  2. A FlowMo Bodypack eliminates the backwards and downwards forces on your shoulders.

Just as a backpack wants to fall backwards away from your shoulders, the front Balance Pockets want to fall forward. The two forces cancel each other out, so that there is no rearward pull on your shoulders and no energy consuming forward bracing is needed. Because the forces of the load are balanced in front and back, the shoulder straps can be loosened, so that they bear no weight. They now act as load locators rather than load bearers. The connection of the Balance Pockets to the shoulder straps is a sliding connection, so that none of the weight in the Balance Pockets goes onto the shoulders.

  3. A FlowMo Bodypack places all the weight in the front Balance pockets on the front of your hips.

This balances the load on the back of the hips from the pack, eliminating the twisting force on the pelvis. The pelvis can stay level without muscle tension, facilitating the transmission of the load from your hips to your legs. Strain in the lower back is eliminated.

  4. With a FlowMo Bodypack the center of mass of your load is one with the center of gravity of your body, making movements easy.

Balancing the weight around the body's center of gravity is the basis for natural body movement, natural balance, and the stability of your load. For free body movement to be possible, the harness of the pack must cooperate. Our patented Flow Motion Systems link the harness parts in such a way to allow you to move your torso freely. You will experience a new sense of freedom under load.

 “The counterbalance system eliminates postural stress on the torso and shoulder girdle. My kinesiological tests on a patient who had back surgery showed no stress induced by using the pack.”

— Jay Wilson, D.C., USA       Chiropractor and Backpacker

The research suggests energy savings with Balance Pockets start with loads as low as 3 kg.

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