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Jayboflavin04
04-06-2009, 17:14
I have a prolite 3 and a WM ultralight. I lsleep on my side and I tend to roll around. When on my side my hips get sore n chilled! Even when I seem to be sleeping well I find myself waking up from time to time and adjusting myself on my pad. I took a part of a exedrin pm one night....that seemed to help execpt for the big huge pool of drool.

I think I am sleeping for a period of 2-4 hrs at a time. Sometimes it is hard to get back to sleep.

ChinMusic
04-06-2009, 17:21
You're a bit younger than me but I ended up going with a 2.5" air pad (Big Agnes Insulated Air Core, in my case). I inflate the pad so that my hips almost bottom out when on my side. I have had no issues with hips being cold down to the 15° rating.

Valentine
04-06-2009, 17:30
Time for a hammock. Other than that go with ChinMusic's advice on one of the thicker pads. Then follow other advice about insomnia...
or Earplugs and Jack Daniels!

Franco
04-06-2009, 18:31
That was the reason I changed from the Prolite 3 to the 4 (now Prolite Plus) , to get a bit more support , however ,the Exped Downmat 7 will fix that. I think you may find the older version on sale. Or go all the way with the new built in pump type.
Franco

vamelungeon
04-06-2009, 18:38
I've always had a hard time sleeping, going to sleep, staying asleep and going back to sleep if I get woken (is that grammatically correct?) . I use Ambien now when I need it. If I'm tired enough, though, I can sleep anywhere anytime.

Two Tents
04-06-2009, 18:39
If you feel in the mourning like you were eaten by a coyote and crapped off a cliff then try a hammock! I used to have sore cold hips too! Then I got a Hennessy hammock now sleep is good!

Deadeye
04-06-2009, 20:16
Another vote for a hammock or a 2.5" thick big agnes. My hips need pleny of padding. I sleep better in a hammock than in a bed at home.

Hooch
04-06-2009, 20:19
I'd say it'd be worth it to give a hammock a try. If you approach it with an open mind and no preconceived notions of what it should or should not be, you'll probably be just fine. If you can sew a straight line and a rolled hem, you can make one for dirt cheap to try out.

bigcranky
04-06-2009, 20:33
Top hip or bottom hip?

1. Top: My wife is a restless side sleeper who had a WM Ultralite. She found that the down shifted in the down channel so it was no longer covering her top hip. She got a big flat spot and very cold, even in moderate weather. Her solution was to trade the WM on a Montbell UL Down Hugger, which has cross baffles that keep the down from shifting.

2. Bottom: a thicker, warmer pad for starters. My hiking partner was *never* able to sleep on the ground. He tried and liked a hammock, but for cold weather trip preferred his tarp. Last month he bought a Big Agnes Air Core insulated pad, 2.5 inches thick, and loves it. Warm and comfortable.

Tinker
04-06-2009, 22:57
If you're not interested in the hammock thing, try using a small piece of closed cell foam underneath your pad from your waist to your hips. That will certainly help with the insulation shortage. You might just have to get used to the pad. To tell the truth, the week and a half I spent sleeping on the ground (closed cell pad - at one time, two of them) in Georgia was the most miserable hike I've had in 10 years. I'd become accustomed to a hammock but decided to use my tent because it was March and I figured it would be extremely cold. It wasn't. And I was sore.

Jayboflavin04
04-06-2009, 23:46
Think I may try an air core first! I just vested myself in a HS tarptent. So I wanna get some use out of it first. Do the rest of you all slide around on the BA's Aircores like the thermarests? I have a $50 cabelas gift certificate(wont be a huge investment for me).

If I tried to sew a hammock myself. I would be the only person on the trail with his shelter permantly attached to his arse....guess that would make for easy setup!!!!:D

The cold hips are definitely the bottom hip coming in contact with the ground.

I was talkin to my buddy about this today. He said he would give his left testicle to fall asleep as fast as I do! That isnt my problem...it is staying asleep! Maybe I need to go to bed a little later also instead of hitting the sack a the 8p hiker midnight.

Great input as usual folks!!!!
I guess if worse comes to worse. I can always hit myself in the head with rocks and knock myself out. Rocks are free!

ASUGrad
04-07-2009, 10:20
I have a Coleman self-inflating pad. I added a blue foam pad from Walmart to it. I think one more blue foam pad will be the ticket. It is a small enough package to strap to my internal frame pack. That will keep my contact with the ground to a minimum.

buz
04-07-2009, 10:45
IMO, any TR 1.5" thick or less is too thin for dedicated side sleeper like myself. Cheap way out is to buy and try shortie closed cell pad as noted, this may do the trick. I have 2" thck TR LE model no longer made, great but heavy pad, have rolled over to the BA model, very nice as long as temp is over 30 degrees. below that, needs help for me to stay warm.

Cannibal
04-07-2009, 11:19
JRB Bear Mountain Bridge Hammock or the Warbonnet BlackBird. Both allow for comfortable side sleeping....and no sore hips.

skinewmexico
04-07-2009, 14:54
POE Ether Thermo 6 works great for me. Everyone who doesn't hammock eventually ends up with a 2.5" air mattress.

Kerosene
04-07-2009, 16:11
While I haven't yet converted to a hammock for temperatures below 60F, by far the best sleep I've ever gotten on the trail was when hanging. You don't experience the pressure points that force you to toss-and-turn, although you do have to be a lot more careful about compressing your insulation against the sides of the hammock (unless you upgrade to an under-quilt). I'm an active side-sleeper also, and the only time I have *ever* been able to sleep on my back was in a hammock, for many hours once I fell to sleep.

Turtlehiker
04-07-2009, 21:37
I think you will like the Aircore or whichever brand you pick. I am a side sleeper also and had the same problems that you do, flip flopping around all night. I got the aircore and slept like a baby just like at home.

Blissful
04-07-2009, 21:42
BA air core is great for side sleeping. And using a cocoon travel pillow. We are used to pillows, so it makes a difference in comfort and spine alignment. I took two pillows myself.

Also, sleep on the soft ground not on a hard shelter floor.

Jayboflavin04
04-09-2009, 22:46
OK. Pretty much have my mind made up on the BA insul air core......This is gonna be the most economical choice for me. Are the aircores as slippery as the thermarests? If they are, is can you recommend any way to get a little traction....seal grip, sil net type dots or what not?

ChinMusic
04-09-2009, 22:49
Are the aircores as slippery as the thermarests?
I have a slick-floored Lunar Solo and I do not find my BA Insulated Air Core moving around much, and I am an active sleeper. It seems to have a plenty tacky surface for its needs.

Nearly Normal
04-10-2009, 04:33
Bad back and trouble with my legs also.
I use a solo also and a prolite 4. A few drops of sealant on the floor and the prolite is a bit tacky anyway. The large/wide pad works much better for me and the bag straps keep it tied on.
A couple of shots of bourbon help too.

Oms
04-10-2009, 07:08
I used to use a 3/4 Thermarest and changed to a Big Agnus. While the padding was better I had a problem with being cold below 35*. In the morning I had trouble sitting up do to a stiff back. Using a silnylon tent the pad slipped a lot. Put strips of caulk on tent floor. While I made these changes I still didn't sleep great. Like you say, waking up all the time to shift around. I finally tried a hammock and now sleep by far much better. Don't even want to get up sometimes. Could never say that in a tent. I keep the tent in case my destination calls for it. Just part of the gear I have collected through the years.

Wags
04-10-2009, 13:32
BA insulated aircore is a nice choice - i've been warm down to 20 with mine, using a 20"x20" CCF pad that i always carry for a sit pad (i put that underneath the BA, right where my torso is). as far as side sleeping (outside of the other suggestions you've gotten) perhaps take your fleece or sweater or something and put it in between your knees. i find doing this takes some pressure off my ground hip