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Imbalance problems


Regina Fogelman

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Hi my name is Gina and I think you are a fast learner as I am on my second day and am still going up and down my hall. I do not have lots of chances to practice but I am determined. Here is my question I have tried to Google it and get no where, and if I would have thought of it ahead of time I would have purchased the 2 wheeler. I grew up on motorcycles and rode unicycles as a kid the balance is there or it was lol, but I was not always careful and my husband will no longer allow me to have a bike. So this was sort of the second best in a way.to go that sounded like fun. I am 53 and have had back fusion from T5-S1 ( that is like 1/2 of my back so no turning or twisting for me )and I also have a left fused ankle. Well here's the problems. Do to the left ankle fusion it does not appear that I can push forward on the left pedal and if I can I am going very slowly which just makes me loose my balance as I have been lucky and have not done more then smack into walls because I cant afford to fall. so I am looking for any ideas I would like to note I have no problems going backwards for some reason and I seem to do that well, but who want to go backwards all the time. Any thought would be greatly helpful.

Gina

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42 minutes ago, Regina Fogelman said:

Hi my name is Gina and I think you are a fast learner as I am on my second day and am still going up and down my hall. I do not have lots of chances to practice but I am determined. Here is my question I have tried to Google it and get no where, and if I would have thought of it ahead of time I would have purchased the 2 wheeler. I grew up on motorcycles and rode unicycles as a kid the balance is there or it was lol, but I was not always careful and my husband will no longer allow me to have a bike. So this was sort of the second best in a way.to go that sounded like fun. I am 53 and have had back fusion from T5-S1 ( that is like 1/2 of my back so no turning or twisting for me )and I also have a left fused ankle. Well here's the problems. Do to the left ankle fusion it does not appear that I can push forward on the left pedal and if I can I am going very slowly which just makes me loose my balance as I have been lucky and have not done more then smack into walls because I cant afford to fall. so I am looking for any ideas I would like to note I have no problems going backwards for some reason and I seem to do that well, but who want to go backwards all the time. Any thought would be greatly helpful.

Gina

Hi! I believe you can still ride the EUC but you need to practice the leaning forward stance of your body instead of pushing your feet in front to move forward. You will also need to train your other foot which should be your dominant foot that has no fusion in the ankle to maneuver the unit with the help of your shins. You do not need both feet to push forward on the pedals. You will find a lot of videos with people riding the EUC on one foot alone. Don't give up yet for you might need a lot of practice to make it work. You made a wise choice of not buying the 2 wheel balance board which really requires both foot to maneuver the unit and is very dangerous. Good luck!

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The one thing that stands out to me is that you say you "can't afford to fall".

With this in mind I have to wonder if you should be on a wheel at all. Though most "falls" are simple step offs and more akin to recovering from a small trip it is almost inevitable that at some time you will have a fall and if you are nervous of that it becomes even more likely to happen.

Being relatively relaxed about falling results in a less damaging fall than being stiff and nervous about it.

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I agree with Gimlet on this one.  I have not really taken a bad fall on my EUC, but there have been times that I have had to run off it, twist my body to avoid falling, and banged up my ankles when the wheel gets out of balance starting off.  There is also, the inevitable bottom of your foot strain.  I am also 53, and I have beat up my body pretty well over the years, but I also do not have any fused bones or long term issues preventing me from hitting the dirt and brushing it off - oh, it might take a week or so to heal, but I am not dealing with old "war wounds."  

My suggestion is that you might want to really think about using the training wheels to get and keep your balance - most of us prefer NOT to use the training wheels, but in this case, it just might be the baby step you need to take to keep moving forward (pun intended).   Also if you do get outside, practice in an open field where the ground will be MUCH softer than the cement.  My first few days learning to ride were in an open field, and it was easier to step off onto grass than cement.  As I gained confidence and understood how the wheel reacts I moved over to the harder surfaces. 

Good luck on your EUC adventure!   Oh, and don't even consider the two-wheel "swegways,"  I bought one 6 weeks ago, took a bad spill backwards - bruised a few ribs, and sprained my wrist - I spent 3 weeks recovering and the 2-wheeler it hasn't seen the light of day since. AND I was wearing helmet and wrist protection!  

Good luck and ask lots of questions.

Cheers,

Jim

 

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Thanks all for your help and I understand about the falls as I have make many in the past and I will be in my hallway for a long time. I am in no hurry it just looked fun. When I go backward I hit both heels back and that seems to keep my balance backwards as I squeeze the unit with my legs and when i go forward my right foot activates the power so it does not seem to stay upward. I will work on using my body instead for forward motion.

Thanks all

Gina

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   I'm agreeing with everyone here, safety first.  I want to point out that not everyone learns quickly.  My daughter and a friend was up and running around the park in two days.  But myself and my eldest son took almost 2 weeks to get to the same point.   Everyone learns at different speeds.  Just keep at it(safely) and everything will come.

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Can you modify the ride mode on your EUC? If you cant really bend the ankle it might be helpful to set the ride mode to the stiffest, so the pedals always stay horizontal to the ground and you only need to apply very little pressure with your toes to get it moving forward.

And I agree two-wheelers are a nice toy for 20 minutes... the twin-wheel EUCs go into the same category, while you can use them in a room or flat area, the real world out there isnt good enough to have the full experience, since there are tilted areas all over where a twinwheel just will follow sideways where a single wheel isnt bothered at all.

Take it slow, as mentioned and with training and experience you should be able to work it even with a fused ankle. Maybe use a teensy bit more kneebending to accelerate. Make sure you dont bend your upper body forward though. Your Spine should always stay as upright as possible.

Good luck and no faceplants! ;)

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@Regina Fogelman I'm going to have to agree with Gimlet, maybe you should rethink riding this. I would first get enough safety gear. Helmet, good wrist guards, elbow and knee pads. Safety first! It is fun and addicting once you get the basics down. I originally got into this because of a mid foot injury which limited me walking long distances. This was the perfect fix. If you countinue, it's your choice of course, but what I hear, it's a very risky chance you are taking.

Good luck on whatever you choose...

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What about adding wheels on the footpegs? My generic EUC had a strange training wheel mount that let me put the training wheels on higher than they were supposed to be, I was driving around on the main wheel then dropped onto one of the training wheels at very low speeds. It was quite fun. I wouldn't risk it if you can't afford to fall, maybe in a few years designs will have changed to the point it's near impossible to fall.

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There's virtually nothing beyond a man's (women's) reach if he (she) has the right attitude.

If you're absolutely sure you wanna do this:
Try to move your fused ankle side's (left, weak side?) foot a bit more forward on the pedal, and lean in forward with whole body. Squeeze the wheel with the leggs as you'll risk wobbeling because of he unequal foot position.

Learn to do "stepping" with only the strongside foot on the pedal.

Be safe.

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I wouldn't recommend a EUC for someone with your injuries and you WILL fall once you get out in the real world with it.  It's all part of the game.  Like a skater once told me if you're gonna ride you GONNA fall.  Make sure you have good protective gear.  I've already twisted my ankle running off awkwardly once and jammed my wrist.  After a few months they're still not 100% yet but it's just too fun to quit. If you have spine surgery maybe buy one of those spine protectors made for motorcyclists.  Also wear some good shoes with good ankle support.  Good luck and safe riding.

http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/evs-sport-back-protector?utm_source=product&kwd=&gclid=CJ-Y-5fhw8kCFUZcfgodL9YJeg

 

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