First posted: 10 May 2024

Feedback helps everyone

Julia Cater
Julia Cater with her "before" technique.
Note how subtle the asymmetry is.

I went to a new physio to treat the regular issue of pain in my lower back left hand side, and mentioned excruciating pain in my left toes during peals. I showed her a video of me ringing a biggish bell.

She said, "You don't bend your knees evenly and your left knee collapses in slightly meaning you roll inwards on your left foot".

To my horror, she was right. So, in a recent peal, I was very conscious about my feet position and how I bent my knees. I placed my feet evenly to the front of the box, not right in front of left. But most importantly, I tried to bend with my knees absolutely in parallel, keeping my left knee over my left foot, and checked them every few leads. And... I didn't get the pain in my foot.

Lesson learned: no matter how long you have been ringing, your technique can always be improved. And a great place to start is with someone else observing you, even a non-ringer!

Julia Cater
9 May 2024

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