My Dad is in his mid-70s, and has a whole slew of aches and pains due to a life spent doing hard manual labor (he owned and worked at a construction company). He’s still moderately active, and would like to be more active, but the aches and pains are definitely putting a hitch in what he can do.
I recently used his garage workshop to seal a wooden table I bought, and noticed afterwards that even though I had on pretty good shoes, I could definitely feel the effects of standing on a cement floor for a couple hours. My mother has said the same thing - he gets sore feet/legs/ankles from being in his garage so much.
He’s got a couple felt mat/rugs where he stands a lot, but they don’t seem to help much. He’s also tried various types of shoes. He’s somewhat limited with footwear as one of his ankles was fused a few years ago and that affects what he can comfortably wear.
Anyway, I was looking at GelPro Mats, and wondering if that might be a good solution. Obviously, we can’t cover the entire garage floor with these, but it might help a lot to put a couple of them in the places he stands a lot. But they’re not cheap, so I wanted to get some feedback on whether or not they work (or any alternate solutions.)
I got one for Christmas from my sister, for my kitchen.
I’m not thrilled. Yes, when I stood there cooking for hours and hours, my legs and feet did get fatigued. But using the GelPro mat causes my lower back to hurt instead, and I find that more uncomfortable. Personally, I would prefer a less squishy mat that would ease fatigue in legs/feet a little, without the extreme squishiness of the GelPro (which I think forces me into an unnatural standing position and puts extra pressure on my back).
Get him some Crocs instead. They are extremely comfortable from the start and they’re almost indestructible. You could think of them as portable Gelpro mats.
I have always liked working on the “restaurant” style floor mats with the holes in them. Non-slip and soft but not too soft. I have never used Gelpro so I can’t really compare.
Don’t get me wrong - I love my crocs - but they are absolutely not the answer for my Dad. First off, he’s in a cold garage. Secondly, Crocs have very little support compared to the the kinds of shoes he’s wearing now. Third, they are slippery, especially on concrete and other slick surfaces. He’s in his 70s, has a pronounced limp due to his frozen ankle and various other leg/knee problems, and is precarious even with really solid shoes on. I’d be scared to see him in crocs.
Hmm restaurant-style mats are an interesting idea, and cheaper than the GelPro. Given what Q.N. Jones said about the GelPros being mushy, I might give the restaurant ones a try.
We’ve got some in my kitchens. Overall I’m not a huge fan, and the main reason is that they’re usually over an inch thick. Which means you have to step up onto and then down off of them. More often than not I step too close to an edge and roll my ankle. And because they’re gel I never feel particularly stable when standing on them. Lastly I tend to trip over them.
I have gel inserts in my shoes which I feel does the same thing, cost less, and can be replaced. Having mats tends to cause me to stand still in one place longer and plant my feet. With out the mats I move more which alleviates/prevents a lot of back pain.
We’ve used these a lot too, since they work better in places where grease and liquid are spilled. Problem with these is they have a very pronounced edge, which again I tend to trip over. Not something I’d recommend for seniors with low toe clearance and reduced vision.
If the situation is that he’s standing at a workbench for long periods of time the mat will probably help. But in that case my mother-in-law bought of a couple of high stools she uses instead.
If it’s a work shop where he’s moving around a lot I wouldn’t recommend them. My 2 cents would be to get some interlocking rubber flooring like they use in kid’s play rooms. Prices vary but would allow you to cover more of the work area.
