this is disabled girls who lift. We are reclaiming what's rightfully ours. One podcast at a time it's mary beth Chloe and Marcia bringing you the thoughts and unpopular topics to get you out of that a bliss comfort zone. Hello everyone welcome to yet another episode of disabled girls who lift, We love you. Thank you to our podcast subscribers, our Patreon lovers, people commenting on our instagram that sometimes we forget about you guys are cool, you all are cool. Excuse me, this is Marsha speaking. I am coming in from florida on Seminole tribe land hanging out with the homie MB. What up mary Beth from California sitting on a lonely land in the North where it's currently 45 50°. The north remembers 30 degrees cooler than where you are, correct. As hard as shit but any whom, So we figured we'd bring it back a little bit and discuss adaptive tools again, it's been a while since we had a dedicated time speaking about them, so we'll bring them all back to the forefront and you know, there's some new stuff out there.

So there's lots of interesting things, but before we get to brands and stores and whatever. I would love to know what are your go to tools for lifting. Yeah, for me, z I see that for so many people, it changes so often because yeah, there are new things all the time, but I've been the boring old, same old, like I use, like I remember I went kayaking and for the first time I brought out my harbinger Harbinger hook, so it's what I use for dead lifting, um like, bench accessories and stuff, and it worked like crazy usually when I'm kayaking, you know, you're folding my elbow, my arm into the thing and just maneuvering it because it's the one long stick, but bringing the hook on it was like, I had the two hands, like this is amazing, just anything with a bar, I'm taking my harbinger hook, but I yeah, I use that same old thing, and then howling hooks was the other one I use, because it's the hook strapped to the strap with an additional um like I guess another strap which attaches to the bar, so that helps with overhead movements, like usa weightlifting stuff, which I'm still super terrified of, but it works.

I think that's super important thing that I had on one of our videos for olympic weightlifting is practicing fails even howland hook or the harbinger hook, because like, you know, it's still not gonna grip over 100 £200 overhead as well as a hand will um So just in case practice, like what will happen if you lose some momentum or your core um and you want to be surprised. Yeah, practice feeling backwards, whatever um safe options you have. Yeah, because in the moment you want to be able to just go to it and we're like, oh yes, what I do. Um but technically neither of those hooks are quote unquote adaptive or for disabled people or whatever. They're just standard exercise equipments that happened to work. Yeah, exactly. I mean, the Harbinger one is technically used for um I was gonna say curls, shrugs, like super heavy shrugs.

So the only people I had seen using them was like very large, very strong people um for additional grip, you know? So it's just grip support. So when I saw like chris rudin using it online, he's also missing a limb. Um like me, like, he used the same thing but taped like additional layers over it so that it kind of stays on. Whereas I just use chalk and I use whatever's left of my hand to kind of grip together with the hook. That's wild to me that it still stays on. So you never explore using the tacky, like, the Strongman way. Yeah, well, I use that for hooks that don't have like the rubber around it because if it's just like metal, it'll slip off, but on my hand itself, not really because it's like with sweat, it'll still like slip, you know, so the chalk kind of just helps with everything choc beats gravity like that.

The tacky could work for some people if chalk doesn't work, but it's also like an extra step because chalky could just go to the bathroom and soap and water tacky, you have to have another chemical and it's also not meant to be on your skin like that, so you have to have not sensitive skin. And then to remove it, you need another chemical to put on your skin. You need to wet it with water first. No, you get like google or something to get it to stick. No, no. So there's tacky sprays, you can just spray it on. There's tacky like goop. There's sprays, there's tacky towels, you can just touch the towel dab the towel, there's different things out there. But to remove it, you need like Guga. None. And I mean technically none of these things are meant for skin. So if you have sensitive skin, it's going to be a pass hard pass. Well, yeah. See and for me, since I don't have a wrist or like a hand that's larger than the wrist, you know, like I have to kind of grip onto, I have to grip onto it like physically with, with the muscle I have on my hand on my, you know, um you can't just let it like slide, you can't just let it, I don't know.

So do you get forum pain from using it or you get strong enough over time? Yeah, I get some form. Um but it's not like I'm doing it the entire time. It's like sets rest sets rest. So it's fine. But I think that type of equipment isn't super durable like long term. So you would have to get one kind of every year, once a year, 2020 to $30 for a pair and I only need one per hands or one. So it ends up lasting me. It's just like the threading will come off because you're using such heavy weight on it. Yeah, it's not really made for that heavy banging and clanging. Um but I think if the hooks are the harbinger hook, the howland hook is still not quite it for people. There's now there's other brands out there that are making grip aides like active hands. It's like a glove and then you velcro around.

So your hand is around the thing. Um I know, I think equip has a couple of grip aides and you know what? There was another one that we forgot about, what was the one that person to use. It was a strap around her back to dead lift. So she didn't even use the arm at all. Mm hmm. Yeah. I don't know if she just made that because a lot of people I know who have like longer extremity, you know, like amputations. Yeah, exactly. It's not it's not the hand that it's not a handgrip issue. It's not a missing hand. It's the arm arm. So you can't really connect it around. I think it was a brand. So we'll have to ask because it was whatever gym she was at and they had it. So I went around her back, she would set it up to the bar and then pretty much just not even use the hand. Yeah. And it's gonna give you enough shoulder support because you're not hurting that shoulder? You know? Yeah, I think for all of these things there's definitely gonna be a level of humility of like don't just throw weight on like keep it light, figure out how it feels.

Practice the fails like you said, and then go from there because if you just go balls out like oh my gosh, I could hold this bar now like yeah, I'm gonna make it. But what's cool about like recognizing that these things exist is helping with like stability. You know, like for such a long time I did it with the hand that worked only. So I did one when I'm dead lifts as opposed to two. So more bilateral movements was just way better for my whole body long term. So whatever, whatever the heck you can find. Yeah, whatever you could find. I mean it is there is definitely a lot of ingenuity in the trial and error because this might work for you and it might not work for somebody else. But so those, you know those tr expands that people kind of that's kind of what I'm imagining for a lot of the folks that use bands. Oh the over the shoulder. Yeah, it looked like the same material, the same kind of material.

It really did look like the same thing, but it was meant to go around the bar. So I don't remember what the bar attachment part looked like. But yeah, it was about the same idea. And so what do you use? Has that changed since your last competition? Um, Not really. I mean, I'm still heavy on the compression socks every time. I'm not as heavy on. I don't need to like do abdominal binder much as much. Um and I can't really tell you why my dizziness has gotten better, but it has. So, I'm good with just compression socks. I still mess with the salt tablets every once in a while, like in the moment, if I'm feeling pretty dizzy and I know it's not because I know I ate enough. I know I drink enough. I'll take the salt tablet, but for whatever reason, I don't really need the binder anymore. So, I wasn't using the medical abdominal binder. I was using a strongman equipment. The strongman soft belts though, They just call it a soft belt. Like re band makes them. But if you look at it, it's an abdominal binder. Yeah.

And that's so that you can feel your core more same with your, your socks, your ankles, your feet. No, that's not for feeling. That's for circulation. So, the compression socks is for the circulation from the feet. That like my blood don't the blood flow is not flowing. It ain't going. So that's what the compression socks are for. And an abdominal binder is just the similar situation. So, and I know of that as that used because I'm a physical therapist, right? So, I know like when I was in the hospital or when I was treating Euro folks, we had the spinal cord injuries, especially the new ones that weren't used to being upright, wearing abdominal binders and compression socks, because that kind of just helps you with dizziness. Now, add weight on top of that lifting weight over your head. Yeah, so it's like, you have to teach your body with external things like, hey, this is where the blood goes, all right, we're moving now. Yeah. So if people don't like the feel of a medical abdominal binders, then the soft belt is what you're gonna look for.

Re band makes them they're very comfortable because the medical ones like, shitty materials, like, it's white, so it's gonna grimy and gross. It's not it doesn't look cool. So for that one, I would go with a soft belt. Strong if you look up strongman soft belts, then you're going to look at it and be like, this is a binder. Yeah, that's all this is. I think I've seen them for like, olympic weightlifting too, because they're not like, the, you know, power power belts, I know what you're talking about, but not different. So that is literally, it's literally like a belt and it's soft, what you're talking about, Like, it's a thin piece of belt, Like, it's thin, like, maybe it's three inches, whatever you call this wide, whatever Now, the one I'm talking about for a strong man, like it's like from your rib down to your freaking pubes, like, and then they put that on, wrap it tight and then then they'll put a belt on top of it. That's the Strongman way.

Yeah. Yeah, exactly, exactly. That's an abdominal binder to, But you gotta be careful with those though, there's people wearing those all day. That's something else. That's something else that you gotta be careful with those. You're gonna mess with your organs, your pelvic floor, that's a public service announcement. Be careful, be careful. Um So yeah, that, and then I still have to worry about temperature that hasn't gone anywhere, still got to worry about temperature and although my dizziness has gotten better, the sun exposure has gotten worse. So I don't work out under the sun. Um Like the way that I used to do strongman competitions just out on the floor of the sun. Like I was going to say, that's an issue for competition. So I don't see that being possible. That used to make me just generally like, oh, I'm so tired, but now I'm like, that's impossible. It's not happening florida, jesus, It's not, yeah, every summer is a record breaking highs every year like that, so you always got your a C on or you have a large fan in your garage gym.

Yeah, and I work out, I'm not a morning person, so it's not gonna be in the morning so that I work out when the sun is setting. Mhm. Pretty much it doesn't make that much of a difference when you're in florida. But um that like noon to four is the hottest time of the day. So I will not be working out at that time of the day. I don't see how Anyone trains like between 12 or one p. M. I don't work out here in crosswords, their air is not conditioned, just sweating it up. Like wow, great work out how how I like when I'm sweating £200 off. No, but for safety reasons let's not. Yeah, so for me using tools is more so outside of the gym because for me using tools is about conserving my energy so that I can't do all the stupid bullshit of taking care of myself, all the stupid adult thing and then the fun things of exercising. Yeah, and sometimes you still got to go on with your day or you know, wake up the next day for work.

Yes, precisely. So for me using tools throughout my life is helping me also for lifting because I can conserve more energy. Um So like if I'm using a shower chair and a day I'm feeling kind of tired, I might sit down or use it for support or you know, I'm sitting, I'm laying on the couch with my wedge pillows so my freaking legs can pump some blood out or you know, I'm cooking in the kitchen and I have my slicer and whatever tools, so, or I sit down while I'm cooking. So these are all little things that I'm doing throughout the day, like, just like, all right, well, we save a little energy here, A little energy, their little energy here. It's time to lift. We're ready. We've got stools in the kitchen to like high enough for you to be able to cook. Well, I just take the bar, like the bar height chair from the island, move it over. Um Also changing the way that I cook. Like, I just use, you know, air fryer. I have no shame in using frozen veggies, stuff like that, buying things in bulk, cooking in bulk.

So yes, chopping pre chopped pre sliced stuff whenever you read a recipe and they're like prep 10 minutes. No, It's not 10 minutes. It's not 10 minutes from me recently saw this thing and I've been seeing it a lot more, I think in like cooking shows, but it's like this box, right? And it's got a bunch of blades on the inside. You put half of an onion in there and you just smash it down nice as it all. I'm like what? And it's as easy as just electric. You just, it's like a box and the blades are above and I guess you just put the onion or freaking celery or whatever, like underneath it and you just like press it down and it slices and dices all of it in one. Like I don't know how hard you have to push it because it looks like they slam it down. But yeah, I mean these mandolin slices that are like going, going hard on different variations because I know I've seen Ashley are a fitness or a fitness warrior.

I've seen her using one where she could like a mandolin slicer and she could cut potatoes and I was like, oh hold on. But for that mandoline slicer, is she like doing multiple movements and well she yeah, she's like pushing, pushing, pushing, pushing, but she's using like the palm of her hand to just push down on the thing and it's slice slice slice. Yeah. Um so I still want to get that, but that was like $70. I asked you for the link. I still want to get that because my little slicer cannot do potatoes. Yeah, because that's pretty hard. Or if you cut it in half or something. But I've seen one where it's just that that one push, I don't know how much it is. I'll have to look it up. Yeah, I have to look it up. Yeah. So you don't have anything specific in the kitchen or anything. You don't buy like those one handed knives or anything like that. No, for me, I mean literally, so I still have fingers on my left hand, you know, and they're like little dots.

It's always kind of scary when I'm chopping away, but I just I fold them in so that it's all hidden, you Know for for slicing I think, you know just that 25 years of practice just watching my mom. After a while I've learned like the safety and the ins and outs of the kitchen, I do have a little stool to reach places because if I can't like grab say a heavy jar with two hands, I just need to be taller in order to grab it with one, you know, so just safety all around and then jars. Like I have this thing that my aunt used to use um you know those silicone mats to open jars a little easier. Doesn't work as well because in order to open a jar or even like a can I'm holding whatever gadget like in my shoulder, in the nook of my elbow, I mean um And no it's just it's just hard and I cramp up half of the time.

So in that case I like phone a friend, call my husband and I know your limits is smart. Yeah, I do have this super easy like can opener now where um kind of opens it from the top, it's like you just said forget it. Yeah, but it's not automated, you know, it's not like battery powered. It's one of those things where you just put it on top and then it's just a lot easier when you're not having to hold it with two hands. Yeah. And then you flip the switch on top as opposed to the sides. Yeah. No, I'm a big fan of kitchen gadgets. Anything that could save me 5, 10 minutes is worth it. I even have like a grape tomato slicers. I have like the mandolin slicer. I got all the random knickknacks. What do you use for a grape tomato slicer? It's literally like a tube. Like you put, you just load the grape tomatoes and then, yeah. Yeah.

No, but if I have to sit there and chop freaking 30 great tomatoes, number one, I'm probably gonna cut myself. Yeah. Yeah, it's not gonna be good. It's gonna take me freaking 15 minutes. No. Well, and that's what I mean. It gets more dangerous too as it gets smaller. So. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And that kind of stuff like when it's nuts or you know, whatever it needs grinding, I throw it in the food processor for a few seconds. Yes, the food processor is helpful too, but like tomatoes because you can't throw that in the food processor. Yeah. Or when they're like, you know, finally diced scallions, I'm like, these things are not going to be fine. No One cuts like 2", the other like a quarter of an inch. Not happening. So yeah, that, that is also a reason why I personally don't follow many recipes or anything where I just buy like what can I put an air fryer, what vegetables can I put in the air fryer. All of these recipes have way too much prep and cutting and dicing and like steps, stand here, stand over there, put this on the stove, then go in the oven.

Yeah, when I realized how, how exhausting that actually was for me. And do you, are you someone who likes cooking by themselves or do you like a sous chef or you know somebody that helps um prep or whatever? Do you want to be in the kitchen by yourself? No, I don't care about being in the kitchen by myself, but I don't think I have the setup for a sous chef, I don't know those are not the people I have because the people I have do not like sous chef, so they wouldn't be mine, they wouldn't want to help me. Yeah, get your own kitchen, this is my kitchen now, so Yeah, no, it's okay. And it's funny too because I'm always in awe when I go to a restaurant and I see the servers, Oh my God, it's just mind blowing and incredible. I still watch them all the time, but somebody with two arms and two hands would see it differently, But the way that they're able to like hold 10 plates and bowls and cups All in one arm.

I used to do that and then another arm, like twice as much what we used to do that. Yeah I used to that I did waitressing and serving for like most of my teens in undergrad. The balancing hell no I would have I would have broke the entire freaking glass all of it, walking back and forth, going behind people in the kitchen and show dropped everything. No dude, You come to my house, you come to my house, there's no set that is complete. We have three wine glasses, we've got five plates, broke it all and washing the dishes like thank god I have a dishwasher in my house but you know the things that can't go in there, it's hard like the sponge has to be the perfect like it can't be too slippery or it'll come off my hand. But my cousin used to like tie it around my hand, the sponge so that it's like my arms a whole sponge and it became the sponge, you became it.

But yeah I hate it terminated but kitchen version. Broken glass. Yes hot mess express so yeah cutting down all the energy for everyday shit like cooking and cleaning. Um even cleaning like the way that I clean out which I didn't even really realize but Like my brother just got us a better vacuum. A cordless like powerful vacuum. It's great like just the act of having to do the cord, plug it in. Okay, unplug it. Move this alright, carry this big heavy and it's a heavy vacuum like just something like that. Made a huge difference like a vacuum in 10 minutes and be fine. Move on. Stupid. That just reminds me especially seeing such or imagining such a big vacuum is like the way that our parents or just generations above us like worked in their time and clean the house and cooked versus us. Some of them refused to use new technology. You know like I bought my mom a hand mixer that I mean not a hand mixer like a standing mixer.

The kitchenaid one for Mother's Day, she sent that ship back like like I got myself like I got a new standing mixer because what she uses is a freaking fork to what the hell that is so hard. Why are you living life this way? But some some older generations refused. Same with the vacuum and the big clunky hefty ass working. And honestly the small vacuum freaking has better suction than the bigger ones. So it's like the hell yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Even the mom, I bought a steam mop one step. Have anything that I can do in my life that I cut down the steps saves me energy. That's it. Okay. I need to know about the mop. What do you use from the mob because it's a steam mop. It's kind of like a swiffer but I don't have to keep buying ship because the mop does the mop brings the moisture, you put water in it and so you just add the solution to the mop itself and then some of them do solution.

The one I have is water only. It gets hot. It's like it's like hot water cleaning your floors. Yeah. Hot scalding water. Like it's like an iron. No soap, no soap. Mine is don't use soap. Some of them do. But that's easy. One step. I don't have to get the bucket, fill the water, walk to the back, it's the garage, drain it, rinse it in thing and then walk back and that's what that's 15 minutes saved right there. That's at least five spoons. Because mentally I already don't want to do it. So that that increase the cost. Yeah. I'm hoping generators at like large high schools are using these products to because that's all you imagine those big old mops and the big old, you know, obviously they need larger surface area. But yeah, now that stuff is wild. Um Yeah, but we're talking about this the other day is like how much you have to vacuum the house too because of our dogs. Exactly how much for and you might be allergic to fur. And yeah, the allergens. The dust.

Like vacuuming is pretty actually pretty important. So like I might not put my laundry away. But I do have to vacuum or else I won't be able to breathe later. So it's horrible. It's in your lungs. Yeah it sucks sucks. But but I know um One of the things that we have on the list could help some of these things on the list. Multiple things actually of brands that we know can help with day to day stuff. Because um again when you can save energy throughout your day for the dumb stuff that you've got more energy for the fun stuff like the T. Pole door closer is pretty cool. So somebody that's in a chair and you can't really figure out. Get through the chair, pull the door handle and do all that. Sh it like. No it's fine, spend $40 put that to people in the middle of your door. You're good. You don't have to waste 10 minutes trying to close the damn door. So all of those little things I think are pretty cool And or spend thousands on technology.

Yeah. Yeah spend how much money to fix the door replace these doors or you know fix doorways to make it easier. Like you could spend $40 on that. Or these people that make like three D. Printed holders or helps you like hold a cup, helps you open mugs or hold it for all of those things that if you could make things simpler. Yeah. That's probably my favorite wave to the way that people have used three D printers. Like okay. Like almost one out of every 15 households have a three D printer apparently. Or it looks like it okay. But a lot of people. Well you could go to your library so you don't have to have won the libraries, libraries have three D. Printers. No do they charge for each printed object? I don't know the mechanics of it. But I know I've seen that my library has it and classes to teach you how to use it and ship. Oh because that's expensive. So libraries have three D printers.

Yeah. No I love people using it for good though. Their powers for good. Yeah. I mean can you imagine if you if you are a disabled person you want to get in a workout but you wasted a fucking hour trying to finagle your cup and your forks like you're gonna be tired like that's a waste of energy mentally and physically. Like if you could cut that out with some tools that's great. And I feel like at least now everything is not stupid expensive and not really hard as hard to find. I mean there's still some products that are crazy expensive. That's why we're trying to find the right ones that are like more affordable like their name brand ones. You know because yeah I've seen. No but I mean so like previously pretty much if you wanted to get something that was an adaptive cup holder or you wanted to get something that you could work out and put a mat on your lap like those are things you have to get from like medical supplies. You know now you can just buy it from people that are making it.

Yeah that a lot of the times are disabled or to say that people actually have input on the products, used it on a daily basis. That's the difference. Yeah. So getting the medical stuff like that's not accessible. So that same guy that does the three D. Printed stuff, like did you see the medicine ball holder? That he, so like even for, he's a wheelchair user and even for like medicine ball exercises, like he can't necessarily hold the ball um in place, but the holder like keeps the ball stable and he still rotates his arms. Yeah, I did see that. It's kind of like a loop like it sits in the holder and salute that guy's abilities, but we're going to put a bunch of brands in the show notes by the way that that guy has a bunch of day to day stuff. Like I feel like he literally just lived his life and was like, what can I make for this? Because he has a bunch of pretty cool things. Well, I'm glad people are out there thinking about these things and making things because we need more than just re Cher's and toilet chairs.

Like that's all insurance has for you. Yeah. You're not going to get most of the stuff, you're not going to get adaptive spoons or insurance. You're not going to get any of the stuff for exercise. Hell no, you're not going to get it. You're not going to get adapted split jump ropes through your insurance. But you can get a shower, which you'll fight for by the way, they don't just hand it to you. Somebody has to do assessment. A therapist like me has to write the letter and justify it. Like there's not that much shit. You'll be getting that way. You'll get a shower chair, you get a reacher like there's, there's nothing that they would give you that's for sure. They don't care about your handling hooks. No, they're all out of pocket. You would get a reacher. That's about it. I wonder though, if we can like find a way or how many loopholes these companies have to find or get through in order to get them like H. S. A. Qualified, you know, so. Oh yeah. I think that's different. I think that's more leeway. Yeah. Like instead of it being fully covered by insurance, which it should be H.

S. A. Accounts at least let you spend money. Like, like medical money on these types of products like therapy. Yeah. I know I know a lot of them do gym or if you go to any wellness, like any wellness service, you know, like if you have a coach, personal trainer people use their, it's just safer. That. Yeah. Like cupping. I think I've seen people use it for. So why not use it for. Also adapted jump rope it's for maybe maybe I'll check that out. I don't have insurance like that. I don't I don't know the rules or what they require or how it works. Um because I know some people where they do a billing like they take like they'll pay you, they then they ask you for a bill and then they submit it and there's like a process. But then I know also other people who literally just have a card and it's like, yeah, I get $500 every year. So I don't know, interesting. It is it is very interesting.

But I definitely feel like this stuff should be, especially if you're getting stuff that's like toothpaste holders, cupholders. Because that's everyday stuff. What else did you um What else for me as a person? Um Also, vibration for me as a person is a thing. I need that. Where um So I have a vibration plate that I stand on. And I have one of those vibration guns. So that movement as a whole, like as a therapist, I think it's trash like I don't think a power lifter needs a thera gun. And like to use it in their warm up. Like that's stupid as sh it to me. But people with actual spasms. Uh muscle spasms, like muscle tone issues. Like not get toned for the beach. Like tone your brain tells your muscle how much to fire like and if it's telling it to fire too much vibration is great for that. So that's what I use it for. Oh damn. Standing on the vibration plate, it vibrates your whole body and that helps for shake.

It shakes the sense into your brain tells your brain shut the up, stop firing, shut the up. This is not normal. And then you're like, all right, I guess I'll chill for a little bit. Do you do it to prevent spasming or after you feel the spasm? Um So for me, it's a variable thing. There are some people that wake up every day and no matter what their biceps like trying to pull their hand to their shoulder every day, period constant. Um There's different types. And then there are people who, like, every time they transfer their legs kick out, there's different like, variations. But for me, my spasms are more like random charlie horses or like, you know, the muscle touching you get when you're dehydrated. Those are the two that I get. So I'll get the feeling of like a charley horse or I'll get much muscle twitching. The muscle twitching one is annoying. The Charley Horse one is obviously pretty painful. Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Some bull sheet. Were you able to get that vibration plate through insurance? No, hell no. Hell no, they don't care about that.

They don't care about that at all. So as somebody that does order equipment for people and insurance, I can tell you. Um It's it's they don't give a about that about pain management now. It's usually something that's like mobility or you could prove that it will prevent something. So they'll cover standards because you could prove okay if I use the standard every day, my legs won't be stuck bent and my bone density will be up. I'll have less versus fractions like they can't say no to that. But vibration plates kind of a stretch. We don't want you to feel comfortable. We just don't want you to ruin your legs. Yeah. The lines that they draw are very strange. Very very strange. Um But that could be an actually a tool for people, especially wheelchair users, is a standard. If you don't have one, get into it, you transfer in it, you sit in it and then you pump, pump, pump, pump pump and then you're standing up, helps you ship, helps you get strong bones, stretches you out. Maybe that'll help, maybe it'll help you with some spasms too and then you go work out later and your body is more chill.

Who knows interesting. So that that's something and if you have actual insurance they would cover it a standard. I haven't seen that in use. They're cool things. They're pretty cool things. But yeah that's it for what I personally use. Okay. What else? We got tech tech owl P. A. I think they're based in pencil pennsylvania. Um I don't even remember how we all got connected online but it's pretty cool how they just have like adaptive tool libraries in different areas in some states of the U. S. Where you can like pick up an adaptive tool they created for free, borrow it, return it and kind of just reuse and recycle. And I think they're creating just more and more things. Like the biggest one was a keyboard. I think you sent me The one handed keyboard.

Yeah the one handed keyboard. I was like it'll be interesting to unlearn what I've already learned from our standard keyboard and what squishing all the letters and numbers together. But I'm sure it'll be a lot helpful. The thing is I try to use my left arm still in like punching in one or two keys ought a million at a time. So I still want this arm moving. But that would be helpful for those who don't have, you know the other arm. Yeah that's true because everybody has a different level. But the tech owl is a great page I think to follow in general because they have a lot of high tech stuff like the one handed keyboard or um reading glasses, glasses to read aloud to you. And they show you all these options and they also have a lot of low tech stuff and their three D. Printing things or um you know they're making adaptive switches for kids to play with toys like I feel like it's a great page to just follow and just see how people are coming up with shit.

It's amazing and of all ages to you know. Yeah they're doing kids, they're doing older folks, they're doing everybody in between. They're doing, they're doing that big. They're awesome. Yeah. I think the biggest one is like involving like already made technology into how it could be assisted. Yes. Yes. But actually before I move on speaking of Tech L. P. A. They are I think actually collecting donations because every christmas they make, they take existing toys and then make it more adaptive for kids that can't really handle the toys but they can press a switch like they can press a button so they're doing that on their own. So if you've got the means or you know people that do share, follow them and share that kind of post to your story because they do need some monetary help to do that and we'll link all their pages to in the notes. But if you want to find them on instagram, it's tech T.

E. C. H. Owl P. A. Pennsylvania's assistive tech act program. I love that. Yeah, they're they're freaking awesome. But I think that's about it for tools. We got hooks, we got good old chuck and a little gumption. Yeah I can't believe you need google to remove that like dude strong stuff fucking mess bro. We're not, we are not doing things that are meant for humans, like your skin is left after applying some people rip offs and that's why some competitions even tell you what kind of tacky you can use because if you're using the goop stuff then it'll come off on the stones, then the next person is going to pull a stone to their face and it's like stuck on their cheek, ripping off their face happened to me before. So yeah, well see and that's the thing about for power lifting. They don't, they don't allow a tacky or anything like that. So you wouldn't, you wouldn't be allowed to do that anyway.

No, like even the tape that olympic lifters used to wrap around their fingers for hook grip, we can't use that in power lifting. Oh I didn't know that. I'm never eating whatever people do not need to be in positions of power because they rules for fun. That makes sense. Um and then another big thing that our friend kim keeps highlighting or recently highlighted on her instagram was like the apple vision accessibility on her iphone as a blind person or just vision assistance that she uses to record all her stories help assist her in crossfit exercises or just something as easy as like putting the right color shirt on that day, like your iphone apparently it just helps you with all that. Like the division Accessibility for voice over. Um I guess she uses the magnifier on it because what you're using is a camera to see those details.

I think so spoken content to tell you what color shirt you're using. I think so. You know it's freaking awesome. But I'm sure there are some, you know some lags or some issues with it. I wouldn't I'm sure but this other person that we follow has a lot of goes into a lot of the kim has a lot in terms of accessible stuff for lifting for sure. In addition to the Apple. Um I'm trying to remember her name, I think Stephanie maybe but she talks a lot about her name. Sounds Stephanie, I'm sorry but she talks a lot about how she uses a screen reader. Um The Apple products, apparently Apple like you said is is the ship, it is the way to go. But she uses the screen reader, the Apple products. Like she shows like everything that she uses and how she doesn't. So her page is pretty lit and I mean I used some of it because like there's I don't know my iphone because you know how to take a screenshot, you have to press a million different buttons.

You have to do all these things. Um I just downloaded this menu thing onto to my iphone, I just double click that little circle and then take a screenshot it'll screen record there's a lot of options. Yeah like her name is Stephanie might read the email for you. Things like that. Her name is Stephanie, I don't know why I didn't pop up instagram is so annoying. It's ph and I searched that but they don't like to show you people you actually follow. They want to show me some other random Stephanie. I don't care about this person, I don't follow them. I hate that so much Stephanie, Stephanie Renberg, R E N B E R G. She has Stargardt's disease and shares a lot of the apple products and how to use them. Like even tutorials to so if that's somebody that needs help with figuring that out, she's the bomb dot com. Yeah. Yeah. And that's also the cool thing.

I know we were talking smack about social media the other episode but that is the cool thing about social media is connecting through resources and accessibility. People discover things that we would have never known and they just share it to 200,000 people. Um Girl you muted, whoops anyways, whoops, sees Yeah, I don't know what I said. So moving on back to a regular regular so we we can add Stephanie and uh what's your name, kim I G s to the show notes. But yeah, in general, some of the pages that we know are check out, like we talked about t pull door closer equipped products has tons of workout ship, especially for seated athletes.

Blind folks people that have upper extremity like limb difference or no muscular stuff. Um active hands, you could find your gripping aids, your stuff for everyday shit, cooking, cleaning kitchen and bathroom ng. Um and there's mute sports, mute sports is just, they're all about jump ropes so they have different versions of adaptive jump ropes um abilities, has the three D. Printed everyday shit and exercise shit and then apple vision stuff which we can share the link and then two people that actually use it so you can see how they use it because we're not blind so obviously we cannot speak for the class. Yeah, yeah. Anything is possible. Anything is possible. There's tons of existing shit out there. You just have to like macgyver it. Yeah, which can be frustrating, especially if it breaks all the time, you know that I know that happens for me, even for a hook that exists and I pay for but share your stuff if you've been using it for years, you love it, share it with the world and share it with us.

I want to know. Yes, yes gaga. Oh we could post that easy question. See what happens? Why not? Yeah, that's all for now. It's a simple girl zone by fantastic job. Everyone thanks for listening to disabled girls who left. We appreciate all of your support and everyone who's taken the time to show us some love, don't forget to subscribe rate already. Review of our channel, we're on apple podcasts, Spotify player FM, google podcasts and more. You can also find us on instagram at disabled girls who left.