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My Ups & Downs. Walking with hip-dysplasia, differently-abled.

So picture this… I come back from a walk only to find that my FitBit has categorised half of it as ‘outdoor cycling’ and half of it as ‘sport’. This happens to me quite often, because where walking is concerned, I’m differently-abled. I was born with severe Developmental Dysplasia of the Hips (DDH for short). In plain English that means that my hip joints didn’t form properly before I was born. I can walk but it’s not something I do with ease or speed and definitely not with grace!

I’m writing this blog to share my own journey with my funny walk – in an open, vulnerable way. Being ‘different’ has been a positive and a negative in my life. It has definitely shaped who I am. My unusual hips are not ‘who’ I am - but they are part of my story. Where I go, they go and so does their impact. In 2019 I chose to walk 100 miles of the South Downs Way – to see how far I could take my different walk – and my blog. In 2021 due to covid lockdowns I'm going to turn my daily walks into a virtual Pennine Way and see if I can get to 268 miles in a year.

I hope you enjoy reading about it. You can also follow this blog on Facebook or Twitter by following @WalkingJill

Diff-ability & Me: when someone else says what’s in my head!

By Jill Pringle June 9, 2021 In fitting in, hip dysplasia, Personal 0 disability 0

Did you watch Alex Brooker: Disability and Me on BBC iPlayer? I caught it last weekend and I’m so glad that I did. I have rarely watched anything about disability that I could fully identify with.

Winter walks & wobbly hips

By Jill Pringle February 19, 2021February 22, 2021 In hip dysplasia, lockdown walking, virtual pennine way 0 No tags 0

So the good news is I’ve now completed 41 miles of my virtual Pennine Way challenge. If I’d been walking the real trail, I’d be in Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire by now.

The ‘Wonky Dog’. Yoga and hip dysplasia.

By Jill Pringle March 24, 2020 In fitting in, hip dysplasia, Lifestyle 0 exercise, hip dysplasia 0

So I got up this morning and decided that I was definitely going to seize up if I didn’t take action to get more exercise during the collective lockdown.

100 miles per year! My ups and downs with hip dysplasia

By Jill Pringle November 11, 2019January 7, 2021 In hip dysplasia, South Downs Way 0 alfriston, beachy head marathon 0

100 miles marker South Downs Way Jill Pringle

100 miles is a long way for anyone to walk. For me, with hip dysplasia, it feels like a very big achievement. Two weeks ago I completed the South Downs Way and in the end it took me 15 days of walking,