Backpacking sleeping pads for side sleepers

I am wondering what you guys use for backpacking sleeping pads/mattresses?  I am currently using an REI Trecker 1.75, I also have the Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol sleeping pad.  I have a sea to summit inflatable pillow.   My issue is I'm a side sleeper and I can not get a comfortable night sleep.  I have tried to train myself to be a back sleeper but I just can't get there. 

What do you side sleepers use to make sure you get a good night sleep on the trail?

Im thinking of upgrading to REI camp bed 2.5 or Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Ultra Sleeping Pad.  Anything else thats lower weight and thick enough to sleep on my side.  Also Im located in the deserts of SoCal if that helps at all.

I have a Big Agnes Q-Core SLX and it is DAMN comfortable for sleeping on my side. Only complaint is that i have rather wide shoulders and would prefer it to be an inch or two wider, but not a big deal.

It also weighs like 17 oz in long so its well worth it. 

Joe Leach wrote:

I have a Big Agnes Q-Core SLX and it is DAMN comfortable for sleeping on my side. Only complaint is that i have rather wide shoulders and would prefer it to be an inch or two wider, but not a big deal.

It also weighs like 17 oz in long so its well worth it. 

Yeah, I wish inflatable pads came wider than 20 inches, without having to buy a long one.

I side sleep at home but i converted to sleeping on my back when I'm climbing. I feel it helps me breath better at altitude, and it distributes my weight more evenly over the pad... So it's more comfortable. I place my pack under my knees to take all the pressure off my spine. 

The female Therma-rests have more padding than the male counterparts. 

I wonder if you can use jackets or other soft gears to reinforce some areas to make yourself more comfortable on your side.

FrankPS wrote:

Yeah, I wish inflatable pads came wider than 20 inches, without having to buy a long one.

https://www.nemoequipment.com/product/tensor/

The Nemo Tensor comes in regular wide. One of the few I have found that offer that size. I agree with you I wish more brands offered 25in width and not always long length.

DRusso wrote:

https://www.nemoequipment.com/product/tensor/

The Nemo Tensor comes in regular wide. One of the few I have found that offer that size. I agree with you I wish more brands offered 25in width and not always long length.

Thanks. Yeah, I'm looking for a wide in what used to be called "3/4 length." Short. They just aren't available, as far as I can tell.

FrankPS wrote:

Thanks. Yeah, I'm looking for a wide in what used to be called "3/4 length." Short. They just aren't available, as far as I can tell.

The Big agnes does come in a regular/wide, 25"x72", extra 4oz over the reg/reg.

I did think about upgrading... maybe when this one dies.

It does come in 40"x72", so you can cuddle while sleeping on your side ;)

FrankPS wrote:

Thanks. Yeah, I'm looking for a wide in what used to be called "3/4 length." Short. They just aren't available, as far as I can tell.

I'm not sure if you're willing to hack an expensive pad, but the NeoAirs are pretty easy to shorten and reseal with a typical household iron. How to videos are available on YouTube. I have a long (wide) Xlite I shortened, it's great. 

Big thing for side sleeping is a pad with horizontal baffles (going the width of the pad rather than the length). I have the Big Agnes Air Core pad, and it doesn't work well for sleeping on your side with baffles going the length of the pad because your body falls in between them.

I also normally sleep on my side. If there are trees around a hammock is more comfortable than a sleeping pad. I don't exactly sleep on my side in the hammock, I just find it more comfortable than being on the ground and generally get a great nights sleep. 

I found with a regular thermarest (prolite 4) I needed to put another mat on top, like a zlite, to get a good nights sleep when I was sleeping on it for many nights in a row.

I've had pretty good luck with the thermarest xtherm alone - it's 2.5". I only layer a closed cell mat on that for warmth reasons.

I find it impossible to sleep on my back, as convenient as it would be.

Daniel T wrote:

I am wondering what you guys use for backpacking sleeping pads/mattresses?  I am currently using an REI Trecker 1.75, I also have the Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol sleeping pad.  I have a sea to summit inflatable pillow.   My issue is I'm a side sleeper and I can not get a comfortable night sleep.  I have tried to train myself to be a back sleeper but I just can't get there. 

What do you side sleepers use to make sure you get a good night sleep on the trail?

Im thinking of upgrading to REI camp bed 2.5 or Big Agnes Insulated Air Core Ultra Sleeping Pad.  Anything else thats lower weight and thick enough to sleep on my side.  Also Im located in the deserts of SoCal if that helps at all.

Sorry for reviving, but I'd like to share my new setup.
I'm a side sleeper and have noticed that my hips always hurt after a night in my tent (and it could be really painful, since I'm using an orthopedic mattress - Lucid - at home because of my chronic pains). I also end up tossing and turning from side to side a lot to give my hips a break and therefore end up with very low quality of sleep. Bit the bullet and bought a thermarest xtherm as well, in part because I tend to camp in cold weather and the reviews for that were very good. I make mine very firm and put my pack under the head of the pad. So as for now I sleep very comfortably and wake with no sore hips.

Also, whichever inflatable pad you go with, just make sure that it has 2" of cushioning available, which should be sufficient to keep your hips from bottoming out. Also, after you inflate, lie down on the pad on your side and slowly release air until your hips are just above the ground.
That should give you sufficient support without overly much stiffness. 

Regina Davies wrote:

Sorry for reviving, but I'd like to share my new setup.
I'm a side sleeper and have noticed that my hips always hurt after a night in my tent (and it could be really painful, since I'm using an orthopedic mattress - Lucid - at home because of my chronic pains). I also end up tossing and turning from side to side a lot to give my hips a break and therefore end up with very low quality of sleep. Bit the bullet and bought a thermarest xtherm as well, in part because I tend to camp in cold weather and the reviews for that were very good. I make mine very firm and put my pack under the head of the pad. So as for now I sleep very comfortably and wake with no sore hips.

Also, whichever inflatable pad you go with, just make sure that it has 2" of cushioning available, which should be sufficient to keep your hips from bottoming out. Also, after you inflate, lie down on the pad on your side and slowly release air until your hips are just above the ground.
That should give you sufficient support without overly much stiffness. 

Just to add to your report, I use a therm-a-rest neoair xlite and it is incredible how warm and comfortable it is. One has to deflate it pretty extensively in order to bottom out while sleeping on the side

Regina Davies wrote:

I'm a side sleeper and have noticed that my hips always hurt after a night in my tent

You ever work on foam rolling & then stretching your hip flexors? What you describe sounds a little like what I experienced- mild bursitis- and the solution was not a thicker pad but rather loosening up the tight muscles & connective tissue which were constantly irritating the bursa.

Patrick Shyvers wrote:

You ever work on foam rolling & then stretching your hip flexors? What you describe sounds a little like what I experienced- mild bursitis- and the solution was not a thicker pad but rather loosening up the tight muscles & connective tissue which were constantly irritating the bursa.

Interesting - I've had mild bursitis in my hips.  Usually use a 2.8" exped synmat, getting the amount of air right has been key - too hard and it hurts, too soft and you touch ground.  Shoulder seasons usually mean more hours in bed though and that always ends up hurting.  I might try working on those muscles.  Any specific recommended exercises?

My routine is thorough foam roalling front/back/sides, figure 4 stretch, kneeling hamstring stretch, lunge stretch (torso upright, femur vertical, squeeze glutes & lean forward ever so slightly) clamshells w/band. Sometimes roll on a lacrosse ball on the side of the hip just below the illiac crest. My PT instructed me that it was critical to precede stretches with foam rolling or something similar, as it relaxed the muscles to accept the stretch & actually get results.

I used to live that struggle of trying to finesse the air in the pad, I know exactly what you're talking about. The other thing that used to really drive me batty was sitting in the car on road trips, over many hours I would build up this horrible ache on the outside of my hips.

For car camping: MondoKing 3D. I have this version: https://www.rei.com/product/896043/therm-a-rest-mondoking-3d-camp-mattress, there's a new one out. Foam + air, R-val of 14 or something ridiculous. Warmest, best outdoors sleep ever. I use a NeoAir XLite when backpacking.

For hammocks - try an underquilt instead of a bottom pad.

Does anyone else here know of a body pillow for backpacking? I feel like that would solve my side-sleeping discomfort issues entirely but all I've seen in terms of ultralight body pillows are a couple products on Amazon, which the reviews say are too small.  I'm going to give them a try but I feel like I need something that is more like the body pillow I use for side-sleeping at home...