Do you love running and jogging but your joints can’t take the steady pounding anymore? Looking for an alternative? Look no further!

Nordic walking; walking with poles, is the hottest new trend in fitness and health circles in South Africa. It is a fun physical activity that guarantees a full body workout without all the stress and strain of pounding the pavement.

Never heard of it?

Nordic walking was developed as an off-season ski-training activity that skiers and backpackers used for decades, before it became a recognised sport. In its present form, Nordic walking and its health benefits are backed up by an extensive body of research.

Benefits

Nordic walking is a great, low-stress, total body, fitness workout that just about everybody can do.

The following health benefits have been noted:

    • It increases upper body muscle endurance and strength
    • It relieves back, shoulder and neck pain
    • It increases energy and kilojoule consumption and helps you keep your weight down
    • It increases heart rate and the supply of oxygen to the body
    • It is good for your joints because it is a low impact workout
    • It promotes mental alertness and wellbeing.

However, the abovementioned benefits are only attained when the proper technique of Nordic walking is applied, with the proper equipment

Technique

Pole walking is quite similar to rhythmic, vigorous walking with opposite arms and legs alternately swinging back and forth. The correct technique is a simple enhancement of normal arm swings when walking but with this difference: the poles must always point diagonally backwards and behind the body. When you move forward the hands are opened slightly to allow the poles to swing from the wrist straps. The range of movement of the arms will regulate the length of the stride; the longer the arm and pole thrust the longer the stride. If that sounds awfully easy; don’t be mistaken, it takes time and practise to achieve the correct rhythm and technique but it is worth learning to do it properly right from the start.

Equipment

Nordic walking poles are similar but much shorter than cross-country skiing poles. The length of the poles is important because poles of incorrect length will place stress on areas such as the knees, hips and back of the walker. When holding the poles in front of you with their tips touching the ground or floor, your arms should bend at about a 90 degree angle.

The poles have grips with special straps that make it easy to hold the poles but at the same time eliminate the need to grasp the poles tightly. The poles also have removable tips specially designed for different surfaces such as hard surfaces, snow and ice, walking on the beach or a nature trail.

Although specially designed shoes and walking gear is being marketed for Nordic walking, comfortable walking, running and trail running shoes all work great.

Go for it

As mentioned previously, adapting and learning the correct technique of Nordic walking is immensely important. Local sport shops and specialised online stores sell walking poles and other gear and instructional DVDs and videos are for sale, as well as many videos on the Internet that explain the correct technique.

You can consider a few lessons with a certified instructor. For example, the High Performance Centre of the University of Pretoria offers a comprehensive Nordic Walking Membership Programme that they claim “is the only Nordic walking technique (if done correctly) in South Africa that ensures its scientifically proven health benefits”.

 

Sources
Bumgardner, W. 2011. Nordic walking technique: how to walk with walking poles. Retrieved from: http://walking.about.com/cs/poles/a/nordicwalking
Nordic Walking. 2008. NordicWalkingOnline.com Retrieved from; http://nordicwalkingonline.com
Nordic Walking. Wikipedia. Retrieved from: http://en/wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic walking. On 13 September 2012
Opperman, M. 2007. Nordic Walking: a perfect way of motion for everyone. Retrieved from: Campus News Articles, University of Pretoria. Posted on 13 September 2012.