Nordic walking
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Nordic walking, also known as ski walking, pole walking or fitness walking, is a form of exercise consisting of walking with poles similar to ski poles.
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[edit] Origin
Nordic walking is defined as fitness walking with specially designed poles. It evolved from an off-season ski-training activity known as ski walking, hill bounding or ski striding to become a way of exercising year-round. Ski walking and hill bounding with poles has been practiced for decades as dry land training for competitive Nordic skiers. Ski coaches in Finland saw the success of their world class cross country skiers who used ski poles in the summer for ski walking and hill bounding. They also saw how hikers with knee pain could walk with a hiking stick and eliminate that knee pain. And how backpackers complained that their backs hurt until they were given poles. The Finns developed special one-piece walking poles with rubber tips (for hard surfaces, such as pavement), durable metal tips (for trails, beaches, and snow & ice) and added comfortable fingerless glove-like straps. Today more than 10 million people world-wide fitness walk with specially designed poles as a regular form of exercise[citation needed].
[edit] Description
Nordic walking can be done year round in any climate, and anywhere one might otherwise walk without poles. It combines simplicity and accessibility of walking with simultaneous core and upper body conditioning similar to Nordic skiing. The result is a full body walking workout that can burn more significantly calories without a change in perceived exertion or having to walk faster, due to the incorporation of many large core, and other upper body muscles which comprise more than 90% of the body's total muscle mass and do work against resistance with each stride. 'Normal walking' utilizes only 70% of muscle mass with full impact on the joints of the legs and feet.
Nordic walking can be beneficial for those with knee and hip problems. Consult with your health care practicioner first.[citation needed]
Nordic Ski Walking produces up to a 46% increase in energy consumption compared to walking without poles.[1]
[edit] Benefits
Compared to regular walking, Nordic walking involves applying force to the poles with each stride. Nordic walkers use more of their entire body (with greater intensity) and receive fitness building stimulation not as present in normal walking for the chest, lats, triceps, biceps, shoulder, abdominals, spinal and other core muscles. This extra muscle involvement leads to enhancements over ordinary walking at equal paces such as:
- increased overall strength and endurance in the core muscles and the entire upper body
- significant increases in heart rate at a given pace
- greater ease in climbing hills
- burning more calories than in plain walking
- improved balance and stability with use of the poles
- significant un-weighting of hip, knee and ankle joints
[edit] Equipment
Nordic walking poles are shorter than those recommended for cross-country skiing. Poles of incorrect length may add stress to the walker's knees, hips and/or back, diminishing the benefits of walking with poles. One-piece poles custom-fit to an individual's height are lighter, safer and more durable than twist-locking adjustable length poles. Real Nordic Walking Poles utilize special Nordic Walking Straps - kind of like a fingerless glove, allowing power transmission through the strap and eliminating the need to uncomfortably grip the poles.
Unlike trekking poles, Nordic walking poles come with removable rubber tips for use on hard surfaces and hardened metal tips for trails, the beach, snow and ice. Most poles are made from lightweight aluminum, carbon fiber, or composite materials.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Cooper Institute, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sports, 2002
