Big hands and wrists? No problem!

A video from York Nordic showing you how to expand the glove strap to fit larger hands and wrists. Many thanks to Lauren DeLong!


Types of Nordic walking poles

Here is what I have learned so far about types of Nordic walking poles. If you do an Internet search for Nordic walking poles, you will find many articles and videos to help you make your choice of poles.

 

You might check with Nordic walking associations in your country.

  • International Nordic Walking Federation (https://www.inwa-nordicwalking.com/contacts/contact-members/) has a list of associations that affiliate with them. The leaders, instructors, and members can share information with you. That might be the best way to identify the premium and moderately priced poles of good quality. Doing an Internet search of other Nordic associations/trainers in your country can lead to good advice.
  • I am affiliated with the American Nordic Walking Association (ANWA). That organization sells poles as well as provides training.

 

Having said that, popular poles are made by Leki and Exel (the link is Exel Poles UK).

  • There are other brands, but those were the first that came to mind and are somewhat premium priced.
  • In the US, I have used poles by York Nordic (US) and Nordixx (Canada), which are moderately priced.

 

There is also a form of Nordic walking that uses poles without gloves (Exerstrider, PacerPoles, and Urban Poling come to mind). 

  • I have not seen where they call it Nordic walking but appear to  have branding their methods by different names. 
  • That requires you to hold the poles throughout the entire motion. 
  • My personal preference is to use gloves so I can have what feels to me a fully natural and comfortable arm swing and also to release the poles on the backswing.

 

Your first choice may be to make sure you choose Nordic walking poles instead of trekking/hiking poles. Here is a video I found useful:


 

Then you'll want to decide between adjustable or fixed length poles. I preferred to use adjustable length poles because I found I would fine tune the length during a walk. Perhaps I will get to a point where I would buy a set of fixed length poles.

 

The features I look for in poles are:

  • Quick release gloves instead of the traditional gloves.
  • Snap locking rather than twist locking in adjustable poles.
  • The above features are personal preferences only and should not be seen as an evaluation of which one is better.

 

I'm sure all the companies make travel configurations. The difference I have noticed is in the number of sections.

  • The regular adjustable length poles have 2 sections, and the travel configurations have 3 sections to make a shorter profile when collapsed.
  • I have seen 2 kinds of travel poles:

 



Fixing your spine

An article provided information on the effects on people's spines from sitting too much when they work from home. 

Main question: "...why is it so hard to sit up straight and so easy to slouch?"

Key points:
  • "Posture generally refers to how you hold your body. Good posture, sometimes called 'neutral spine,' is thought to be the optimal position that puts the least amount of stress on your body as you stand, sit, or sleep."
  • "...periods of slouching can weaken those muscles [core muscles around abdomen, pelvis, back that facilitate good posture], and wrongly strengthen others, making it much harder to stand tall."
  • “Your body and your muscles are like clay: whatever position you hold them in, they will mold into.”
  • "It takes one to two months of being hyperconscious of posture to change your subconscious posture."

One of the hallmarks of Nordic walking is the requirement for good posture (neutral spine) because you have stand tall to walk with purpose.
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