Equipment for Nordic Walking - poles
In previous posts, I wrote about technice Nordic Walking. How to move, for the benefit of our body. You can read about it here. Today I would like to guide you through the selection of the right equipment, which are poles and a few accessories.
Sticks how is it with them?
Nordic Walking poles consist of three main elements:
- Handle with a glove - it should be slim and hold well in the hand. The glove should be designed that way, keep the handle close to the index finger and thumb. Everything should be close together. Best, when the handle is made of cork wood, making, that the hand does not sweat. In addition, the material is pleasant to the touch.
- The right pole - this is the most important part. Because it determines the length of the entire stick. We have to choose it according to our height. They are fixed length or adjustable.
- The tip of the stick is called the tip. We can buy special anti-slip covers for it.
What length?
This is one of the most important questions. Some also ask whether it is better to buy an adjustable or a fixed height? If we buy a stick for ourselves, they will be better with a fixed height. They are less flawed and better. Whereas, if it is a gift for a friend and we do not know his height, it may be a better solution with regulation. However, for starters, it is better to buy with an adjustable length. That's what many instructors advise, and I agree. Once we have experience, we can get a stick with a fixed length.
There are many ways to calculate a good pole length. For beginners, however, I advise you to use it from the formula 0,67 times height in centimeters. However, for advanced people we will use 0,7 times our height.
For example, if we have 1,78 m then we perform the action: 0,67*178=119cm (for beginners) the 0.7*178=125 (for advanced people).
What material to choose poles from?
Most poles are made of aluminum alloy, titanium, carbon fibers, and plastics (lower quality sticks). Now you should think, which one to choose. Something different for everyone here. The carbon fiber ones are the lightest, which is not a good choice. Aluminum would be good, but they are not durable and can break during exercise. That would be a shot in the knee. So what to do in such a situation? It is best to choose a combination of carbon fibers and aluminum. Thanks to this, we will have good strength and weight.
The end of the poles.
The sticks are finished with a metal tip. It does not guarantee the best grip, therefore, I advise you to equip yourself with special rubber pads. There are different types we have to define ourselves, what terrain are we going to walk on?. Winter is coming, that's why I advise you to get rubber overlays with spikes, that won't slip in the snow.
Another addition may be a pedometer, or a better solution would be a phone app, which will replace it. So we can see, what route we took. Feel free to comment and share your own experiences.