Add this to your walk for more health benefits

Nordic walking is a new form of fitness that has been taking Cape Cod by storm in recent months. The Cape Cod Nordic Walking Facebook group, started by Carla Fogaren, first stepped out on the trails in June 2022. Since then, the group has grown to over 2,800 members. Even though not all members are active, on an average day 40 to 50 members participate in various walks all over the Cape.

“The thing I like about Nordic walking is that it’s just adding one more thing to regular walking,” said Cape Cod Hospital physical therapist Kristen Siminski, MPT. “It’s fairly simple and it’s accessible. The poles aren’t crazy expensive. You can get some for $200 but I was just on Amazon today and I saw some for $40-$60. There are local places that sell them as well. True Nordic poles are the ones with the Nordic-style hand straps as opposed to trekking poles. The glove-like strap allows you to be more one with the pole because of the way you press down when you push off on the pole. Whether you have Nordic poles or trekking poles, though, just being outside and moving is what should be celebrated!”

Siminski is one of the local Nordic walking enthusiasts. She is currently a host, who has been trained and leads walks.

Siminski attended a formal training clinic based in Nova Scotia via zoom on April 15. After her training clinic, she is now a certified Nordic walking instructor and can train new Nordic enthusiasts.  

Instruction is Essential

Attendance at an instructional clinic is required to being able to join in on any of the Cape Cod Nordic Walking group’s walks. At the instructional clinic, participants learn how to adjust their poles to the correct height, how to hold the poles correctly to prevent injury and which end tips to use for each type of terrain including pavement, sand, gravel and forest.

They also learn the proper technique for Nordic walking. The easiest way to practice the technique is to walk while swinging your arms and dragging the poles. Once participants get the hang of the motion, walking while using the poles comes fairly naturally.

“The clinics are 60 minutes and they are an efficient use of time to really get you started on the journey, wherever it leads you, whether in a group or with other individuals,” Siminski said. “I helped out with one the other day. There was instructional time followed by a 30-minute walk, which I think helps make the skills more concrete.”

Her best advice: “Don’t overthink it. It’s like when I teach people to use a cane. A lot of times they ask what foot goes first. Just don’t think about it. Your body has a sense of what it needs to do.” After participants complete the instructional clinic, they are encouraged to join a first-time walk where their technique can continue to be developed.

More Health Benefits

As for the health benefits of Nordic walking, Siminski referred to an article published in Harvard Health Publishing that features cardiologist Aaron Baggish, MD, director of the Cardiovascular Performance Program at Massachusetts General Hospital Heart Center. Dr. Baggish enthusiastically endorses Nordic walking because it is a cardiovascular workout that also includes a vigorous muscle workout for shoulders, arms, core and legs.

When you walk without poles, you just activate muscles below the waist, Dr. Baggish said. When you walk with poles, you engage your upper body as well. That engages 80 to 90 percent of your muscles as opposed to just 50 percent. As a result, Nordic walking burns a lot more calories.

“As a physical therapist, one of the things I love about it is the increased stability,” Siminski said. “You have four points of contact as opposed to two – that’s huge. So that’s great for pain relief, off-loading pressure from knees, hips, ankles, and helping to distribute weight thru the arms and poles instead of the legs.”

Other benefits include improved posture, spine extension and activation of core muscles, which are so important for stability, especially as people age.

Emotional Health Improvements

Spending time outside is also good for our emotional and cognitive health and Siminski points out that there are more than 1,000 trails on Cape Cod and that’s not including the beaches. One of the other nice things about the walking group is that it offers an opportunity to explore different places on the Cape you might not be familiar with.

It also offers the opportunity to meet other people and develop new friendships.

“The other day we went on a sunset walk and that was really nice, just to be able to talk with and get to know different groups of people who I may not normally be able to chat with,” Siminski said.

Since Nordic walking is in fact a workout, Siminski recommends that people check with their doctor before starting, as you should with any new workout. If people are interested in joining the Cape Cod Nordic Walking group, beginners should also feel confident that they can walk a mile and a half. Each walk posted on the group’s Facebook page provides details like the length of the walk, the pace of the walk, terrain to expect and what tips to use on your Nordic poles.

Other safety tips Siminski recommends include:

• Wear proper clothing and footwear.
• Use sunscreen.
• Use bug spray to protect against ticks.
• Do a warm-up before each walk.
• Do a cool-down after each walk.
• Stay properly hydrated, even if that means wearing a waist pack with a water bottle holder.

Even though Nordic walking is a better workout than regular walking, it doesn’t actually feel like you are working harder, Siminski said. She noticed that was true when she was walking, so she did some research and found a study that compared oxygen consumption and energy expenditure of Nordic walking with regular walking. The study showed that participants increased their oxygen consumption, calorie expenditure and heart rate without significantly increasing perceived exertion.

“So, people think they are doing less than they actually are doing and that’s so nice,” she said.