Driving up Temescal Canyon, I saw my son’s soccer coach’s wife, Nancy Gillette, walking uphill through the grass with what appeared to be ski poles. Her movement was fluid and she looked like a cross-country skier only without the snow. Thinking she was probably an avid skier doing some sort of training, I didn’t give it another thought until Ed Lowe, our Graphics Department Manager offered to take members of the editorial department on a Nordic walk. Not quite sure what Nordic walking was, but being slightly bored with my current exercise routine, I agreed to accompany Associate Editor Alyson Sena and Publisher Roberta Donohue for an hour of exercise. We met Ed on the Via de las Olas bluffs one Sunday afternoon and were joined by Bernd Zimmermann, the founder and a master coach for the American Nordic Walking Association. Nordic walking is a combination of fitness walking and cross country skiing. It started in Finland in the early 20th Century as a summer training exercise for cross-country skiers. In 1997, the sport started to take off in Finland and rapidly spread through Europe where it has become so popular that regions of the continent like Engadin and St. Moritz offer Nordic Parks and destination adventures. In Kandersteg, Switzerland, the owner of the Hotel Victoria offers Nordic walking packages. The exercise trend has slowly made it’s way from overseas to the United States. After a brief history of how Bernd got hooked on Nordic walking (he saw people doing it in Europe in the 1990’s and recognized the potential health benefits), Zimmermann equipped us with poles. It’s important to have the correct length in order to get the maximum benefit for a workout. A general rule of thumb is that when gripping the pole and holding it in front of you, with the tip on the ground, your upper arm and lower arm form a 90-degree angle. Poles are made of aluminum or composite and can either be fixed length, or telescopic, meaning they can be adjusted for length allowing one to share the poles with people of different heights. On the tip there is a detachable rubber gripping claw which is made of the same material used in car tires. The poles range in cost from $100 to $225. Once we had poles, we did several warm-up exercises, which included stretching the back. The poles were planted an arm’s length in front of us and then we bent at the waist in a cat-like stretch. All of the stretches were done using the poles, which are particularly good for providing balance. They were also a great support when we did lunges. Zimmermann started us walking with the poles swinging easily as if we were simply walking. As we walked, he explained the benefits: on the average your heart rate is 10 to 15 percent higher, which means you can burn up to 400 calories per hour compared to normal walking which burns 280 calories per hour, you use 90 percent of your muscles as compared to 70 percent of your muscles with walking, it releases pain and muscle tension in the neck and shoulder region and the lateral mobility of the neck and spine increase significantly. Once we had walked awhile with the poles swinging, Zimmermann showed us the correct hand movement and pole placement. It took a bit to get into the rhythm, but once that was established it felt great. Later, I called Gillette to ask her how long she has been Nordic walking. It turns out Gillette, who is on the National Fitness Board, was contacted by the Finland Nordic Walking Association about two years ago. She was trained by them and is also a National Master Trainer. ‘You can tell someone the benefits of exercise, but unless it feels good and its fun, they won’t do it,’ she said. ‘Nordic Walking is fun; I like to do it. ‘It’s really rhythmic, it has a cradling motion and it puts you in a whole different state than just plain walking,’ Gillette said. ‘If you do the activity right, there’s rhythm and balance with lots of movement through the back.’ Gillette compares it to downhill skiing. ‘It’s also a great exercise for seniors because of the four balance points, so balance doesn’t become an issue.’ For people who like a vigorous work-out, Nordic walking can achieve it. My heart rate went up when we started an uphill rapid walk planting and releasing the poles. Zimmermann pointed out that many people have switched from jogging to Nordic walking because it doesn’t put stress on the joints. If you would like more information about Nordic walking, e-mail Nancy Gillette at nancygillete@yahoo.com or call Bernd Zimmermann at (310) 573-9000 or go to www.nordicwalkingonline.com.
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