Pole Power Walking
– Active Over 50 Magazine

As with any hobby or sport you love, you want to share it. In our case, we decided to share it with the very active residents of The Villages Golf & Country Club in south San Jose. This gated retirement community comes with golf courses, a country club, swimming pools, tennis courts, hiking trails, stables and some of the most scenic countryside in the South Bay.

It is a great place to walk and enjoy the outdoors just about any time of the year. Since we introduced our Pole Power Walking Clinics over nine months ago, more than 150 Village seniors have found a way to fit pole walking into their busy schedules.

Pole walking is a time-efficient, low-impact, total body workout anyone can do. Our program and technique is derived from Nordic Walking, a sport that began in Finland in the early 1900s to keep the Olympic Ski teams in shape during the off seasons.

In 1997, equipment advances made Nordic Walking a popular European fitness past time. In the U.S, it is a new sport and often draws snickers from spectators or snide remarks like “where’s the snow?”

What the onlookers don’t know is pole walking is a great workout that uses all the major muscles in the body. Recent studies by the Cooper Institute, Dallas, showed that Nordic walking increased oxygen consumption and calorie burn, and can be up to 46% more efficient than normal walking.

Walking with poles engages upper and lower body with less perceived exertion. An upright posture increases air flow to the lungs further enhancing the fitness value of the walk. The poles help with stability and balance while absorbing some of the load from lower joints so walkers with hip, knee or ankle damage can walk longer. Without pain or worry about balance and stability, pole walkers can enjoy the walk, sights and sounds of the outdoors.

For many of the residents at the Villages, it was Pole Walking to the rescue. Edith Olson, leader and organizer of The Pole Walkers walking club, has had hip surgery on both hips…Read Full PDF