Get your paws off!

When I travel around teaching Nordic Walking, I am always surprised by how many people say they never take their paws off their poles, even when they are walking off road. Does this matter? Why is it important that you should always be using the most appropriate tip or paw for the surface you are nordic walking on?

Many of the benefits of Nordic Walking come from the active push down and back through the poles, and the ability to keep pushing back until the arm has extended fully behind the hip. To be able to achieve this you need really good purchase of the tip of the pole on the ground. 

Off road this is best achieved with the metal spike tip of the pole. The tip works great on grass, cinder paths, woodland trails, beaches, in fact almost any surface even gravel. The small surface area and sharpness of the tip means it will bed into the path you are walking on and hold firm. This gives you a solid base to push back against with no slipping.

Some people worry they will damage the spike tip on anything other than grass. I promise you will not! The tips are made from tungsten carbide, a metal so tough that it is cut using a diamond tipped drill bit. They don't wear down or blunt with use. On rare occasions the glue that holds them in place may fail and the tip may drop out, giving the impression that you have worn it away, you haven't! The only real disadvantage to the spike tip on harder surfaces is the noise and possibly a little extra vibration.

On a tarmac, concrete road or pavement using your paw or asphalt pad is the best option. The paw has an angled end, looking a bit like a boot, so that there is plenty of surface area in contact with the ground to help create traction. When you push strongly through the pole the pad should hold firm on the ground. If the angle of your pole is not quite right, or if you don't plant and push confidently, then the paw will slip. Paws also slip when they are worn out. Just like a car tyre, don't keep using them when they have no tread left and they are smoother than polished marble! If you are wearing paws out a lot then you may need to revisit your technique and tweak it. Dragging the poles will wear paws out, as will them constantly slipping when you plant and push back. Improving your technique should resolve bot of these problems.

The best terrain to perfect your Nordic Walking technique on is paws off on grass. You will be able to get a strong push back with no fear of slipping, this means your pole will rebound and swing forward easily and you will feel that moment of flight before planting the spike tip once more. Walking on grass or other off road surfaces with your paws on will not give your arms and upper body a good workout as the pole tips will just slip and slide.

There are some great spike tip innovations on the market like the Exel hinged paw called the All Terrain Tip and their suspension tip; the Gabel double spike tip and Leki's silent spikes. All designed to give you more options on different surfaces. Unfortunately most paws and tips are not interchangeable between brands, so make sure you fit the right spare part to your pole.

So to get the most from your Nordic Walking off road.... get your paws off! Or to put it another way... get your tips out! :)

Karen Ingram is an INWA International Trainer and has Nordic Walked for over 18 years. She co-founded Nordic Walk Store in 2008.