How to Improve Your Nordic Walking Technique: 7 Exercises
Even after several months of practice, Nordic walking technique can always be refined. These 7 exercises, doable during your usual outings, target the most decisive technical points to gain efficiency and pleasure.
Exercise 1: walking without poles
Start every outing with 5 minutes of brisk walking without using the poles. This lets you concentrate on natural arm-leg coordination and the natural amplitude of your arms, which you will then reproduce with the poles.
Exercise 2: walking with a single pole
Hold one pole normally, the other vertically without using it. Concentrate on amplitude, plant and hand opening on one side at a time. Switch poles after 2 minutes.
Exercise 3: the double push
Plant both poles at the same time, arms stretched forwards, tips pointing back. Push simultaneously, open the hands and let the arms travel far back. This exercise develops awareness of amplitude and symmetrical push.
Exercise 4: exaggerating the hand opening
Over a 50-metre stretch, open your hands as wide as possible on every push. This stretches the forearms, frees the shoulders and anchors the release reflex, essential for good technique.
Exercise 5: counting your steps
Over a 100-metre stretch, count your steps. Repeat, trying to reduce the number of steps (thus lengthening the stride through better propulsion) without quickening the rhythm. The push on the poles should mechanically lengthen your step.
Exercise 6: walking on soft ground
Grass, the beach or wet sand force a more vertical plant and a more conscious push. This demanding terrain quickly reveals and corrects plant faults.
Exercise 7: uphill walking
A 5-8% slope naturally imposes a more forward plant and an active push. Climb the same hill 2 to 3 times, concentrating on the power of the arm push.
Key takeaway: Include 2 to 3 of these exercises in every outing. Single-pole walking and the double push are the two most effective exercises for quickly correcting the most common technical faults.