How to use the trekking stick:

1. Adjust the length. While standing up straight with shoulders relaxed, the top of your trekking poles should be 2 to 3 inches below your armpit. Use a twisting motion to unlock and re-lock the intersecting portions on each pole to find the proper height.

2. Use your wrist straps. Insert your hand from underneath and keep a relaxed hold on the grip. Use your other hand to adjust the strap so that it is snug but not tight.

3. Preserve energy on flat terrain. Bend your arms at a 90-degree angle and maintain an upright posture. Walk normally, but as you place one foot in front of the other, extend the opposite arm and plant your pole.

4. Maximize your balance uphill. As you step forward with one leg, plant your pole with the opposite arm. If the terrain is exceptionally difficult, use the same leg as your pole plant side to give yourself added support.

5. Maintain stability on declines. As before, continue using the opposite hand and leg to achieve balance. To add stability, however, swing your pole further in front of you in order to compensate for steeply declining terrain.

6. Traverse comfortably. When hiking through hillsides, overcome the awkwardness by shortening the pole that is located on the side with an incline. If it’s more comfortable, you can also lengthen the other one to accommodate for the uneven terrain.

If you find adjusting your poles to be a hassle, have them customized according to your height. When planting the pole on flat terrain, it should be about the same distance ahead of your body as the opposite foot. For steeper inclines, it may be more comfortable to shorten the length of your trekking poles and then re-adjust them with the changing terrain. On a decline, you can alleviate pressure on your knees by leaning forward and allowing your poles to support some of your body weight. While hiking, use your poles creatively to push spider webs out of the way in front of you or, if necessary, for self defence.

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7.1 Pros [1]

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• Most obviously, poles reduce the impact of hiking on knee joints and leg muscles. Arm and shoulder muscles support and relieve the leg muscles. With the basic “hands above the heart” position necessitated by the poles, circulation is improved and heart rate is reduced. The “rhythm” created by walking with poles leads to relaxed, more regular breathing and increased stamina.

• A landmark study published by Dr. G. Neureuther in 1981 proved that use of “ski poles” while walking reduces the pressure strain on the opposite leg by approximately 20%. Furthermore, while walking on level ground, poles reduce the body weight carried by the legs by approximately 5 kg every step. Move to an incline, and that reduction increases to 8 kg. This translates into tons of weight for even a two hour hike.

• Jacquie Hunt, editor of a popular hiking newsletter, weighs in with additional health benefits: “An advantage that I found once I started using poles is that my hands no longer swell up when it is hot. Keeping your arms moving so the blood doesn’t pool in the hands is a lot safer than keeping hands high on pack straps and risking a smashed face if you trip.”

• Finally, poles help many people with balance issues. We all have different comfort levels when balancing along puncheons, crossing streams, etc.; for some hikers, trekking poles are worth their weight in gold. They can certainly aid when crossing soft ground, and can be indispensible for tasks like river crossings, and scree running.

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7.2 Cons [2]

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• First, using poles increases your total energy expenditure. Your arms were not designed to prop up your body, or to distribute weight. Even Peter Clinch, whose “Pete’s Pole Page” is long recognized as an on-line authority, says, “…if you have tired legs and knees then poles can be a win, but if you have a tired body, with your cardiovascular system at its limits, then poles may be more of a hindrance than a help.” Those “tons of weight” that poles save the knees aren’t carried up the hill by themselves. Many hikers with good legs are unaware that they actually may run out of gas more quickly by using poles.

• Not only do poles make hands and arms do what they aren’t designed to do, they prevent your hands from being hands! Open the map, eat a snack, wipe your brow, grab a rock, snap a photo, read a compass…all of these become clumsy and time consuming with poles in hand.

• The final “legitimate” con is that many people simply do not use poles correctly. Clinch says, “judging from the people I see in the UK using poles, the majority of folk get little or no benefit from them.” Without proper technique, poles are simply in the way.

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[1] http://www.slackpacker.com/trekking-poles.html

 

[2] http://www.slackpacker.com/trekking-poles.html