Nordic Walking Pole Buying Guide - How to Buy Nordic Walking Poles

• In choosing your own poles, check the parts, features, and characteristics. Poles should be lightweight but strong. A pole with higher carbon content is lighter, more expensive, and of higher quality. Aluminum-made, on the other hand, is also good for walking but is heavier and has less resilience. Composite poles or those made of carbon and fiber glass are also great and are less expensive.


• With regards to the grip, it can be plastic, soft rubber, cork or ergo-foam. Cork grips are advisable for sweaty hands while ergo-foam grips are specifically designed to be used in extreme weather conditions. In general, it is based on personal preference when it comes to grip type.


• Poles that have a fixed length are lighter and they usually swing better. Telescoping poles, on the other hand, usually have three sections that can adapt to your height as well as to the different types of terrain. Moreover, these can be packed down easily when not in use.


• Look for the different essential features attached to the poles. These include the wrist loop, a replaceable carbide tip, and basket. When choosing a pole, look for an adjustable wrist loop, which will help you switch the load off your hands onto your wrists. The carbide tip and the basket go together with the poles. A carbide tip must be durable and should grip on rock while the basket should prevent the pole from sinking into soft ground or mud.


• Buy the lightest poles that you can afford. Beginners are recommended to buy adjustable poles so that as you progress in the activity, you can just adjust the length, which is a way to give yourself a harder workout.