A good Nordic walking session lasts between 1h30 and 2h:
1. Warm up!
“Remember to warm up from head to toe, not forgetting your fingers, by small flexions, rotations and pendulum movements”
Prepare your limbs for the effort by performing 10 repetitions per limb of the following exercises:
- Slowly turn your head right and left.
- Make small rotations with your ankles.
- Lift your leg up and swing it gently.
- Move your pelvis from side to side, then back and forth.
- Sticks planted in the ground, raise the knees.
- In the same way, bends of the legs, the back straight.
- Release then squeeze the handles of your poles.
- Make small circles with your shoulders, without moving your back.
- Sticks parallel to the floor, at your chest level, perform torso twists.
2. Walk!
The movement of Nordic walking resumes that of ordinary walking.
To have the right gesture:
- Reach out and grab the stick with your hand. Place the point on the ground by tilting the stick back.
- Bring the leg opposite to the arm, knee slightly bent. Put the heel on the floor first.
- Push on the stick until your arm is extended back. Open your hand.
- Push hard with the back leg and propel with the foot.
- Straighten the bust by tilting it slightly forward all the time. Open the chest.
- Straighten your head and look away.
- The opposite stick and foot land on the ground at the same time.
- The poles remain tilted back. Plant the stick on the back of your front foot. Push when it touches.
- Gradually enlarge your steps.
Mistakes to avoid:
- Too straight a posture pushes the body up and back, not forward.
- If the stick is stuck too far in front of the body, it slows down the advance instead of helping it.
- If the front knee straightens, the leg no longer performs its role of pulling forward.
- If the rear arm does not push enough and if the hand remains tight on the stick, a lot of propulsive force is lost. • Too small steps do not propel enough.
3. Stretch!
Remember to stretch well, gently, after your session.
For further :
Book + DVD “Nordic walk” by Jalkanen-Meyer.
