Yes, it’s true, I’ve turned to the dark side
I’ve long held a view that, for most walkers, poles are one of those accessories that we simply don’t need. Folks say they can go faster, that it helps spread the load on their knees/legs, helps with balance and a myriad other reasons that justify the fact they use them. I’ve never subscribed to that for most of us, though have always accepted that for some with medical or other conditions poles may be useful.
I’ve argued that your body only stores so much energy, so when you start using poles you don’t gain any extra, just use it differently. Sure, you may think you’re moving faster, and even may be doing so, although I’ll return to that later, but if true you’ll also run out of energy more quickly. As an example, and to keep my thoughts simple, someone moving at 5mph as they are using poles may only be able to keep going for 4 hours, someone without may only manage 4 mph but will keep going for 5 hours, so distance travelled would be the same.
Also, if poles do indeed reduce the strain on your legs/knees, your muscles/tendons/ligaments won’t (because they don’t need to and aren’t pushed to do so) be as strong as someone who doesn’t use poles. The stronger your muscles etc are the better the joint can resist forces that might cause injury, so those using poles are more likely to injure hip/knee/ankle joints.
Plus of course, although they don’t weigh that much, you’re still carrying extra weight …
So, why have I now bought some poles? I have a mad wish to do next year’s Spine Challenger, having been on the safety team for the Spine Race this year and having dot watched for many years before that (thanks Dave aka Slogger!). I’ve been reading various blogs and one thing sticks out, it seems you need poles to cope with the myriad of conditions you may have to face. Well ok, in that case I’ll get some and see if they do make a difference I thought, especially as one blog recommended a rather cheap pair of poles, that I got for £18.95, so a relatively cheap experiment. It would also allow me to practice IF I end up being mad enough to enter the Challenger.
I’ve now used the poles for a few months, and the jury is still out. The caveat is that they’ve only been used in walks over the South Downs, so they won’t get a proper work out until my C2C towards the end of June. Here, for those still awake, are my initial findings.
Uphill speed. I certainly feel I’m moving faster, only problem appears to me that when I crest the top I then seem to move slower than I’m used to. There are numerous reasons why this could be so, but see my comment below on overall speed.
Downhill speed. If anything this feels slower, but I have to admit it does also feel as though my knees take less of a pounding (although I’ve not sure that’s a good thing for the reasons I described above).
Speed through mud (and I suspect therefore any similar slippery surface) is definitely faster, and stops the two steps forwards, one step backwards feeling.
Balance. As I’ve aged I’ve certainly noticed my balance isn’t as good as it used to be, no longer can I bound down scree slopes digging in my heels as I go
Here the poles definitely help. They’ve not really been tested but I’ve had to step over a couple of fallen trees blocking paths recently, and felt more secure doing this than normal. I wait to see if they’ll help the same way on the C2C.
Overall speed. Here it gets interesting in my view. My general walking speed carrying a 12kg pack across the South Downs is 3.5/3.6 mph. Before anyone says crikey, how come you’re carrying 12 kg, it’s simply to help keep my fitness levels up, and on a day walk it’s mainly bottles full of water. I’ve used poles on routes I know well and walk often, and have an accurate idea of how fast (or slow) I can walk them.
Poles make absolutely no difference to my overall speed or time. My only conclusion at this stage therefore is that while I feel at times that I’m moving faster overall I’m not, so either that ‘feeling’ is wrong or going faster at some parts of the walk means I’m slower in other parts.
So, as I said earlier, the jury is still out. More on this epic tale when I return from the C2C