A long hike can put a strain on your body. After all, you need your legs, core, and arms to hike long distances. If you hike for a full day, you will probably notice that your legs, especially your knees, might start to hurt, which is also true of your back.
However, having suitable clothing, footwear, and gear can help mitigate the strain your body experiences during the hike, and hiking poles are some of the best tools. In addition, hiking poles are not all that expensive and have many benefits.
This article looks at the benefits of hiking poles. You might think they’re for balance, which they are, but there is more to it than that.
The Benefits of Hiking Poles
As you’re about to find out, hiking poles have various benefits. This is true for your whole body.
1. They Provide Stability
This first point concerns anyone who gets tired easily, has a handicap, or is maybe older. If you are unstable on your legs but still want to hike, hiking poles can add stability. They provide two extra points to balance, so you have a backup if you slip or your legs get tired. In addition, hiking poles help keep you upright.
2. They Help With Balance on Rough Terrain
People hike to explore various terrains, such as wooded or mountainous areas. However, these areas have relatively rough terrains. As a result, you might stumble over rocks, roots in the ground, or uneven terrain.
Having the proper footwear helps, but there is still the potential for you to slip, trip, fall, or take a misstep and hurt your ankle or knee.
Therefore, hiking polls are very beneficial. You can use them for stability when stepping over or on top of uneven items and obstacles. Simply put, hiking poles can prevent you from falling on uneven and rough terrain.
3. They Help Protect Your Knees
One of the most significant issues many people have when hiking, especially on rough terrain, particularly when hiking downhill, is that the knees start to hurt. Your knees will take the brunt of the impact when Walking down a steep hill.
Even for people with perfectly healthy and functional knees, prolonged periods of this can have a negative impact. For example, your knees will start hurting after hiking downhill for a few hours.
Therefore, use hiking poles for your stability, and you can reduce the strain on your knees by using your arms and upper body to counter that stress. This can help keep your knees in good shape when hiking downhill.
4. Faster Downhill Hiking
Another benefit is that hiking poles help you travel downhill faster. This is because they help take the strain off your knees and provide better balance. When hiking downhill, it takes a lot of balance and effort not to fall face first.
It often requires you to use your back and upper body to counterbalance your downward momentum. However, if you use hiking poles, especially long ones, you can easily stabilize yourself. This enables you to travel downhill faster than you would be able to if you were not using them.
5. They Make Walking Uphill Easier
Moreover, hiking poles allow you to walk uphill faster and easier. When walking uphill, you usually bend forward and use the power from your legs and your back.
This can quickly cause fatigue and muscle pain. However, if you use hiking poles, you can use your arms and upper body to stabilize yourself and produce extra power.
This will help prevent you from getting tired as quickly, and it will also help you travel uphill faster than you could without hiking poles.
6. They Can Help Improve Your Posture
The next benefit of using hiking poles for hiking is that they will help improve your posture. The issue many hikers have is that they are usually hunched over for balance.
However, hiking poles allow you to balance, and because they use your upper body to move forward, they improve your posture. For example, when you use hiking poles, your back will be much straighter than when not using them.
This is beneficial for your back to prevent fatigue, and it also helps with breathing. Breathing and taking in enough oxygen are vital on a long hike. Your lungs don’t take in as much air if you’re hunched over as they would if standing upright.
Therefore, using hiking poles to stand more erect will help your breathing. Therefore, this helps to improve your overall endurance. Simply put, when you use hiking poles, you can breathe better and won’t get tired nearly as quickly.
7. They Strengthen Muscles and Give You A Full Body Workout
Another benefit of using hiking poles is that they provide a full-body workout. They decrease the strain on your legs, which is shifted to your upper body and arms.
You use your arms, neck, shoulders, and back for support whenever you use hiking poles.
This means that these muscles are also being trained and strengthened. Moreover, you’ll also be burning more calories because you’re getting a more intense full-body workout.
The Bottom Line
As you can see, hiking poles are great for many reasons, including the seven listed above.