Walking With Sticks.

I wanted to make one more quick post before I hit the sack tonight.

I've recently decided that I need to start getting more active. I need to try and lose a little bit of the gut I've developed over the last few years. I don't like the idea of dieting, so I'm going to try to get more active. I've topped off at just about 235 pounds over the last several years...I don't get any bigger no matter what I eat. So I figure that my main problem is simply a lack of activity.

The kayak was one of the key elements in this getting more active. However, that's something that can't be done everyday due to the nature of the activity.

I have some boxing equipment set up in the basement, and I enjoy using it, but find that quite often it actually hurts my hands. I hurt one hand pretty good a while back and have backed off of the boxing for the time being. I'll get back into it shortly, however.

But the other thing that I've gotten interested in is an activity called "Nordic Walking," or "Walking with Sticks." Basically, it's a modified set of ski poles that you use to walk with. You hold them in a certain way so that you use them to provide some force when you are walking. When done correctly, it works out more of your body AND eliminates some of the stress caused on your ankles, hips, and knees by just normal walking.

I've tried it out a few times with some cheap poles I got at Meijer and I can say that it definitely feels different than walking. You can really feel your upper body getting more of a workout. The information I've found suggests that walking with sticks works out about 90% of the muscles in your body, and you can burn up to 40% more calories than walking alone.

I've been meaning to try to embed a video in the blog, so I will try to embed a video of me "walking with my sticks" sometime in the near future.