Friday, September 7, 2012

Product Review: Trekking Poles

 

After whining about my inability to hike without next-day hip soreness, I decided to invest in a pair of trekking poles.   I purchased a pair of REI Traverse Shocklight Women's Trekking Poles for $79.95; a week later they went on sale and the very nice lady at REI was happy to credit $20 to my account, which was a nice bonus.

I've been walking around in my "urban nature park" neighborhood for the past week or so using the poles and have found that I am not sore and can walk farther than without them.  I was skeptical because I really didn't think that poles would take enough weight off my hips and transfer it to my upper body, but they seem to do so enough to make walking more pleasant, whereas before it was something I tried to avoid.  They also help with balance -- I slipped on some gravel while going down a hill -- without the poles I would have landed on my butt but with them it was a non-event.

I recommend these for anyone post PAO or with knee problems or compromised balance.  They are very lightweight and collapse for traveling.  I will definitely take them with me on my upcoming trip to Spain.

Link to REI's Website

2 comments:

George A said...

My mother-in-law has used trekking poles for years and swears by them. I don't know the brand but I suspect she picked them up on one of her trips back home to Sweden. In the old country there are "clubs" full of people who go "trekking" with these poles. this phenom is probably a carry over from cross-country skiing, which of course is also big in the Nordic countries. Enjoy your new sticks while trekking through Spain!

Aubrey :) said...

Hi,

I was wondering if you accepted any guest posting regarding hip pain and hip replacement surgery on your site? I couldn’t manage to find your email on the site. If you could get a hold of me at ahayes@drugwatch.com, I would greatly appreciate it!

Thanks,
-Aubrey