The physiological responses to walking with and without Power Poles on treadmill exercise
Abstract
Power poles are specially constructed, rubber-tipped ski
poles designed for use during walking. The user simulates
the arm motion of cross-country skiing while walking, thus
increasing the muscle mass used during exercise. This study
investigated the potential increases in exercise intensity
and energy cost associated with the use of the walking
poles. Thirty-two healthy subjects (M = 16: age = 23.3
yrs, ht = 69.8 in, w t = 172.1 lb, V02max = 58.9 ml/kg/min; F
= 16: age = 23.9 yrs, ht = 66.1 in, wt = 140.3 lbs, V0,max =
49.5 ml/kg/min) completed a treadmill V02max test and two
randomly assigned, submaximal walking trials (no poles, with
poles) on separate days. Each submaximal walking trial was
conducted on a level treadmill, for 20 min, at the same
self-selected pace (M: x = 4.27 mph; range = 3.98 - 4.80; F:
x = 3 -77 mph, range = 3.00 - 4.48) . VO, (ml/kg/zin) , HR
(bpm), and RPE were recorded each min.
There were no differences in the responses between males and
females, thus data were collapsed across gender. It was
found that the use of Power poles significantly (p c .05)
increased VO,, HR, and Kcal/min by approximately 20%
compared to walking without poles. There were significant
(p > .05) differences in calculated oxygen pulse values
(mlO,/beat) between conditions, indicating that the changes
were apparently due to the increased muscle mass involved in
the exercise and not due to a pressor response mechanism.
It is concluded that the use of Power poles can increase
the intensity of walking at a given speed, and thus may
provide additional training benefits to walkers.
Subject
Walking - Physiological aspects
Treadmill exercise tests
Power Poles