I came across an article about a study that looked at the effect of Nordic walking on women with low bone mass.
Main point: “…short-term Nordic walking training induces positive changes in knee muscle strength and functional performance in women with low bone mass. This finding could be applied in clinical practice for intervention programs in women with osteopenia and osteoporosis.”
More about it:
- The study compared regular walkers and Nordic walkers, women with osteoporosis.
- Compared to regular walkers, Nordic walkers showed greater increases than regular walkers in these measured areas (increase is good):
- Skeletal muscle mass
- Skeletal muscle index (ratio of muscle in arms and legs to height – higher is better)
- Strength index of the knee extensor
- Functional mobility
- Functional performance
- Nordic walkers showed greater decreases than regular walkers than regular walkers in these measured areas (decrease is good):
- Body mass
- Body mass index
- Percent body fat
Takeaway: Nordic walkers showed positive changes in multiple health numbers, which showed Nordic walking is a mode of exercise worth taking up.