Study: Nordic walking is best for the heart

It turns out that the physical activity that gets your heart pumping the best way is Nordic walking, not running or interval training, as you might think.

Nordic walking is a low-intensity form of exercise for the whole body that can be performed at different intensities. When Nordic walking, which originally comes from Finland, you are walking with poles that move in the opposite direction to the movements of the legs, that is, the right arm is raised at the same time as the left foot.

The report shows that people with cardiovascular disease who participated in Nordic walking had a greater increase in their function, or ability to perform daily activities, compared to those who consistently trained at moderate to vigorous levels or performed high-intensity interval training. New study.

The Super Benefits of Nordic Walking

There are few studies that have investigated the effect of Nordic walking on cardiac rehabilitation patients, but other forms of exercise, such as high-intensity interval training, have been studied extensively, says the study’s lead author. Jennifer Reedchair of the Department of Exercise Physiology and Cardiovascular Health at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute in Canada.

“Our research, which demonstrates the superior benefits of Nordic walking on functional ability, highlights an alternative exercise option that requires the least cost and equipment to improve physical and mental health,” she says. CNN.

Exercises up to 90% of the muscles

When Nordic Walking is performed correctly, according to the American Nordic Walking Association, 80 to 90 percent of the muscles in the body are exercised. When we walk or run, only 40 percent of the muscles are activated. When the muscles in the shoulders, arms and chest burn in Nordic Walking study20% more calories than if we were without bars.

In the Jennifer Reed study, 130 patients received a 12-week training program in which they either did 60 minutes of Nordic walking on an indoor track, trained moderately or hard, for example, with cycling or rowing, or did high-intensity interval training for 45 minutes. Minutes.

Nordic walking had the best effect

The three types of exercises improved the patients’ depression and their daily lives, but it was Nordic walking that had the best effect on the patients’ functional ability. North Walks received a 19 percent improvement in their functional ability. Those who performed high-intensity interval training had a 13 percent improvement and those who performed moderate to hard interval training had a 12 percent improvement.

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