Recommended by Physiotherapists

Comparison between BungyPump poles and rigid walking poles

My main job as a physiotherapist is to show the correlation between movement and health and how movement can be used as a means to live an active lifestyle with a good quality of life. The focus is on each person’s individual condition and ability to perform physical activity, which in turn bases the level of mobility and health.

When you expose your body for the physical activity it responds by strengthening muscles, tissues, and bones to withstand the load. Further, it strengthens tendons and ligaments, and you can maintain or increase muscle mass with cardio and strength training using walking poles. With increased strength and endurance, you can better support the body and help to relieve the exposed parts such as the back. Physical activity has also a positive impact on damages to the nervous system, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia, cardiac and vascular diseases, lung diseases, mental pain and anxiety, various fractures, herniated disc and osteoarthritis, as well as with prevention of age-related disorders.

To practice Nordic Walking with rigid poles or exercise with BungyPump training poles, with built-in suspension and 8.8 or 13.2 pounds resistance, are both good options for physical activity. As training equipment, these two differ, as I think the BungyPump poles are more multifunctional fitness equipment and provide more variety in usage than what traditional rigid poles do. The big difference is the built-in suspension and the resistance of up to 8.8 or 13.2 pounds in the BungyPump training poles. The resistance effect makes the impact of the pole on shoulders and elbows softer and gentler, compared to traditional Nordic walking poles.

Walking with BungyPump poles and using the resistance effect, demands greater activity of postural muscles in the torso and back compared with traditional Nordic walking poles. I also feel that the stabilization of the muscles around shoulders is improved thanks to the built-in suspension in the poles, which is very important in preventing shoulder problems.

 

"Those with back problems may also experience walking with BungyPump as a good option for rehabilitation since the poles activate deep stabilizing abdominal and back muscles"

 

Those with back problems may also experience walking with BungyPump as a good option for rehabilitation since the poles activate deep stabilizing abdominal and back muscles which is important to maintain good posture, which in turn relieves the vertebrae of the spine. Furthermore, the muscle strength and stability in the neck is increased, as well as in the shoulders and spine, which also has great significance for improving posture.

The BungyPump poles springy motion force one to work more with balance and coordination compared to rigid poles, one can’t rely on the support from the pole until it reaches the bottom. This, in turn, increases the level of activity on the buttocks, leg muscles and activates the posture muscles. 

If you enjoy using walking poles, you get many more exercise and technique opportunities with the BungyPump training poles, thanks to the constant resistance when pumping it allows for various concentric/eccentric exercises. It is exactly the resistance inside each pole that makes BungyPump poles into a multifunctional strength training equipment. When pushing the pole down to the ground during exercises it uses the resistance inside each pole, which in turn activates and stabilizes core muscles that are important for preventing back problems.

Cardio and strength training with BungyPump training poles helps to activate many muscle groups throughout the body. Research shows that it gives up to 25% more training effect compared to a regular walk and up to 77% increased calorie consumption, but as with all training, problems may arise when using the poles incorrect. To avoid problems, it may be good to get instructions from a certified personal trainer, physiotherapist or medical expert. Often you don’t see for yourself if you perform something incorrectly!

 

Recommendation:

You neither need to train hard or for long periods of time to improve your health condition, most importantly is that you do it regularly. Rather take daily short walks than just one long walk per week. Best of all is to move from 30 to 60 minutes per day at one occasion or divided it into two or three shorter sessions.

Walking is the type of movement form that has the greatest potential to increase physical activity in the country, so why not make it more effective and use the multi-functional training tool BungyPump training poles as a compliment!

Rovena Westberg

Registered Physiotherapist at Toppform Sjukgymnastik  

Benefits from using BungyPump training poles

“Choosing an active lifestyle affects your health positively in many ways. It not only keeps you fit but improves your quality of life and helps you live longer. Physical exercise wards off illness and is the most important contributory factor in keeping fit.

Fitness and strength training using BungyPump training poles, with built-in suspension, is a demanding form of exercise which promotes the oxygen absorption capacity of the blood, improves the endurance of respiratory muscles and strengthens muscles, tissues and bone structure. Since respiratory muscles are strengthened, the lungs ventilate better and the blood flow increases.

When you subject your body to physical activity with BungyPump, it responds by strengthening muscles, tissues and bone structure to cope with the increased load. In addition, ligaments and tendons are strengthened and muscle mass is maintained or increased depending on the tempo and type of exercise. Along with increased strength and stamina comes improved posture and the strain on sensitive parts of your body, such as your back, is reduced. And on top of all that, BungyPump are really fun to use!

 

"with increased strength and stamina comes improved posture"

 

When you train with BungyPump, your heart muscles are strengthened, which in turn means that the heart is able to pump a greater amount of oxygenated blood per contraction and therefore does not need to beat as fast as before. Research shows that when you walk with BungyPump poles you gain up to 77% greater training effect compared with when you just go for an ordinary walk. At the same time, pressure on joints is reduced, especially foot, knee, and hip joints.

The suspension in BungyPump training poles means that compared with traditional training poles, the pole hits the ground in a way which is softer for your shoulders and elbows. In addition, by pressing down firmly and resisting the upward spring of the poles while walking, muscular strength, endurance, and stability increases in most groups of muscles. BungyPump training stimulates, in particular, the muscles of the upper arm (triceps), the shoulder muscles (rotator cuff and deltoid) and the back muscles (latissimus, serratus and rhomboid). Stabilizing muscles close to the joints in the lumbar region are also strengthened. The large muscles in the neck (trapezius) and the chest with its large chest muscle (pectoralis major) are also exercised effectively using BungyPump. Moreover, you must work actively with your stomach muscles since you have to fight continuously against the suspension in the poles.

 

"with BungyPump poles, you gain up to 77% greater training effect compared with when you just go for an ordinary walk."

 

I would particularly like to recommend training with BungyPump to those people who have back problems, since the poles activate and stabilizing stomach and back muscles near the joints which are important for good posture and which, in turn, relieve the vertebrae. The effect on the body is also to build more capillaries (small blood vessels) in the muscles and this, in turn, means that nutrients, waste products, and oxygen can be exchanged more efficiently. The body can work longer without getting tired. Put simply, fitness is the ability of your body to absorb oxygen and turn it into energy. Using BungyPump training poles as an exercise tool, you can effectively improve your fitness, strength, and endurance and feel better as a result.

As a registered physiotherapist, I recommend that you neither need to train hard nor for a long period of time with BungyPump in order to improve your state of health considerably. However, you need to do it regularly. It is better to go for a shorter walk on a daily basis than for one longer walk once a week”.