With the growing popularity of trail running and off-road races, trekking poles are no longer the exclusive domain of hiking and Nordic walking enthusiasts, but are also used by trail runners, who often rely on them during climbs or particularly long races

More and more often, in addition to Nordic walkers, you can see runners who use telescoping poles when running in the mountains. But what are they? They are simply collapsible trekking poles that some athletes also use during trail running races to help them on uphill or downhill sections.

Though mocked by some as being inconvenient or “suitable for walkers, not runners,” trekking poles are neither universally useful nor completely useless. In fact, while it has been shown that they reduce the effort required by 15 to 30 percent on uphill sections by taking the strain off the back, they also help protect the knees on downhill sections and provide additional points of support, especially on steep slopes. During runs on flat terrain, however, trekking poles can indeed be uncomfortable, though not particularly so if they are foldable or telescopic, since in this case they can even be attached to a hydration pack, thus leaving the arms and hands free.

Of course, it’s important to choose the right pole—it shouldn’t be too long or too short: when your arm is bent and you’re holding the pole, it should form a 90° angle with your body, which helps prevent strain on your back, shoulders, and arms.
Finally, if you decide to use them for running uphill on asphalt, we recommend replacing the steel tip with a rubber one, which is more durable and much quieter.

Since this is, therefore, a completely subjective choice, as always, my advice is to try them out during your training sessions, testing them on different terrains and in various conditions, so you can figure out whether or not they’re right for you… and remember, the first time, to have someone who knows what they’re doing “measure you in” for the poles!