How to use your hiking poles correctly?

06 Sep. 2022

How do you set your poles correctly? How do you properly put on your wrist straps? How do you use your poles on steep slopes or off-camber terrain? Here are all our tips for using your hiking poles properly.

Using poles on a hiking trip offers many benefits. They help to relieve pressure on your joints and back. They also promote a better distribution of the load, especially the weight of your backpack, and allow you to engage your whole body's muscles, sparing your thighs and legs.
While many hikers use their poles for better stability and therefore greater safety — reducing the risk of falls or slips — hiking poles are also excellent propulsion aids. They help you build momentum and maintain a good rhythm for the same effort. But none of this is possible unless you use your poles correctly, which isn't necessarily easy or natural, at least at first. To help you get to grips with walking with poles, we've put together a short user guide followed by an explanatory video from our trail Ambassador, Florian Olivier.

Step 1: adjusting the length of your hiking poles

Hiking poles provide balance and propulsion, but to get the most out of them, you need to set the height correctly. On a hike, the terrain isn't always flat — it can be sloped, off-camber, or even obstacle-strewn. That's why it's essential to be able to adjust the length of your poles to suit the terrain. This is why you'll use adjustable multi-section poles, whether telescopic or folding.
To use your hiking poles properly, here are a few tips for adjusting their length to match the terrain.

On flat terrain: with properly adjusted poles, your arm and forearm should form a 90° right angle at the elbow (more or less — it all depends on personal preference and comfort).

Going uphill: if the gradient is significant and/or long, you can adjust the length of your poles by shortening them.
Going downhill: if the slope is significant and/or long, you can increase the length of your poles by extending them.
On off-camber terrain: you can individually adjust the length of each pole — for example, only shorten the pole on the uphill side.

If you don't want to constantly adjust the length of your poles, you won't always achieve a perfect 90° right angle — but that's fine. It's something you'll learn to manage with practice; you'll feel it and adjust your grip or your poles accordingly.

Step 2: putting on the wrist straps of your hiking poles

Hiking pole grips are fitted with adjustable straps, known as wrist straps. They come in two types — simple and padded — for added comfort, especially on longer outings. They help improve propulsion and take the strain off your hand and wrist, which also allows your forearms to rest.

To put them on correctly, slide your hand through from underneath, then simply close your palm around the grip so the base of the strap sits between your thumb and index finger. This way, your wrist will rest lightly on the strap, taking the strain off it, and you won't need to grip the handle tightly.

Step 3: Walking with your hiking poles

Once you've adjusted your poles to the right size, all you need to do is use them — which is straightforward enough. The technique is fairly simple: for more propulsion, we recommend holding your poles behind your body. If you'd rather hold them in front of you to "pull yourself forward", place them to the sides so they never get in your way. Never put them directly in front of you — you risk knocking into them.
Depending on the terrain, here are a few basic walking tips to make sure you're using your hiking poles correctly.

On flat terrain: for a better rhythm, we recommend using your poles as an extension of your arms — alternating opposite leg and opposite arm.

Going uphill: you can move in an alternating pattern, following the same pendulum rhythm, or plant both poles at the same time to double your push — especially on steep gradients. In that case, you can also shorten your poles.

On a steep descent: the pole is no longer a propulsion tool — it's there to hold you back and is effective at reducing the impact of the slope on your joints (especially your knees) and the muscles in your thighs (quadriceps). First, remove the wrist straps so you're not restricted in case of a fall, then change your grip by holding the grips directly, or better still, by pressing the palm of your hand on top of the poles.
On descents too, you can use your poles one at a time in an alternating fashion, or both together.
On off-camber terrain: as on a descent, you should remove your wrist straps to change your grip on the pole that is on the higher side, holding it below the grip at the sleeve. In this case, there's no need to adjust the pole length. If you prefer more comfort, you can always shorten it by 10 to 15 centimetres.
To get past an obstacle: you can lay your poles over it and pull yourself through, but if you'd rather use them for propulsion, it's better to plant them just in front of the obstacle before crossing it. If the obstacle is on a downhill section, we recommend lengthening your poles, removing the wrist straps, pressing your palm on top of the grip, and placing your poles below the obstacle.

What is the grip sleeve for?

On some poles, you'll notice there's a grip below the main grip — this is called the sleeve. As mentioned above, the sleeve is very handy on off-camber terrain if you don't necessarily want to change the length of your poles, but also on steep slopes or when crossing obstacles — always for the same reason.