In vivo analysis of hip joint loading on Nordic walking novices.

Objective: To evaluate the influence of Nordic walking (NW) on hip joint loads in order to determine whether it can be safely performed during postoperative physiotherapy in patients after orthopeadic surgery of the hip.

Methods: Internal hip joint loads were directly measured in vivo in 6 patients using instrumented hip prostheses during NW and ordinary walking (OW). All patients received training in two different NW techniques (double-poling and the diagonal technique) by a certified NW instructor.