For long hikes, especially when climbing in the mountains, consider Nordic walking, a practice that revolutionized my walks some 20 years ago.

I learned it from my Austrian sister-in-law who learned it from the Finns where it originated as off-season training for snow skiers in the 1970s. Put simply, Nordic walking employs special poles to help you combine upper body muscles with leg and calf muscles to propel you forward and upward.

Nordic walking is a full-body workout involving the chest, triceps, biceps, shoulders, abdominals and other core muscles. Physiologists say it increases energy consumption by 20-40% compared with regular walking.

Think of it as 4-wheel-drive for hikers—more power, more endurance and more grace (yes, grace— participants describe it as gliding across the terrain with strength, coordination and rhythm, the way a dancer moves across the stage).

But don’t take my word for it. View some Nordic walkers online. Then buy the poles and give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.