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On a camino for which I prepared too little, I got to dinner the first night in Villadangos del Paramo and discovered that I could not hold a fork and knife without my hands cramping!! That was after using trekking poles for a decade. They can surprise you...
I does indicate that you are using them correctly, and not fairy tapping them! I find it takes a bit of adjustment to get the amount of force you use right - ease off if necessary to find a level that is comfortable, and gradually increase from there. I also find differences going up and down hill, compared to when I are on relatively flat terrain. Depending upon how steep it is, I will lengthen my poles by 5 - 10 cm going downhill so that I don't start bending too far forward. There are a couple of places on the CF where I needed to do that, but it is not common.
Watch Joost in "The Way." Just swinging the poles with occasional contact with the ground. That is a good example of fairy tapping!!
I think of fairy tapping as any action where there is little or no pressure placed on the pole when the tip contacts the ground. This may give the user some increased sense of stability, but without gaining the benefit of reducing the weight carried on the lower joints - hips, knees and ankles.
I think the one pole plant per step works best, but another rhythm is more a three-legged waltz -- a pole plant for every 1 1/2 steps. If you watch the Pacer Poles video they show one step, one pole. If you watch cross country skiing, it is one pole, one step. If you watch the trash pick up crew, it is one stab per piece of paper...
To my neighbor to the east all I can say is I am glad you feel good packing your stick. But I much prefer my lightweight walking sticks especially in the mud. much more stable in the gumbo like what is everywere in N Dakota. Since one is in each hand the less you may get worn out on one side. But if looking purty & dressing for the part is the important thing to you then by golly somebody has to look good, even though the smell at times could run folks off. For myself they simply made the stroll much less painful. My only recommendation put your pole or poles away when going thru big cities in crowded areas. Little kids get poked when the user doesn't realize they get poked if they are behind you. I saw some angry parents following walkers because of it.I'm sorry, but as I've said before, any benefits that trekking poles give you are cancelled out by just how awesome a real wooden walking stick is. I received many compliments from both locals and other pilgrims on my stick. "Now THAT'S a pilgrim staff!" a friendly man in Burgos told me. He was so impressed I think he wanted me to marry his niece. No, I'm not kidding.
So let's recap...
Trekking poles
Pros:
They help you walk or something, supposedly.
Cons:
They make you look like a dork
They are cold and soulless. (The Beatles never wrote a song called "Norwegian Lightweight Aluminum")
There are no statues of St. James using trekking poles, so you're probably excommunicated if you use them.
Wooden staff
Pros:
Makes you instantly identifiable as a pilgrim
They can be personalized and customized. (Good luck carving your name or a bible verse into aluminum. Hope your packed a Dremel!)
Good for fending off stray dogs and the hordes of potential mates your walking stick will attract.
Makes a perfect monopod for your camera.
Good for the environment. They literally grow on trees! Unlike aluminum which must be ripped from Mother Earth, smelted and processed, probably in some God-forsaken, carbon-spewing factory by a five year old that works for 2 cents a day with no bathroom break.
Cons:
None
So let's recap. Trekking poles, awful tools of Satan that promote child labor. Wooden staff, makes you the coolest pilgrim ever, doesn't pollute, and is personally endorsed by Moses, Aaron, St. James, and millions of pilgrims.
The choice is clear!
