Jetting To A Better Workout For Mind, Body And Soul

When Joyce Shulman and her husband, Eric Cohen, created the virtual walking challenge startup “99 Walks,” they were seeking to build an online community and support system for people, mostly women, eager to improve their mental, physical and emotional well-being in a way that was accessible, approachable and inspirational.

Now, they are adding to that support system, quite literally.

In December 2021, the couple behind the popular walking fitness app launched a new product, Jetti Poles, exercise walking poles intended to increase stability and support and to help elevate the average daily walk in a variety of ways.

Jetti Poles are intended to both improve stability and also increase calorie burn for people who use them while walking. Shulman, a Sag Harbor resident, said she and Cohen had been tossing around the idea of creating something like them since 2019.

“From the very beginning of 99 Walks, we had been discussing ways to help people really elevate their walks,” she said. The pandemic put their plans on pause for a period of time, but after several months of delays and supply chain issues, Shulman and Cohen introduced Jetti Poles to the market in late 2021. They sold out in less than a month, thanks to the 99 Walks community, with many members eager to buy them.

A second production run sold out in a matter of days, thanks to the high visibility provided by a segment in April on NBC’s “Today,” where Shulman spoke about the product and used them alongside popular anchor and avid walker Al Roker.

The poles were expected to be back in stock by the start of the summer. They are made entirely in the United States, and Shulman and Cohen have partnered with an assembly facility that employs adults with intellectual disabilities.

In many ways, the 99 Walks community, and its ensuing enhancement with the addition of Jetti Poles, are a perfect fit for the post-pandemic world, where many people have acquired a greater appreciation for myriad benefits of being outdoors and going for a walk.

The idea that engaging in physical fitness requires a gym membership or necessitates being indoors has been challenged in recent years, with many people discovering they prefer the freedom that exercising outdoors provides. It’s an idea that Shulman and the 99 Walks devotees were onto well before the pandemic began.

“It’s always been this vision of building community,” Shulman said. “The way I look at Jetti Poles is around being able to take fitness programs, and more specifically your body anywhere, because there’s so much power in being outdoors. It’s about finding your fitness freedom. There are other ways to be active and get fit that don’t require going to a gym or being on someone else’s schedule or paying for a class. I think we’ve done such a disservice to people by defining fitness in a very narrow way.”

While Jetti Poles are ostensibly a more modern and sleeker-looking version of traditional walking poles, and thus not an entirely new concept, it’s their versatility that makes them unique, and Shulman and Cohen, as seasoned entrepreneurs, have leveraged that quality.

The poles were tested in a sports performance lab, which Shulman said showed that peak caloric output was 55 percent higher on average for people who walked with the poles than for those who did not. And they’re not just great for people looking for a more intense workout and higher calorie burn while walking: The poles also provide increased stability for those who may need it.

“I’m hearing from people who feel they can go a bit farther and have stability in their walking practice now,” Shulman said. She pointed out that the poles are great for people who may be making a recovery from an injury or back surgery, and provide better balance support than a single traditional cane, which distributes weight unevenly.

Shulman and Cohen have also developed a series of stretching and body weight resistance moves that can be done with the poles, and have a video series of the moves on their website and available on YouTube. This summer, they’ve engaged several fitness professionals to teach classes, as part of their Jetti Fitness brand. Classes are being offered at Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton this summer, led by instructor Marisa Ivana.

Coming up with the name for the poles was a long process, Shulman said, with plenty of brainstorming sessions. They eventually settled upon Jetti Poles because of the way they “really kind of make you jet a bit,” Shulman said.

“They tend to encourage you to pick up the pace a bit, not always, but you find you’re jetting a little bit faster and more intentionally,” she added. “They do offer a propulsion feeling, and the harder you push off, it does propel you forward.”

In June, Shulman said she and her colleagues were still in the process of launching an app with guided, on-demand classes, featured both indoors and outdoors, for those who not only want to use the poles for walks but in a more traditional exercise class style of workout.

Also starting in June, Shulman said they were planning to start certifying individuals to teach Jetti Fitness classes. Those who earn Jetti Fitness instructor status will then be free to lead their own Jetti walks and teach Jetti classes.

With the poles out in the world, the 99 Walks community still going strong, and fitness classes centered around the versatility that the poles offer, there is something for everyone, Shulman said. Whether people are content to simply stick to their normal walking routines, want to increase the intensity of their walking practice, or are looking to add a whole new style of exercise to their routines, Shulman said the spirit among the people they’ve brought into their fitness fold remains the same.

“We’re all one big happy family,” she said.