HOW TO GET THE BEST OUT OF YOUR ROWING (PART 1)

Let’s start with the basics. There are four distinct phases, put together in a seamless continuous sequence.

• 1 The Catch
• 2 The Drive
• 3The Finish
• 4 The recovery

1. The Catch

• At the catch you can see the rower has their hip and knee joint flexed, shin vertical, back straight and arms extended. This is important as the body is in a good position to enter the drive phase with maximum power.
• The most common errors
  • Reaching too far forward in the catch, this brings the shins past vertical which results in a rounded back to start the drive phase bleeding potential power from the system.

2. 
   The Drive

• The drive is initiated from the legs with a quick, powerful push. Make sure the torso is tight so that all the power from the legs can be transferred through the torso, arms and then to the rower handle, just like doing a deadlift. The handle (bar) and seat (hips) move together as one.
• Continue driving with the legs as the torso starts to open. When your legs reach extension, using the momentum you have created from the leg drive and torso finish the stroke with a powerful arm pull, pulling the handle in to the bottom of your ribs, or for the ladies, you want to pull the handle to the bottom of your sports bra. For the men, pretend you’re wearing a sports bra.
• The most common errors
  • Don’t shoot your butt back without bringing the shoulders at the same time.
  • Timing, you must finish the leg drive before pulling with the arms.
  • Leaning too far back, you want to be angled back about thirty degrees.
  • Also watch out for pulling the handle to high, remember bottom of sports bra.

3 The Finish

• The finish is a position in which almost all the musculature in your body is active, the abdominals stabilize the body, the glutes and quads are contracting to extend hip and knee joints, the biceps have flexed the arms and back muscles are contracting to keep the torso in the finish position.
• The most common errors
  • Pausing at the end of the finish, as soon as the finish positing is hit, scoop the handle down and away from the body to create a smooth transition.

4 The Recovery

• In this phase we are returning to the catch. First extend the arms and allowing the handle to pull the body into slight forward flexion. Flex forward at the hips and knees, aligning the chest over the thighs, and then slide back into the catch. The recovery phase should take about twice as long as the drive phase.
• The most common errors
  • Bending through the knees first, this means you have to move the handle around your knees, resulting in wasted energy and a poor catch setup.
  • Forgeting to breathe. Exhale as you drive back and inhale as you recover forward.

Happy rowing team,
Coach Nick