Category Archives: Skill

Video Review: Coach Pat – The Squat and Rowing – How well do you perform these movements?

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One of the First Renegade Rowing Athletes to become a Firsthand Athlete!

One of the First Renegade Rowing Athletes to become a Firsthand Athlete!

When’s the last time you performed a Squat?  When’s the last time you sat in a chair or got in a boat?  For many of you in Boston and the Northern states it’s been a while, but that ice is almost gone and regular water practices will be happening in no time.  Regardless, anytime you sit or stand up you are squatting, because that’s what a squat is.  It’s the strongest, most efficient, most powerful way to get your body up out of a chair or seated position.

I believe that if you can learn to squat correctly you can and will become a better rower.  The key is how you squat and what you focus on.  Here is a little video review of a pre-elite rower I’ve started working with.  This is her form before any coaching. Check out what she’s doing well and what she can do better.

Now take a look at my squat and rowing below.  What parts of the squat can we tie to the rowing stroke?  I always teach the skills of 1. Posture, 2. Control, and 3. Connection whether it’s rowing or weightlifting.

1. Posture – How am I doing at maintaining a solid brace through my torso?  Is there any movement within the vertebrae of the spine?

2. Control – Is the bar traveling in a straight line over the middle of my foot?  Am I in control of my body and the bar? Can I stop at any point in time and be in a strong position?

3. Connection – How am I connected to the bar?  How am I connected to the floor?  Are my hips, hands, and shoulders connected as I go to stand?

After taking a look and answering some of these questions, think about your own stroke.  In the front end of your stroke, from 1/2 slide up to the catch and back, how do your joints move in relation to one another and what does your body angle look like?  How much distance is there between your butt and your heals?  Do you feel or see any similarities when you squat and row back to back?  Can perfecting one movement help improve the other?

Please share your thoughts to comments and I’ll get back to you with feedback.

Video Review: Coach Pat – The Deadlift and Rowing – How well do you perform these movements?

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Coxswains getting after the Deadlift last winter!

Coxswains getting after the Deadlift last winter!

When’s the last time you performed a Deadlift?  When’s the last time you picked the boat up out of the water?  For many of you in Boston and the Northern states it’s been a while, but that ice is almost gone and regular water practices will be happening in no time.  Regardless, anytime you pick something up you should be deadlifting, because that’s what a deadlift is.  It’s the strongest, most efficient, most powerful way to pick something up off the floor or out of the water.

I believe that if you can learn to hip hinge and deadlift correctly you can and will become a better rower.  The key is how you deadlift and what you focus on.  Here is a little video review of a pre-elite rower I’ve started working with.  This is her form before any coaching. Check out what she’s doing well and what she can do better.

Now take a look at my hip hinge and deadlift below.  What parts of the deadlift can we tie to the rowing stroke?  I always teach the skills of 1. Posture, 2. Control, and 3. Connection whether it’s rowing or weightlifting.

1. Posture – How am I doing at maintaining a solid brace through my torso?  Is there any movement within the vertebrae of the spine?

2. Control – Is the bar traveling in a straight line over the middle of my foot?  Am I in control of my body and the bar? Can I stop at any point in time and be in a strong position?

3. Connection – How am I connected to the bar?  How am I connected to the floor?  Are my hips, hands, and shoulders connected when the bar is below the knee?

After taking a look and answering some of these questions, think about your own stroke.  In the front end of your stroke, from 1/2 slide up to the catch and back, how do your joints move in relation to one another and what does your body angle look like?  Does it stay the same?  When does your body start to swing open?  Do you feel or see any similarities when you deadlift and row back to back?  Can perfecting one movement help improve the other?

Please share your thoughts to comments and I’ll get back to you with feedback.

Who is sick of the ice? – Video Review on C2 Sliders – Share your thoughts!

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Are you sick of Winter?  I think I am, especially after that warmer weather last week.  It was nice to be able to wear just a light jacket and not a parka. To inspire you and motivate you to get on the Water as soon as the ice melts on the Charles River, I’m sharing a video of some slider work.  This past week we’ve been using the sliders to find rhythm and ratio.  That way we’re ready to hop right in the boats and race in another week.  Take a look and see how they can help you.  What are they doing well?  What do they need to work on?  Are you focused on rowing on the erg as if you were going to row on the water?  Please share your thoughts in the comments section and consider joining Renegade Rowing this Spring.

What are you doing to improve efficiency and performance in competition this year?

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Brand New Renegades were formed at the RR Workshop at Mt. Strength CrossFit on Saturday!

Brand New Renegades were formed at the RR Workshop at Mt. Strength CrossFit last year.  Will you join them this year?

Deliberate practice makes perfect, but sometimes you need to get out of your garage or out of your box to gain more knowledge and improve your skills.  This is one of many posts I’ll be offering up to the world that will highlight amazing opportunities to get out of your normal routine, learn something new, and have some fun.

On January 31st at 1pm, Mt. Strength CrossFit in Winchester, MA will be hosting a two-hour Renegade Rowing Workshop.  Head Coach Patrick Larcom will be at Mt. Strength CrossFit to give everyone the knowledge they need to improve their rowing and performance in competition.

Checkout some highlights of what you’ll be learning and don’t forget to register below!

Register Here!

Video Review: What do you think of your form? How about Erik’s?

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The Men attacking their 2k in Heat 2 of the Renegade Rowing League on Saturday!

The Men attacking their 2k in Heat 2 of the Renegade Rowing League.  Register for the next one taking place on Saturday, December 20th @8am!

Video Review

From time to time it can be beneficial to look at yourself on camera.  No we don’t care about the aesthetics or the fashion.  We’re looking to gain feedback and a mental picture.  We’re looking for just one or two cues that might give us a smoother, more powerful stroke.  What’s going right?  What’s going wrong?  What can we do better?

You should be asking yourself, “What do I look like now?  How do I move now? What could use some extra focus and improvement next time?”  Don’t dwell on to many things at a time, just find one or two things that might make your life on the erg or in the boat a little better.  Go work on them.  Then reassess in a couple of weeks.

The Renegade Rowing Club has agreed to help everyone by taking a look at their strokes. If you’d like feedback similar to this, post a 20 second clip of you rowing to YouTube and share it with us in the comments of this post.  I’ll do my best to give you a couple of things to work on!  Here is a video of Erik and what he’s going to work on over the next couple of weeks.

Take a look and share what you might focus on next time you row!