Catching Crabs and Learning to Row at a Corporate Row last week. Who remembers their first time on the water?
Strength and Conditioning WOD:
Complete for Time:
1k Row @22s/m
25 Burpees
1k Row @24s/m
25 Burpees
Happy Wednesday everyone! I hope you’ve been enjoying this warm weather. Here is a little challenge I dreamed up if you’re game.
Some rowers may ask why we would combine anything else with rowing when it’s a great workout in itself and gets results. By learning to move our body in different planes and push our boundaries in other domains we can further improve our body awareness and control. In all sports the ability to move through your hips and utilize a solid core will give you a step up against your competitors. While rowing requires a certain amount of skill, those with skill and greater work capacity will win the race. Burpees are a challenging movement that will help increase your work capacity and teach you to use your hips. Rather than doing a perfect push up, lift your chest off the ground first and then pop your hips up to get off the floor. Everyone should have the ability to quickly get off the floor and that is the idea of the burpee in today’s Rowing WOD.
Setup a clock and give it your best to get us over the hump!
I hope you all had an awesome weekend. Get pumped because it looks like the warm weather is here to stay and Summer is right around the corner. Don’t forget to take a look below at the training plan for the week. Let us know if you have any questions.
Today is all about teamwork. Use today’s S&C WOD as an opportunity to work hard together and build confidence in one another.
Competition is a big part of rowing and sports, especially when there are teams or communities involved. While the thrill of intrinsic motivation should be what drives us, we should not forget about the power of the opponent or the teammate in competition. We can push ourselves as individuals, but the opportunity to push ourselves against others will only make us better.
For today’s Rowing WOD put together teams of two and compete. You and your partner can switch whenever you want. What will be your strategy? (If you have to do this on your own then accumulate 2k by rowing 500m intervals and performing double unders for the amount of time it took you to row the 500m. The Undefined Rest function on the C2 Erg is great for this!)
Post your time and max double unders to comments. Team Names Encouraged!
We performed this WOD last Wednesday. Here is a chance to improve your performance. In today’s Strength and Conditioning WOD really focus on good connection and suspension with the legs. In this workout you will perform the work as follows: complete 12 calories on the erg, then 12 box jumps, then 12 push ups, then 11 calories, 11 box jumps, 11 push ups, … and so on. Coming off the push ups your arms may be feeling it so work for efficiency and power with the legs on the erg. Also, be sure to strive for virtuosity and complete each rep of the box jumps and push ups according to the standards of performance. For box jumps you’re hips must be fully open above the box and for push ups your chest must touch the ground. For maximum fun grab a partner and have a High Noon Showdown! Who can make it to 1 first? 3-2-1 Go!
I’ve always loved sports, especially when it comes to learning and competing at new sports that I don’t get to play often. Whenever we learn something new it’s far to easy to try to learn a couple of basics and then go full speed. Whether it’s golf, tennis, running, olympic lifting, rowing, or any other sport. The thrill of competition and grace in motion that sports played at full speed creates is amazing. Full speed competition elicits that feeling of joy and excitement that we all live for. However, a couple of problems usually arise at one point or another in our performance at full speed, especially if we take it up to full speed to quickly.
1. We lose form and things get sloppy. Basically the wheels come off.
2. We need more speed to out perform our competition, but it’s just not there.
Drew’s new Catch Positioning
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve experienced this situation with many of the athletes I coach, both on the water rowing and in the gym training. We’re always fighting for more intensity and boat speed, but too often something falls apart and our true potential is never reached.
Personally, I’ve experienced a similar situation while learning the piano. I currently take lessons once a week and have worked up to playing 4 songs and almost all of the scales, but my progress tends to stumble when I go to fast. It seems easy when I play a scale or a song slowly, so why not pick up the speed and just figure out how to not make mistakes playing faster? Well because it just gets sloppy and I never really learn what I’m doing wrong or better yet, what I can be doing better.
After being turned on to two great blog posts on slow motion practice, one from the music world and one from the golf world, I decided to share this idea with the rowing and strength training world that I hope you all partake in.
First, read through the above two blog posts and think about how slow is super slow. To often we think we’re going slow, but we could be going slower. Then, go out and practice super slow motion movements in your warmup. Be mindful, find the points where your focus lapses or you make a mistake, figure out how you can be more efficient, smoother, and more consistent. If you can take at least 20 minutes to practice this I guarantee you will find more boat speed, achieve more power, and perform at a higher level.
Here is Drew performing the Reverse Pic Drill in a single. Think about how many hours of slow motion practice, balance, and boat feel it has taken for him to get to this point. Look at where he slows things down to find better balance, feel, and connection to the boat and water. For him to make this better and go faster at full speed, he will probably need to practice this even slower. Now it’s your turn, get on an erg, setup a barbell, or get in a boat and master your movement skills with super slow motion. It’s harder than you think.
Today’s Strength and Conditioning WOD is inspired by the beach to warm-up those that aren’t lucky enough to live in warm weather year round. You might not be doing this one at the beach, but it should be just as fun. Try to remain consistent on your 500m intervals.
Post your time to comments! Who’s Ready for the Beach?
Renegade Rowing 