Video Review 6/4/15: Mark Mid Race – How Can He Help You?

Letting it run at Bodies Over!

Letting it run at Bodies Over!

How’s it going Renegades? Today we’re taking a look at Mark mid race. This is a video review that I put together to help him and you develop your stroke and find new areas to improve upon. I’ll be posting regular video reviews about once a week, usually on Thursdays. If you’d like feedback on your stroke or would like to see me talk about a certain area of the stroke, please let me know in the comments. If you’d like to be featured in the weekly Video Review please send me a 5 stroke video via email to pat@renegaderowing.com.

Also, if you’d like to join in the fun in person, the Renegade Rowing Club practices every Wednesday evening at 7pm. Everyone is welcome, just let me know via email – pat@renegaderowing.com, and I can get you the details on how to get started and join the group.

S&C WOD 6/3/15: “Lil’ Nancy in a Boat” – 3RFT – 500m Row, 15 OHS – Post Time

Strength and Conditioning WOD:

Jimmy from the Loyola Men's Crew Team working his Shoulder Flexibility in the Overhead Squat last Winter.

“Lil’ Nancy in a Boat”

3 Rounds For Time

500m Row

15 Overhead Squats (75/55 lbs.)

Today’s Rowing WOD is a great opportunity for any athlete, experienced or not, to get a sense of form and rhythm and then apply it in competition.  Get in a solid warm up and hone your rowing skills with a 10min WarmUp on the Erg and then attack this Strength and Conditioning WOD with your new found efficiency and focus on form.

Rhythm and Endurance are two necessities for successful competition in longer WODs.  A great example would be the KB Swings and Pull Ups found in “Helen” or the necessity to be fresh enough for the thrusters and pull ups in Jackie.  Those who find a consistent rhythm can flow through the movements naturally and rely on their aerobic endurance without dipping into their anaerobic energy supply.

In today’s Rowing WOD the focus is developing rhythm and endurance.  Another word for rhythm in rowing is Ratio.  By varying the ratio of the drive to the recovery rowers can maintain the same pace or split, but work more efficiently and make the stroke feel lighter or heavier.

When going from a 20 stroke rating to a 24 you should focus on more pressure with the legs and quickly redirecting the hands through the finish.  This will help increase the stroke rating while leaving you the same amount of time to sit up, breathe, and relax as you slide forward on the recovery.

When you attack “Lil’ Nancy in a Boat” pick a challenging split and stroke rating to hold, but make sure you’re able to remain efficient and fresh enough to perform the overhead squats unbroken.  If you know your 2k split, pick a goal split somewhere between 2k and 2k+3.  Try to focus on your rhythm and ratio to allow for breathing and recovery every single stroke.

Get after it and have a solid day of training!  We will re-test “Lil’ Nancy in a Boat” next week!

S&C WOD 6/1/15: 6RFT – 250m Row, 10 Burpees, 2 Snatch – Post Time

Drew's new Catch Positioning

Drew’s new Catch Positioning

Strength and Conditioning WOD:

6RFT

250m Row

10 Burpees

2 Snatch (135/95 lbs.)

Start the week of strong with some focused start work and then attack the Strength and Conditioning WOD.  Be sure to focus on your setup and execution of the snatches.  Find a way to transfer the skills required of the snatch to your stroke in the 250m pieces.

Have fun and tear it up!

Strength and Conditioning WOD 5/20/15: “Duxbury Helen” – 3RFT – 250m Row, 21 Air Squats, 12 Push Ups – Post Time

Bob and Coach Pat attacking the 2k at CRASH-B 2014

Strength and Conditioning WOD:

“Duxbury Helen” – 3 Rounds For Time

  • 250m Row
  • 21 Air Squats
  • 12 Push Ups

Today’s focus is aerobic conditioning and mental strength.  Get in some good skill work to warmup with a 10min erg.  Be sure to warmup the air squat and push up as well.  Then attack the Strength and Conditioning WOD.  I created this WOD for the Duxbury Rowers working with Renegade Rowing on the weekends.  They don’t have a ton of equipment, but they have each other and that’s all you need to push harder than ever before.  Go hard for the start and finish, but be smooth and efficient through the bulk of the work.  Focus on breathing and consistent pace.  At the end of the day this will take about the same time as a race and allow you to mentally dig deep and push yourself harder.  In the end it’s all in your head.  How hard, how far, how fast can you push yourself?

Take quality strokes and have fun getting after it.

Post your time to comments as well as your splits for each 250m piece.

Rowing WOD 5/19/15: Max Pressure – 15 x :20 On/ :40 Off – Post Fastest, Slowest, and Avg Split

Rowing WOD:

Dave getting after it in Heat 3 of the Renegade Rowing League!

15 x :20 On, :40 Off

Max Pressure

  • Post Fastest, Slowest, and Avg Split to Comments

Elite fitness is all about developing power through high intensity.  Today’s Rowing WOD is an opportunity to push your boundaries and test the limits of your speed.  Catch your breath and focus on the 40 seconds off so that you can put every ounce of energy into suspending from the oar and going low on the split.  Compare your results to your 2k race plan.  Do you last through the first 7, but die soon after?  Could you go faster at the start of your 2k?  What happens to your focus in the last couple?  Use your results to adjust your race plan and goal for our next 2k test.  The idea of suspension can be very powerful when you’re trying to pull low splits under fatigue.  Check it out below.

Post your fastest, slowest, and average splits to comments.

Try warming up with a couple of strap drills to feel and practice suspending from the oar.    Have Fun!