What kind of blocks do you want to see in your Training Plan?

Renegade Rowing Athlete TemplateThis winter I released a new training plan template that includes blocks like Endurance/Active Rest and Olympic Lifting.  Depending on what type of Renegade Athlete you are, you may need to incorporate more of those blocks or you may need a Mobility or Yoga block.  Over the next couple of months I plan on developing more blocks that you can add to your training tool box.  I will also be adding simple testing blocks and standards to determine which blocks you need more of.

This week I’ll be highlighting the different types of athletes that have given Renegade Rowing a shot.  I hope to shed some light on the possibilities that exist in developing a broad, general, and inclusive fitness to allow for sport specific performance no matter what level you’re at.  One group I’m working with is High School Rowers who train with me four times a week in order to prepare for making their team.  A second group is the Boston College Men’s Crew Team, who not only rows on the water most days of the week, but manages to get in to the gym once or twice to get stronger and become more dynamic athletes.  A third group includes members of CrossFit Boston who competed at CRASH-B’s and will learn to race on the water.  And last, but definitely not least I’m privileged to help a competitive masters rower fight his way to elite status.  All of these athletes have different needs and the template I’ve created is a step in the right direction of helping them find the right amount of general and specific preparedness to reach their goals.

Please take a look at the Renegade Rowing Athlete Template below and share your thoughts on where you are and how many blocks you currently use in training.  I will be making adjustments as we go and continually striving to give you good examples of how this works and why it works.

RR Athlete Template

Renegade Rowing Training Plan Template

RRTP 3-9-15

New Class Schedule and New Pricing! Which class will you take next?

RR Classic with Lauryn and JC

RR Classic with Lauryn and JC

Yesterday the new Renegade Rowing Class Schedule and Renegade Rowing Pricing went into effect.  Lauryn and JC tore it up at 6am in the RR Classic.  Today I wanted to share some more info on the classes themselves.  Below you will find a brief description of each class.  While they may help paint you a picture of what to expect, the only way to know what a class involves is to experience one.  Sign Up with Coach Pat to get in the game!

RR Classic
This is the original Renegade Rowing Class.   It’s where it all began. The goal is to improve your Rowing, Fitness, and Strength. We clean up your Rowing Technique in the warmup. We work on improving mobility and increasing flexibility. Then we throwdown in a strength wod (workout of the day) and a conditioning wod that brings together the best of Rowing and Strength Training.
Renegade Blast
This class is meant to kick your ass in 45 minutes.   Expect to be moving and sweating from start to finish. We’ll put you through various levels of High Intensity Interval Training using Rowing, Bodyweight Movements, and Functional Movements. Anyone can jump in and get a solid workout as long as they’re ready to move, sweat, and have some fun doing it. Get fired up for 45 minutes of awesome that will keep you coming back for more!
RR Running and Endurance
We don’t want you to just be a rower, we want you to be an athlete and to succeed at life! The Renegade Running and Endurance Class will help you do both.   We’ll work running skills and drills into a team style warmup and then either hit the beautiful banks of the Charles River for a group run or the Harvard Track for sprints and interval training. Don’t be surprised if you end up meeting a new training partner or end up dragging your friends along to give it a shot once a week. Our running class gets addicting and it’s a great way to network.   Just imagine if you met one new athletic friend in Boston every Friday morning, Boom! Great start to the weekend.
RR Sculling/ Indoor Rowing
This class is all about taking it to the water and reaching your goals through teamwork. When the Charles River is full of ice, we’ll use the Concept2 Ergometer as a tool to not only improve our fitness, but learn the intricacies and discipline it takes to row on the water. Indoors we’ll row together as if in a boat and take turns leading and following. Everyone will get a chance to make calls and test their knowledge of the sport while also getting in a kick ass workout. When the ice finally does melt and it’s warm enough to get on the water, we’ll be sculling in quads and singles at the Community Rowing Inc. (CRI) – Harry Parker Boathouse in Brighton, MA. Stop wondering what it would be like to fly across the mirrored surface of the Charles River and come do it. Seriously, it’s an experience like none other!
RR Stadium/Social WOD
The best part of training with Renegade Rowing is that you get to do it with a great community of healthy, athletic, like-minded people who want nothing but the best for each other. Every Monday on the blog we’ll announce some version of a Stadium Run or a Social Workout where everyone can come throwdown together and push each other. The best part about these workouts is they are free if you bring a friend who’s never been! Spread the word and let’s Get Awesome together!

Renegade Rowing Class Schedule

 

The Renegade Rowing Training Plan 3-9-15

Duxbury MenRRTP 3-9-15

The Renegade Rowing Training Plan

aka – “Our” Plan

By: Patrick Larcom

Why Row?

Rowing is the utmost definition of Sport in modern society. Merriam-Webster and Dictionary.com give two definitions of sport. One, Sport is an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature. Two, Sport is a source of diversion and recreation engaged in for pleasure. Whether you’re a middle school rower just learning to scull or an Olympic hopeful trying out for the national team, Rowing provides challenge, competition, and fun.

Rowing trumps all because it offers the best of sport. It tests our skill and athleticism as individuals and as part of a team. Rowing requires an unwavering calm and trust that pushing yourself to wit’s end without seeing where you’re going will develop personal satisfaction and boat speed. It takes balance, grace, and power. Rowing is saying goodbye to the chaos of life by shoving off the dock and taking time for yourself and your team to focus on a common goal.

If you’d like to read more about “Our” Plan click here!

If you have any friends who would love to get into rowing, please have them sign up for a free consultation with Renegade Rowing!

Ice Breaker Challenge and Rowing WOD 3/7/15: Race Pressure 2x1k, 2x500m – Post Splits

Hey Renegades!  Hope you’re as excited as me for the next few days of warmer weather to melt the river.  If you’re looking for a fun chance to test your speed and keep training hard, I’d highly recommend the Ice Breaker 1k Challenge held at CRI next weekend.  Here is the Facebook announcement and the registration link.  Sign up and throw down!  Today’s Rowing WOD is great preparation for the Ice Breaker Challenge.

Rowing WOD:

Greg of the RRC getting after it!

Race Pace

2 x 1k w/ 4:00 Rest

2 x 500m w/ 3:00 Rest

Have you ever seen a WOD posted in your gym like 5-5-5-5-5 Back Squat and that’s it?  Did you think that would be a good day to take off because there’s not much to it and you’d rather go to a session with more stuff?  Well snap out of it and hit that WOD hard next time.  High Intensity is your ability to push your boundaries a little further everyday.  If you never test your limits you’ll never know what you’ve got.

Todays Rowing WOD calls for Race Pressure and is a test of your ability to consistently perform at your highest intensity.  Set the monitor for Intervals Variable and input 1k, 4min rest, 1k, 4min rest, 500m, 3min rest, 500m, 3min rest.  Execute your 2k/1k Race Plan, both split and stroke rating, for each distance.  The first time you perform that distance execute that pace (split and SR) as consistently as possible.  When you repeat the distance try to be even more consistent and go a little bit faster.

Remember, the goal is to row at race pressure for every piece.  Focus on your split and stroke rate and row at high intensity with good form.

Post your average 500m splits to comments.

Rowing WOD 3/6/15: 4x10min Spicy Steady State – Post Distance

Rowing WOD:

Lauryn and Terese getting in their warm up at CRASH-B 2015

Lauryn and Terese getting in their warm up at CRASH-B 2015

 

4 x 10 min Spicy Steady State w/ 1 min Rest

10′ @ 18 s/m**

10′ @ 20 s/m**

10′ @ 22 s/m**

10′ @ Increasing Stroke Rating as follows – (5′ @24, 3′ @26, 2′ @28)

**First 3 Pieces – Row 4min Steady, 1min @-3 split seconds, 4min Steady, 1min @-3 split seconds

**Hold the same stroke rating all the way through each piece, but vary the pressure with your legs depending on whether you’re rowing steady or 3 split seconds faster

This is a great opportunity to work on the rhythm and consistent effort needed in long WODs with movements like kettlebell swings and sumo deadlift high pulls.  Focus on maintaining consistent pressure through each stroke and every piece.  Rate of Perceived Exertion should be around 60% – 70%.  Effort level on the last piece is open and should be based on how you feel.  Set the monitor for intervals-time with 10 minutes of work and 1 minute of rest. During the rest stand up and stretch out your back and foam roll any areas that feel overly tense.

Novice rowers should focus on one part of the stroke for each piece, like a horizontal handle path or trying to row feet out.

Vets should be dialing in their consistency.  During the last piece Vets should be focused on bringing their 500m split down as the stroke rating increases.

Post the total distance rowed to comments.