Training for the Complete Rower E-Book

Paul Thompson

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

This book aims to provide and challenge coaches and rowers with best practice, advice, principles and training programmes to improve their rowing experience and performance. Regardless of whether you are looking to improve on-water performance, set an indoor rowing personal best or enhance the quality of your training you will find something of value within these pages. Topics covered include: training and technique; egrometer training; specific rowing conditioning; strength training; monitoring and assessing land training; mobility and flexibility; weighlifting technique; trunk training; nutrition and mental skills. 'With the approaches detailed in this book, were were able to break records on the water and on the rowing machine and face our Olympic final feeling totally prepared and genuinely excited about the challenge. Regardless of your starting point, the guidance in this book will help you take the next steps towards your own goal, and to making your own magic. Good luck!' Dr Katherine Grainger CBE and Anna Watkins MBE. Aimed at coaches and rowers at all levels of the sport. Fully illustrated with 90 colour photographs.

Leseprobe

First published in 2016 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book published 2015

© Paul Thompson and Alex Wolf 2016

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 78500 087 4

AcknowledgementsAlex and Paul would like to thank the following people who helped with the putting together of this book. Katie Mountain has been more help than she could have ever imagined; Katie, we hope you have picked a few tips. Thanks to Dr Mark Homer, Nicole Chase, Katie James, Mike Naylor and Jamie Thomas for their contributions and to Heather Stanning, Helen Glover, Katherine Grainger, Vicky Thornley, Chris Bartley, Rob Morgan, Chris Boddy, Jamie Cheeseman, Matthew Thompson and Zak Lee-Green for being such fine models. Thank you to Sam Scrimgeour and Richard Chambers for being such good cyclists and to well-respected sports photographer Peter Spurrier of Intersport Images for the cover photos of Katherine and Anna. And finally, thank you too to 2012 Olympic double sculls champions Anna Watkins and Katherine Grainger for their foreword to this book, and to Professor Alison McGregor for her advice to both authors.

DedicationTo the athletes we coach – without them this book wouldn’t have come about.

DisclaimerPlease note that the authors and publisher of this book do not accept any responsibility whatsoever for any error or omission, nor any loss, injury, damage, adverse outcome or liability suffered as a result of the use of the information contained in this book, or reliance upon it. Since some of the training exercises can be dangerous and could involve physical activities that are too strenuous for some individuals to engage in safely, it is essential that a doctor be consulted before training is undertaken.   Throughout the book ‘he’, ‘him’ and ‘his’ are used as neutral pronouns and as such refer to both males and females.

CONTENTS

Foreword

Preface

Introduction

1   Performance, Training and Physiological Principles

2   Training and Technique

3   Rowing Training

4   Ergometer Training

5   Specific Rowing Conditioning

6   Strength Training

7   Monitoring and Assessing Land Training

8   Mobility and Flexibility

9   Weightlifting Technique

10   Trunk

11   Nutrition

12   Mental Skills

13   Conclusion

Index

FOREWORD

Anyone who loves sport will remember moments of pure magic. Moments where the drama of the occasion combines with powerful emotion, where inspiration and excellence meet and where the impossible becomes a reality. For athletes, coaches and the multitude of experts who work behind the scenes in sport those moments make the hard work, the sleepless nights, the stress, the disappointments and the exhaustion all worthwhile. They are indeed magical moments, but the illusion of mystery or surprise invariably belies years of planning, strategy, experience and expertise. The seeds have always been planted long before.

Our rowing careers started out just for fun, but over time our ambitions grew and after a while we joined the British Rowing Team, when rowing at the Olympics became a serious target. It was within the National Team that we began working with Paul Thompson as Chief Coach; he has masterminded the success of the women’s and lightweight rowing squads in Great Britain for the past three Olympic Games. Alex Wolf joined the rowing team as our strength and conditioning expert at the beginning of the London Olympiad and we worked closely with him for the following four years. Paul and Alex planned a programme with one goal in mind: to win gold at our home Olympics in London.

One of the keys to that success was diligently focusing on the details of performance and making use of every possible gain in every possible area. Alex and Paul’s innovation enabled us to break new ground, expanding our abilities, knowledge and skills. This sense of limitless learning is one of the wonderful things expert coaching helps bring to our sport; there are always new and challenging ways to train. Our team pushed the frontiers in areas as diverse as nutrition, psychology, physiology and strength and conditioning, as well as technical and physical improvements on the water and the ergo. We were lucky enough to be working with the best in the business; it was the leadership of Paul together with the expertise of Alex that drove our development as we prepared for London 2012.

Whatever your level, this book can help you to make progress. For an elite athlete the Olympics is the pinnacle of performance, but throughout our journeys the incremental steps have always been similar. We have always sought the next level of fitness, technical improvement and strength gain. Alex and Paul share a passion for sport and performance and a hunger to continuously seek better, smarter, more effective and more efficient ways of achieving this. With the approaches detailed in this book, we were able to break records on the water and on the rowing machine and face our Olympic final feeling totally prepared and genuinely excited about the challenge. Regardless of your starting point, the guidance in this book will help you take the next steps towards your own goal and to making your own magic. Good luck!

Katherine and AnnaDr Katherine Grainger CBE andAnna Watkins MBE

PREFACE

We started working together in 2009 and over the years developed a close working relationship and became friends. Many a long hour we would be discussing training and athletic performance, new research, training techniques and exploring opportunities for gains with the athletes we were working with. We were both privileged to be working with a talented group of athletes, coaches and support staff up to the 2012 Olympic Games, where the British team topped the medal table in stunning style. When the opportunity came for us to consider writing a book we saw it as a good challenge for us to share our thoughts and views on training for rowing and help people who want to improve and progress from where they are. We hope you will see the principles and rationale behind what we say, enabling you to challenge your thinking and challenge us but most importantly to be able to train and perform better today than you did yesterday.

Paul and Alex

Co-author Paul Thompson with Olympic Gold Medallists Anna Watkins and Katherine Grainger.

INTRODUCTION

Rowing is a fantastic sport. It is open to all ages and there is a large selection of ways to enjoy it and also compete in it. Rowers can be found on the rivers, lakes, canals and oceans of the world. They can also be found sweating on indoor rowing machines in boat houses, gyms and homes.

There are many reasons why people row: the feel of the boat gliding through the water; the strength of rhythm and teamwork in a crew; the satisfaction of shared victory in a tight race; the pain, relief and gratification of getting a personal best on the rowing ergometer; or the constant desire to improve and win World Championship and Olympic titles.

This book aims to provide and challenge coaches and rowers with best practice, advice, principles and training programmes to improve their rowing experience and performance. Regardless of whether you are looking to improve on-water performance, an indoor rowing personal best or the quality of your training, you will find something of value in the chapters ahead.

Teamwork and the sense of rhythm are just two reasons why competitive rowing is such a popular sport.

CHAPTER 1

PERFORMANCE, TRAINING AND PHYSIOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES

KEY COMPONENTS OF A 2,000M RACE

2,000m rowing races are mentally demanding and physically challenging. Competition is fierce and most races are won or lost in the training and preparation the rower or crew does on a day-to-day basis before the event.

The long winter miles outdoors in all weather, lifting weights, working on technique or gruelling ergometer sessions are all part of a rower’s tapestry of preparation that will come together over 240 strokes rowed completely in unison with his crewmates.

Rowing involves strength, endurance, rhythm and technique.The longer the strokes, the more power can be applied effectively and efficiently, producing and maintaining a faster boat speed.

Race pacing has to have been developed through training, along with the mental toughness to push on, stay in time and rhythm while delivering power when the rower is in oxygen debt.

Training and its intent needs to reflect these elements and allow the rower to develop, improve and thrive in a competitive environment.

Key performance contributors in a 2,000m race: