How to Train Your Rower" for All of the Rowers and Coaches out There Who Aren't Necessarily As Familiar with the Lifts As They Are the Technique of Rowing
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How to Train Your Rower Knowing the lifts is one thing, doing them properly is another. This guide covers my instructional cues, FAQs, and a video for each lift. made with Table of Contents 1. The Squat: Training 2. The Squat: FAQs 3. Deadlift: Training 4. Deadlift: FAQs 5. Overhead Press: Training 6. Overhead Press: FAQs Rowing Stronger The online home of strength training for rowing. I'm a strength coach who just wants everyone to row stronger so they can row faster, healthier, and longer. As a junior rower, I tried it all from bodybuilding programs to powerlifting to Crossfit to high-rep machine-based training and it was always missing something. I was getting stronger in the gym, but it wasn't carrying over to my water performance or erg times. Now I know why, and I want to share that with you and how you can do things differently to train better than I did and be faster than I was. I wrote "How to Train Your Rower" for all of the rowers and coaches out there who aren't necessarily as familiar with the lifts as they are the technique of rowing. For coaches to safely instruct athletes in the weight-room, you should be certified in strength training instruction. There are many levels of certification out there that can prepare you for instruction of the lifts. For athletes intending to begin strength training, you should find a qualified personal trainer or strength coach who can teach you the basics in-person first. The following information is intended to supplement this knowledge, not replace it. This "How to Train Your Rower" series contains my system of breaking each major lift down into a version of catch-drive-release. This is a simple and effective way to focus the athlete on the immediately relevant cues in a way that is familiar to them from stroke after stroke of rowing. Read on and make sure to check out the videos! Thanks for reading and happy training, Will Ruth aka Strength Coach Will BS, MA (in progress), NSCA-CSCS, US-Rowing Level 2 The Squat: Training When 100% of coaches agree on something, it’s probably best to listen. In a recent research survey, 32 out of 32 GBR coaches agreed that strength training enhances rowing performance. The next step after developing a strength training program for your team is instructing them in the execution of the lifts. Nearly all injuries that happen from weight training at any age are due to poor instruction or poor supervision, not inherent flaws of the exercises themselves. It is essential that athletes understand the basic form on barbell lifts and that they are supervised by a qualified coach whenever they are lifting. Just like in rowing, the better the coaching, the better the results. Now, most rowing programs are fortunate to have one strength coach, let alone a sufficiently sized coaching staff to adequately instruct 20+ athletes all at once. This is the system I use to teach a large group of rowers the basic exercises in a manner that is both time and space efficient while making sure that athletes receive quality instruction. Rowers are used to thinking of things in 3-4 parts, for example, “arms, body, legs, catch.” I broke each of the lifts down into 3-4 parts and made that the basis of my instruction. I first get all of them in the weight room and instruct the athletes to organize themselves by 4-5 athletes of similar heights per platform. This it the basis for how to form groups per my article, Efficient Circuit Training for Team Sports, and the easiest way to minimize adjustments once they start lifting. I also find assigning groups to be much more successful than asking them to come up with groups on their own, as it avoids developing cliques and helps new athletes quickly assimilate into the group. Once they are organized, I instruct the warm-up and hip mobility sequence, then we move on to the lifts. I demonstrate each lift or have a veteran rower demonstrate the lift, explaining the cues I’ll use and what I’m looking for at each point in the sequence. Each platform has one athlete lifting, all following the same lift sequence, with an empty barbell. This is just instruction, not an actual workout, so we're not worried about really loading up the movement. For the squat, familiarize yourself with the basic cues for Back Squat and Front Squat from my exercise guide, then watch the instructional video below as I demonstrate and explain the lifts following the whole-part system. #1: Rack position—“Walk it out” On the back squat, the first position is simple. Look for straight wrists, braced abs, and good posture. On the front squat, teach the proper rack position with either the clean grip or the cross grip. For the clean-grip, cue the athletes “elbows up and in” to create a stable shelf for the bar and reach full thoracic extension, then look for abdominal bracing and good posture. Check stance width here too. Front squat stance should be just inside shoulder width, while back squat stance should be outside shoulder width. #2: Descent—“Down, ready DOWN” Look for controlled descent, not dropping into the hole, with proper form. On squats, many athletes initiate the descent with the knees and need to be cued to break from the hips first. Check depth. Athletes should be close to, if not slightly below, parallel depth. One common problem with rowers seems to be collapsed arches. Since rowing doesn’t develop the muscles of the foot the same way a field sport does, many rowers have either poor motor control for their feet or poor musculature to support them. Many rowers also use minimal shoes, which can exacerbate this. I recommend an arch support for these athletes. Good foot stability leads to better knee and hip stability, which means safer, more effective squats. #3: Halfway up—“Halfway up, UP” Watch for athletes to rise evenly from the chest, torso, and hips. The hips should not “pop up” out of the hole, nor should the rower over-extend the upper back, throwing the chest backwards. The hips and chest should rise evenly and simultaneously to roughly 45 degrees at the halfway up point. One issue that will often arise at this point is caving, or valgus, knees. Many rowers have weak glute muscles, which can cause the knees to cave when squatting. Glute activation work can help, but athletes who are unable to correct knee cave need to use a different squat variant until they can squat correctly. Many will be able to correct this when cued and when the weight is light enough, so make sure to give them time to work on it before ruling the back squat out. In my few years of working with Western, I’ve only had two rowers who I deemed unable to squat. I am demonstrating this common technical fault in the picture below, knee cave on the left and correct technique on the right. Always rule out instruction first. Make sure that the athlete knows that they should be pushing their knees out to keep them in line with the toes on the descent AND ascent! Next is weakness. If the athlete can keep the knees out at light weight, but caves under heavy weight, they need to do more reps and more work to master the lighter weights and increase the weight gradually. Finally, if the athlete is unable to keep the knees in line at any weight, they may have a mobility restriction, structural problem, or significant muscular weakness and should be referred to a physical therapist. #4: Finish—“Finish” Make sure that all athletes lock the weight out under control. I rarely see problems from halfway up to the finish, but sometimes an athlete will hyper-extend or finish in a poor postural position. If an athlete is hyperextending, cue them to squeeze the glutes to complete the lift. This will get them using more of their hip musculature and create a better brace. That’s one rep. I’ll usually have the group do 5 broken-down reps while I make any adjustments to their technique, then they do 1-2 full reps on their own. We then cycle through athletes and repeat the process until everyone has gone through the lift. The Squat: FAQs The squat is the king of lower body lifts. If you're looking for a lift to inject power into your stroke and build a pair of thighs worth having out on race day, look no further. However, this is also a lift that can be intimidating for the beginning lifter or athlete. Familiarize yourself with the lift, how I teach it, and what cues I focus on first, then check out my answers to some frequently asked questions about this awesome lift. Front squat, back squat, or single leg squat? I like to use a variety of squats with my rowers as I think all variations have different merits and are excellent when combined to produce a strong and powerful rower. Front squat: Tend to be easier for tall athletes to learn and get to parallel depth. Bar placement puts a high demand on postural muscles of the upper back and abdominal muscles, making it very applicable to rowing. Back squat: More athletes have prior experience with back squatting than other variations, so they often come in already knowing this lift and can perform it proficiently.