Okay, Day 2. Today is what I consider a more paddling-specific workout, rather than a weight-reliant one. It has more to do with the paddling motion and building muscle memory rather than just building strength. So, make sure that as you perform these, think about being on the boat.
DAY 2
Cardio
Erg, 5,000m
Make sure that you work hard on technique -- don’t round your back, don’t pull the handles up to your neck (like some people). Measure yourself in terms of the 500m split so you keep yourself pushed and motivated. You should complete this in less than 25 minutes.
Note: During the season, you should be running in the morning, then doing your erg at the gym most every day.
Weights:
Chest: Cable Flies. Moderate weight, higher reps.
Back: Arm Row, 3x10. Heavy weights
BOTH DAYS: Back raises on the roman chair.
I do this both days for a couple key reasons: 1) I have a bad back and this exercise seems to help it. I mean, if I go for long stretches without doing it, my back gets worse. (I’d like to reiterate that this helps MY BACK and may not help YOUR BACK). 2) this is a key motion in paddling, hinging, reaching forward and coming back, de-rotating
Do three sets of the following:
back raise x 20
left side x 10
right side x 10
After a while, add a 10-lb plate. Once stronger, add a 25-lb weight, etc.
Then, to add a circuit aspect to it (I like circuits!), I add 3 sets of tricep dips in between the sets of back raises.
Legs: Squats. Pick a bar of moderate weight, put it on your shoulders, 3x20.
Cable Workout:
1. Wood Choppers: 3x15, each side
(Works the core and accentuates the rotation required in paddling)
2. Cable Rows: This is something I started doing specifically to strengthen my stroke through replicating the stroke with weight-bearing excercise.
Set the machine arm outward at about a 45 degree upward angle, add about 20-30 lbs. Stand and face the cable arm, place your right leg forward, left leg back, reach forward with your right arm to the cable, when extended, allow the cable to rotate you fully (so your body starts to realize how much you can actually rotate). Show your back to the other side of the gym, put your left arm up as if you were pulling a paddle, then pull 20 strokes. Allow your back leg to begin that rotation, feel the activation in your lower back and upper shoulders as you lean forward and then de-rotate and come back. Keep your outside arm straight all the way down to your hip as you pull. Then change sides.
3. Forward Shoulder Raises. Set the cable arm towards the ground. Face away from the cable machine, set your legs and body similarly to the above exercise, reach down and grab the handle, raise the cable straight out in front of you, like the forward raises from yesterday, but you may use your whole body, just like exercise #2. This is to replicate the recovery and the snap of the paddle. 3x20, both sides.
Abs: Russian Twists, 4x25 ( (going right, then going left equals 1)
Think about full rotation as if you were on the boat, think about your shoulder going back just like during the Press phase of your starts.
Stretches: Go stretch some more.
Of course, there are more exercises than just these, and I’ll probably add an update when the season kicks in, but for now, focus on these, get stronger, get better, then move on.
Boathouse workout
PDF Download
(this is on Google Docs -- if you don't have an account and/or have problems accessing, just send me a mail at gavinmcw@gmail.com, and I'll send you a copy.)
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Portland Boathouse Workout
- 1 Lap Promenade: (challenge: 2 laps)*
- 10 sets stairs: (challenge: 20 sets)
- 2,000m erg (challenge 5,000m)
- Pushups: 3x20
- Situps: 2x100 (challenge: 3x100)
- Lunges: 3x20 (10 full, 10 halfway, each leg).
- (Challenge: air squats: 3x20)
- Jumprope: 3x100
*Actually, to maximize time spent and workouts, I try to tack runs onto the beginning of each of my water workouts. Think about it: I’m there anyway; it lengthens the time burning calories; at the end of the water workout, I’ll be push myself even harder, which will improve my overall fitness. It’s a good habit to get into.
Monday, November 22, 2010
The Off-Season Workout, Part 1
Here is what many of you have been waiting for: the OFF SEASON WORKOUT. Now, to specify, these are still exercises I do during the season as well, but more often and using heavier weights. So, this could actually just be called the Paddling Workout.
Also, this program is NOT coach or doctor approved, but they work for me. I’ve been doing these types of ‘bundles’ for the past two seasons, and it got me the second fastest time trial in the club by .5 seconds (damn you, Jim Hinsvark!) and to the World Championships in Hungary in August. So, I’m just saying these exercises work for me.
The general components are:
Cardio: This helps weight loss, of course, but also helps build a solid base for the intensity you’ll need during a 500m race. I think just a general running foundation will get you about 200m without tapping out, and a more rigorous workout plan during the season will get you to about 400m. And even the fittest athletes will start to get tired for the last 100m, but that’s where strength training comes into play and you learn how to dig deeper.
The Erg: Yes, everyone hates the erg, but I just can’t quite understand why. As competitive paddlers, we are measured by how we perform on it. And thus, we should look to it as a tool to make ourselves stronger.
Weight Training: This is obvious, but the key is focusing on the muscle groups that are employed while racing. I will list out sets, and if they are done close together, it will be like extending your cardio workout and therefore build an even better cardio base. It also replicates what we do during a race, which is a very intense combination of both strength and cardio.
The thing is, you’ll need a gym. Anyone who is interested in making themselves a better paddler, both for yourself and for your team, needs to belong to a gym. I have developed plans that are built around workouts at the boathouse, but to really move yourself to the next level and be truly valuable on the boat, you need to get to the gym.
Stretching: We’re not 17 years old anymore, and I’ve learned this the hard way. I’ve spent a LOT of money going to back specialists, and the only thing they tell me is to stretch more. Really? So yeah, as mundane as it is, stretching has kept me on the boat and on the road.
The All-Over Approach
I firmly believe in working on each major muscle group during each workout. This comes from my playing basketball 4-5 days a week -- we were running, jumping, muscling through the lanes, boxing out, using our entire bodies, not just a couple parts at a time. It also heralds back to the prehistoric days as hunters, where we ran, jumped and fought. No one was worried specifically about their lats or their biceps, they were worried about feeding their clan.
So, that's the approach I take, and it was reinforced by taking Les Mils’ Body Pump classes. It’s essentially a “Down/Up” approach, which means I start from the top of the body, move down, then move back up again. The order is this: chest, back, legs (down), biceps, triceps, shoulders (up). Then finish with abs and stretching.
I will, however, do focused workouts for two week stretches every few months, or so, just to confuse the body.
The Routine:
Everyone has their own general routine, which days to workout, how many days a week to workout, working out in the morning, in the evening, etc, so I won’t speak to that. I think that you can run every day and be all right. My rule for weight lifting, though, is that I might do the same muscle group two days in a row, but I will not do the same exercise for that group on consecutive days.
With this in mind, I will list out routines for Day 1 and Day 2. The third day is entirely up to you, when you can do any one of these three options: a) start again with Day 1, b) take a day off, c) get on the water.
The muscle groups I focus on are the main muscles for racing: back, legs, shoulders, core. I will even it out with biceps, triceps and chest work.
Make sure you vary your weights and your reps, to keep your body guessing. For the first month, start with 4x15, lower weight. For the second month, increase the weight and change to 3x10. If you feel yourself getting stronger, on the third month, go 4x15 again, but with higher weight than Month 1, and then for Month 4, increase the weight again and go 3x10.
DAY 1
Cardio
Day 1: run, 3-4 miles
This is intentionally a shorter, attainable distance. No need to go out for an hour at a pop. These distances are nice and digestible and you can push yourself the whole time. No need to save your energy to get through it.
I also suggest running outside. Skip the treadmill. No matter how hard it is to get up and out in bad weather, it is always extremely rewarding when it is said and done, and you’ll be in better shape to boot.
Also, record your times. Take a stop watch with you and write down the times for a specific route when you’re done. It will keep you motivated and you can see how you do after a couple good weeks, or if you do worse or better after a couple days off, etc.
Weights:
Chest: 3x10 Bench Press. Moderate Weight
Back: 3x10 Lat pulldowns. Heavy Weight
Legs: Quads and alternate with hamstrings, using machines. This means, one set of ten on quads, then move straight over to do hamstrings for one set of ten, repeat two more times.
Legs are key for a couple reasons: 1) This will maximize your leg drive during practices and racing. 2) A strong foundation is key for maintaining a strong back (this is straight from the doctor’s mouth, btw).
Biceps:
Curls. Either
a) 3x10 or
b) 3x21 (called “21’s): 7x bottom half curls, 7x upper half curls, 7x full range curls. These are obviously to be done with lower weight.
Triceps: Either pushdowns or extensions
Shoulder Combo: 3 x forward raises, side raises -- lower weight, forward x 10, side x 10.
Abs: 300 sit-ups. (300 is my rule of thumb per workout. Vary them up, use weights, include oblique crunches, etc.)
Stretches: Just go stretch.
(Part 2, plus a few extra goodies will be coming shortly)
Also, this program is NOT coach or doctor approved, but they work for me. I’ve been doing these types of ‘bundles’ for the past two seasons, and it got me the second fastest time trial in the club by .5 seconds (damn you, Jim Hinsvark!) and to the World Championships in Hungary in August. So, I’m just saying these exercises work for me.
The general components are:
Cardio: This helps weight loss, of course, but also helps build a solid base for the intensity you’ll need during a 500m race. I think just a general running foundation will get you about 200m without tapping out, and a more rigorous workout plan during the season will get you to about 400m. And even the fittest athletes will start to get tired for the last 100m, but that’s where strength training comes into play and you learn how to dig deeper.
The Erg: Yes, everyone hates the erg, but I just can’t quite understand why. As competitive paddlers, we are measured by how we perform on it. And thus, we should look to it as a tool to make ourselves stronger.
Weight Training: This is obvious, but the key is focusing on the muscle groups that are employed while racing. I will list out sets, and if they are done close together, it will be like extending your cardio workout and therefore build an even better cardio base. It also replicates what we do during a race, which is a very intense combination of both strength and cardio.
The thing is, you’ll need a gym. Anyone who is interested in making themselves a better paddler, both for yourself and for your team, needs to belong to a gym. I have developed plans that are built around workouts at the boathouse, but to really move yourself to the next level and be truly valuable on the boat, you need to get to the gym.
Stretching: We’re not 17 years old anymore, and I’ve learned this the hard way. I’ve spent a LOT of money going to back specialists, and the only thing they tell me is to stretch more. Really? So yeah, as mundane as it is, stretching has kept me on the boat and on the road.
The All-Over Approach
I firmly believe in working on each major muscle group during each workout. This comes from my playing basketball 4-5 days a week -- we were running, jumping, muscling through the lanes, boxing out, using our entire bodies, not just a couple parts at a time. It also heralds back to the prehistoric days as hunters, where we ran, jumped and fought. No one was worried specifically about their lats or their biceps, they were worried about feeding their clan.
So, that's the approach I take, and it was reinforced by taking Les Mils’ Body Pump classes. It’s essentially a “Down/Up” approach, which means I start from the top of the body, move down, then move back up again. The order is this: chest, back, legs (down), biceps, triceps, shoulders (up). Then finish with abs and stretching.
I will, however, do focused workouts for two week stretches every few months, or so, just to confuse the body.
The Routine:
Everyone has their own general routine, which days to workout, how many days a week to workout, working out in the morning, in the evening, etc, so I won’t speak to that. I think that you can run every day and be all right. My rule for weight lifting, though, is that I might do the same muscle group two days in a row, but I will not do the same exercise for that group on consecutive days.
With this in mind, I will list out routines for Day 1 and Day 2. The third day is entirely up to you, when you can do any one of these three options: a) start again with Day 1, b) take a day off, c) get on the water.
The muscle groups I focus on are the main muscles for racing: back, legs, shoulders, core. I will even it out with biceps, triceps and chest work.
Make sure you vary your weights and your reps, to keep your body guessing. For the first month, start with 4x15, lower weight. For the second month, increase the weight and change to 3x10. If you feel yourself getting stronger, on the third month, go 4x15 again, but with higher weight than Month 1, and then for Month 4, increase the weight again and go 3x10.
DAY 1
Cardio
Day 1: run, 3-4 miles
This is intentionally a shorter, attainable distance. No need to go out for an hour at a pop. These distances are nice and digestible and you can push yourself the whole time. No need to save your energy to get through it.
I also suggest running outside. Skip the treadmill. No matter how hard it is to get up and out in bad weather, it is always extremely rewarding when it is said and done, and you’ll be in better shape to boot.
Also, record your times. Take a stop watch with you and write down the times for a specific route when you’re done. It will keep you motivated and you can see how you do after a couple good weeks, or if you do worse or better after a couple days off, etc.
Weights:
Chest: 3x10 Bench Press. Moderate Weight
Back: 3x10 Lat pulldowns. Heavy Weight
Legs: Quads and alternate with hamstrings, using machines. This means, one set of ten on quads, then move straight over to do hamstrings for one set of ten, repeat two more times.
Legs are key for a couple reasons: 1) This will maximize your leg drive during practices and racing. 2) A strong foundation is key for maintaining a strong back (this is straight from the doctor’s mouth, btw).
Biceps:
Curls. Either
a) 3x10 or
b) 3x21 (called “21’s): 7x bottom half curls, 7x upper half curls, 7x full range curls. These are obviously to be done with lower weight.
Triceps: Either pushdowns or extensions
Shoulder Combo: 3 x forward raises, side raises -- lower weight, forward x 10, side x 10.
Abs: 300 sit-ups. (300 is my rule of thumb per workout. Vary them up, use weights, include oblique crunches, etc.)
Stretches: Just go stretch.
(Part 2, plus a few extra goodies will be coming shortly)
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Paddlers Love Beer
In the paddling community, drinking beer is our second favorite activity. Complex carbs: GOOD.
But I was speaking with a friend of mine last week who had crashed their car into a cement wall coming home from a party at 2 o'clock in the morning. After 4 glasses of wine in 5 hours, they fell asleep at the wheel. No one was hurt, and the cement wall certainly won over the car.
This was a wake-up call for them, and even for me, hearing the story. They have children, and what if it had been worse? Aside from this, they were booked for a DUI and a hit and run (they didn't know the cement wall had belonged to anyone in particular so didn't contact the 'owner'). Six hours spent in jail ("a horrible experience") and all the ensuing ramification to job, car and personal life.
This isn't even the first story I've heard over the past couple months: another person refused a breathalyzer test, and this will now effect their profession.
I know that I have driven home after drinking when I probably should not have, but thinking I was 'just fine.' These stories, though, are stories that make me seriously think, and ones that I wanted to pass on. They are lessons for us all.
So, just be safe, take it easy, call a cab, drink water, stay on your host's couch, take the bus. Just be safe.
But I was speaking with a friend of mine last week who had crashed their car into a cement wall coming home from a party at 2 o'clock in the morning. After 4 glasses of wine in 5 hours, they fell asleep at the wheel. No one was hurt, and the cement wall certainly won over the car.
This was a wake-up call for them, and even for me, hearing the story. They have children, and what if it had been worse? Aside from this, they were booked for a DUI and a hit and run (they didn't know the cement wall had belonged to anyone in particular so didn't contact the 'owner'). Six hours spent in jail ("a horrible experience") and all the ensuing ramification to job, car and personal life.
This isn't even the first story I've heard over the past couple months: another person refused a breathalyzer test, and this will now effect their profession.
I know that I have driven home after drinking when I probably should not have, but thinking I was 'just fine.' These stories, though, are stories that make me seriously think, and ones that I wanted to pass on. They are lessons for us all.
So, just be safe, take it easy, call a cab, drink water, stay on your host's couch, take the bus. Just be safe.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
The Off-Season
Fall has finally hit the Pacific Northwest. It smells like Fall (since I moved back from Hong Kong last year, smells are a big deal to me -- you can only take so many years of smelling concrete and garbage, and Oregon has some of the best smells in the world -- guarantee it).
Wasabi Burn (the premier mixed team) got back on the water last night after about 12 days off. The weird thing about the sport of dragon boating is that even after a two week break, each movement felt labored, strange and odd. And this was a sentiment shared by several others on the boat, including those who made the Team USA this year, as well as those who raced San Diego last weekend. We paddlers spend so much time on the water because there is so much that is muscle memory. During a race, when we are digging our deepest and there could be numerous distractions -- being 2 feet from a boat, trying to retake a lead, pushing yourself past your limits of exhaustion -- muscle memory will allow our bodies to perform and apply as much power as possible.
Last Thursday, I went out with the outrigger paddlers (an aside: when dragon boaters are introduced to an established OC team, there is a chuckle that rises up. Why is that? Is it that we're not supposed to be able to handle long distance regimen? I just didn't get that). It was a good run. And I used to OC in Asia, with the South China Sea Outrigger Club, for quite a long time, so I'm used to it. One of the main reasons I paddle is for the thrill of racing, but we just didn't train for races when we OC'd. We would just go out. For months. So, it lost its luster.
However, the thing that is glaringly clear when attending dragon boat races, is that the outrigger teams are not just better, but dominant. In Portand, Kai Ikaika is THE team to beat. In the Portland race in 2009, Burn lost to Kai by 'only' a boat length, and we considered it an enourmous victory (but this was compounded by beating the Portland Fire Dragons convincingly after they took us in Tacoma in May). Lanakila kicked in San Diego, both days. (I should qualify this: their open team for the 250m won by 3.19 seconds -- a drubbing, but their mixed team, which also utilized 4 strong Wasabi women, beat LARD by only fifteen hundredths of a second.)
With this in mind, but also taking into consideration that I may just need to change things up on the water, I'm going to really give OCing a try this winter. The change will be nice, of course, but I don't want to slide too far back in my fitness because I want to try out for World's next year. Time trialing is seriously my drug. My carrot.
So, my question for you all, is how are you attacking this off season? What do you want to accomplish? What are you doing as a team? Individually?
For example, I started off last week thinking that I could just run all winter. Training for the Portland Marathon last year, I dropped quite a bit of weight, but that included a loss in muscle mass as well - I didn't lift, I only ran and did leg and core exercises. Then, as things would have it, I had a calf injury, so it's back to lifting. Then my left elbow burstitis started acting up. So then it's..... what do I do next??
So what are you all doing?
Wasabi Burn (the premier mixed team) got back on the water last night after about 12 days off. The weird thing about the sport of dragon boating is that even after a two week break, each movement felt labored, strange and odd. And this was a sentiment shared by several others on the boat, including those who made the Team USA this year, as well as those who raced San Diego last weekend. We paddlers spend so much time on the water because there is so much that is muscle memory. During a race, when we are digging our deepest and there could be numerous distractions -- being 2 feet from a boat, trying to retake a lead, pushing yourself past your limits of exhaustion -- muscle memory will allow our bodies to perform and apply as much power as possible.
Last Thursday, I went out with the outrigger paddlers (an aside: when dragon boaters are introduced to an established OC team, there is a chuckle that rises up. Why is that? Is it that we're not supposed to be able to handle long distance regimen? I just didn't get that). It was a good run. And I used to OC in Asia, with the South China Sea Outrigger Club, for quite a long time, so I'm used to it. One of the main reasons I paddle is for the thrill of racing, but we just didn't train for races when we OC'd. We would just go out. For months. So, it lost its luster.
However, the thing that is glaringly clear when attending dragon boat races, is that the outrigger teams are not just better, but dominant. In Portand, Kai Ikaika is THE team to beat. In the Portland race in 2009, Burn lost to Kai by 'only' a boat length, and we considered it an enourmous victory (but this was compounded by beating the Portland Fire Dragons convincingly after they took us in Tacoma in May). Lanakila kicked in San Diego, both days. (I should qualify this: their open team for the 250m won by 3.19 seconds -- a drubbing, but their mixed team, which also utilized 4 strong Wasabi women, beat LARD by only fifteen hundredths of a second.)
With this in mind, but also taking into consideration that I may just need to change things up on the water, I'm going to really give OCing a try this winter. The change will be nice, of course, but I don't want to slide too far back in my fitness because I want to try out for World's next year. Time trialing is seriously my drug. My carrot.
So, my question for you all, is how are you attacking this off season? What do you want to accomplish? What are you doing as a team? Individually?
For example, I started off last week thinking that I could just run all winter. Training for the Portland Marathon last year, I dropped quite a bit of weight, but that included a loss in muscle mass as well - I didn't lift, I only ran and did leg and core exercises. Then, as things would have it, I had a calf injury, so it's back to lifting. Then my left elbow burstitis started acting up. So then it's..... what do I do next??
So what are you all doing?
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