Physical strength. Mental strength. Attitudinal strength. Behavioral strength. All four strengths are crucial components of a paddling team. To make the boat the strongest it can possibly be, each person should identify (with the help of the coaching group and captains) what their two preferred strengths are and cultivate those in and out of the boat. We tend to focus on physical strength because that seems intuitive to a sport, but strengths are not only physical in nature, they are also mental, attitudinal, and behavioral. Physical strength is measured as “strength-to-weight ratio”. While weight
We all love racing. We wouldn’t be paddlers if we didn’t love the thrill of the race and the joy of the winning. But yes, it happens. There are at least a few on nearly every team; those paddlers who love the glory of racing (and posting the multiple photos to Facebook while posing with the trophies), but they don’t seem to truly understand how important training and team practices are. They show up to training sessions sporadically and when race selections are announced, they don’t understand why they haven’t been
I came across this graph on “How to be an Expert” a few years ago and it stuck with me. Of course, this graph can be applied to anything in life, but I really liked it in the context of paddling. We have all seen new paddlers come out, try the sport, and never come back. Why? Because they got frustrated and didn’t have the perseverance to continue past their first training session. We’ve also seen the paddlers who come out for a month or so, aren’t happy with their
Dragon Boater’s Core Workout #2 The first core workout was such a hit that I thought I would add a few more exercises to it. Do each of the following exercises for one minute: Crunches: Note that the hands are only resting on the head, not pulling on it. You can just touch your fingertips to the side of your head to be sure. Crunches with knees up: Shins horizontal, bring the knees close to the chest as you come up. Leg raises: Start from 1 inch off the ground and don’t go more
Eight great exercises to strengthen your core and prepare you for the upcoming paddle season.
