Winston Churchill said “to improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” Striving for continuous improvement in your rowing technique will help you develop skill and power. Training under the watchful eye of a coach gives immediate feedback to which you can respond to make a correction.
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There are times, however, when you need to go solo and practice a particular movement quietly to work out a new pattern. In both cases, self-teaching methods can advance your learning as you attempt to change an element based on what your coach recommended or your own goals.
During an introduction to a sculling camp, Ric Ricci, head men’s rowing coach at Connecticut College and associate director of the sculling program at the Craftsbury Sculling Center in Craftsbury Common, Vt., offered these tips for getting the most out of the experience:
• The slower you go, the faster you learn; take the time to experience change.
• If it doesn’t feel different, it’s not different.
• Keep a journal and make notes before you go to sleep.
• Remember how it felt.
• Try to give yourself a way to reinterpret your experience.
• Start and stop; allow yourself to reset so that you maintain high-quality movements.
• Attend to rhythm versus ratio; increase efficiency through rhythm.
There are many nuances to the stroke cycle and how to move boats effectively, many of which are counterintuitive, but raising your awareness and refining your way of practicing will help you grow consistently as an athlete and competitor.
