Strength Coach Roundtable #9: Strength Training for Adaptive Rowers

Guest Coach Tara Morgan of Seize the Oar Unified Rowing in Seattle, WA, joins the Strength Coach Roundtable for a discussion on strength training for adaptive rowers. In this 45-minute discussion, we talk performance needs, minimizing injury risk, how to structure your training area, making individual adjustments in training, and more! Check the shownotes below for links to instructional videos, sample athlete questionnaire, and workout template.

Hear it also on Soundcloud and iTunes

0:00 — Introductions

• Blake and Joe are on a few-month hiatus, so Will will run 2-3 episodes on a different format and a few guests with a different format until they return.
• Guest Coach Tara Morgan is the Founder and Head Coach for Seize The Oar. Seize The Oar was founded in 2013 with one athlete and no equipment and the program has grown to serve hundreds of athletes needing adaptation. Rowing is her passion, inclusiveness is her goal.
  • Seize The Oar founded Ring Of Fire Para-Rowing Society to better serve coaches and athletes in adaptive rowing worldwide through mentoring, coaching education, equipment sharing and camaraderie.
  • Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

5:50 — What is Adaptive Rowing? Classifications, details, and more.

7:35 — Philosophy of Strength Training for Adaptive Rowers

• Perform, Protect, Heal
• Coaches: know your area of expertise. Contact Seize the Oar for more resources and help coming up with solutions for adaptive athletes.
• Rowers: know your body and how to push it.
• Athlete Questionnaire: injuries, medical conditions, medications, accommodation needs, etc.
  • Link to Questionnaire – https://goo.gl/forms/oGAEx1TDKwvTrIQs1

11:32 — Performance

• Only use what is necessary–minimize wasted movement
• Train rowing agonists. Develop power, refine rhythm, improve range-of-motion.
• Recognize that the conventional stroke doctrine does not perfectly apply to different categories of adaptive rowing. Rowing motion, rigging, mechanics may need to be altered and adjusted for the individual.

18:30 — Protect

• Minimizing risk of injuries is about more than just workout design.
• Design a level of workout that fits with your means and equipment.
• How to organize staff, equipment, and facility.

24:50 — Heal

• Specific exercises to offset wheelchair use.
• Develop antagonists:
  • Wall Angel or Scapular Wall Slide Video
  • I-Y-T Raises Video

30:40 — Workout Design

• 90-minute workouts: dynamic warm-up, cardio, strength, recovery.
  • Dynamic Warm-Up Video
  • Lat Pulldown Video
  • Curl-to-Press Video
  • Goblet Press Video
• How to design circuit workouts
  • Picture of workout board at right
• Equipment list
  • Resistance bands
  • Recommended: “Pro Light,” “Pro Monster,” “Pro Mini,” “Pro Micro”
• Seize the Oar minimum: chair-to-dock transfer video

Bonus: Sample Strength Training Workouts

Below, Brian at Ergomania using Active Hands (from row2k)

Thanks for listening! If you have a question or comment, please leave it below and we’ll respond. Until our next episode, you can listen to all of our old ones here in the Rowperfect UK archives.