Issue 98 - May 1997

Keep training on the rails

Time lost through injury is time which could have been spent training. This basic fact explains why successful sports performers are invariably those who, through good luck or intelligent programme design, have managed to avoid injury and train consistently well. It is the essence of sport that coaches and athletes are constantly striving to find ways to achieve performance excellence. Ensuring that as little time as possible is lost through injury (or illness) and that training time is maximised offers a logical route to success. The following may help you to avoid injury and maximise your potential.

Traumatic and overuse injuries

In rowing, there is often little that can be done to prevent traumatic contact injuries, that is, those which occur suddenly and result from clashes with blades, river banks, other boats or partially submerged objects. Having said that, there is an argument for strong muscles being able to help stabilise and protect joints in the event of a collision, thereby lessening the severity of any incurred injury. Fortunately, such extrinsic traumatic injuries are rare. More common are intrinsic traumatic injuries which are associated with excessive overload (such as muscle tears) or chronic injuries associated with overuse and repetition (such as tenosynovitis of the wrist). Since such injuries are characteristic of training errors, these are largely preventable.

Training errors

We all like to think that the training we are doing is benefiting us. But if training is not carefully thought out, progressive in nature and suited to our current state of fitness and performance potential, it may be detrimental. Little data exists for rowing and sculling, but lessons can be learned from distance running. Overuse injuries are often associated with sudden increases in training mileage, intensity (of training sessions), persistent, high-intensity training and intense competition. So if, as the regatta season approaches, you are tempted to increase your training dramatically in terms of either mileage, intensity, or frequency of high intensity training, remember that you are also dramatically increasing the risk of an overuse injury - even more so if you have neglected to build a sound foundation of general fitness and strength throughout the winter. It follows that if you suspect your fitness base is lacking, you may profit from a six-week phase of endurance and strength training now, delaying your more intense block of work prior to competing (successfully!) in the second half of the regatta season. It is interesting to note in this respect that some research on stress fractures of the ribs in rowers has shown that these are most likely to occur during the most demanding periods of training in the lead up to the competitive season.

Remember, it is often wise to stop and remind yourself of your current fitness and performance level (using specific tests as appropriate), relate this to where you want to be, set realistic training goals and train with these in mind.

At all costs avoid the temptation to follow a training programme designed for someone else. All training programmes should take you - and your strengths, weaknesses, time constraints and goals - as the starting point. Most of us have to work as well as train, and consequently must recover from the stress of work as well as the stress of training. In many instances, a decrease in volume while emphasising quality and efficiency and adequate rest offers less risk of overuse injury plus better physiological and performance benefits than traditional approaches modelled on full-time athletes. Bear in mind also, that the physiological demands of 1000m and 500m racing are quite different from those of 2000m. Once again, what are your goals? Train accordingly and keep a training diary to record your improvement by noting what works for you.

Technique

In terms of injury prevention, skill or technique is vital. This applies not only to the technique of rowing or sculling, but also to the technical execution of any exercises in the gym. To row, scull or lift weights with poor technique is to place the muscles, joints and ligaments of the body in compromising positions which increase the risk of injury. The skilful rowing or sculling action is not inherently risky from a mechanical perspective, but incorrect action is. Technique is everything, to the extent that if your technique is at fault you should correct it immediately. Video analysis is invaluable in spotting both technical inconsistencies and biomechanical insufficiencies. Remember, too, that skill breaks down in the presence of fatigue. So, if your technique goes to pieces in the later stages of a race, it may be aspects of your fitness that are at fault.

Weight training

In the gym, there is no value in performing any exercise with poor technique. You will gain nothing from it, apart from an increased injury risk. Whilst there may well be some controversy at present with respect to the value of weights when training for improved rowing performance, it is worthwhile viewing weight training as a vehicle for improving skill and technique. In other sports, supplementary conditioning in the gym is often carried out with the aim of correcting strength imbalances between muscles because this can be an injury factor in its own right, or with the aim of strengthening muscles so that they are better able to hold the body dynamically in the right position for the execution of the correct technique. In sprinting, for example, conditioning of the trunk is carried out so that the pelvis can be positioned correctly in the leg drive phase, whilst in tennis or javelin throwing, work on the muscles acting on the shoulder blades and trunk enables the shoulder joint to act effectively as a funnel for the huge forces being directed through it in the serve or throw with a much reduced risk of injury. Yet any conditioning is seldom performed in isolation. It is linked to technical drills on the track, court or throwing field. There is an obvious parallel here, since oarsmen and women need to have strong, fatigue resistant abdominal and trunk muscles. This could mean that some people need to spend more time in the gym than others, depending on what they most need to work on, training with specific aims in mind. It could also mean that specific boat drills allied to land exercises may be preferable. However, whatever you do in the gym, remember that every exercise should be there for a reason.

Flexibility

Positioning the body appropriately for skillful, effective rowing or sculling requires a degree of flexibility, particularly of the hamstrings and of other muscles acting around the hip and pelvis. Whilst excessive mobility is a potential injury risk factor (usually only seen in ballet dancers and gymnasts), it is more common in oarsmen and women to see an increased injury risk associated with a lack of mobility, since this means that any tight muscles will be subject to excessive tension during force production, possibly resulting in a tear, whilst also exerting abnormal forces upon the bones to which they attach. In the case of the pelvis, a combination of weak and tight muscles attached to it from the lumbar spine, hip and thigh can negatively affect its stability during different phases of the rowing stroke and may contribute to low back pain. A comprehensive stretching routine is therefore recommended.

Remember that preparatory stretches (performed before an outing or training session, with each stretch being held for 6 - 10 seconds) should feature in the second part of the warm-up. You should aim to take your muscles and joints through their current range of motion. Developmental stretches, performed after an outing or training session, with each stretch being held for 30 seconds or more, aim to increase your current range of motion and should be mandatory for all oarsmen and women after each outing. Ease into each stretch position, never bounce.

Malalignments

Just as everyone looks different, so everyone has slightly different joint configurations. Oarsmen and women with one leg significantly (upwards of 1.5cm) longer than the other, for example, may be at greater risk of low back or hamstring injury, whilst those with 'knock knees' or 'bow legs' may be at greater risk of succumbing to a knee injury. Some of these malalignments can be 'corrected' through adjustment of the boat (the stretcher in the case of the first example) or in the latter case, through specific conditioning in the gym which aims to help the way the patella (kneecap) moves during leg extension. In this case, or when there is an overuse problem with no obvious origin, clinical advice should be sought. The most important message for anyone who has a niggling injury or develops one is to seek advice immediately. But do ask yourself, besides the points already mentioned whether anything has changed; boat, blades, seat, rigging, etc., since this will aid the diagnosis. With continued training or competition, that mildly irritating little problem which will probably only require a few days' treatment and modified activity can easily become a chronic condition which may require months of rehabilitation and time away from your sport.

References

1. Clement et al (1981) A survey of overuse running injuries. Phys. and Sports Med. 9 (5),pp 47 - 58.
2. Holden, DL and Jackson, DW (1985) Stress fractures of the ribs in female rowers. Am. J. Sports Med. 13 (5) pp 342.

© Copyright Tony Lycholat, 1997.