Superhero warm-ups

start

superherowarm-ups!

mental mindset

environment

planning & practice

medicine ball slamming

example warm-up

i've already got a warm-up

pre-paddle

r-map protocol

physiological mechanisms

warm-up benefits

contents

A well planned warm-up not only reduces risk of injury, but can boost performance levels!

warm-up benefits

Strength & power

Rate of force development

blood flow to muscles

muscle contraction & relaxation speed

reaction time

She-Hulk

Prime hormonal system

Thor

Potentiate muscles

Iron Man

Engage energy systems

Storm

Stimulate neural system

Flash

Activate VO2 kinetics

Human Torch

Elevate muscle temperature

physiological mechanisms

An increase in muscle temperature results in better nerve conduction, muscle fiber recruitment, and blood flow. Simply put, warm muscles are more powerful and efficient! Raising your core temperature by 1.0-1.5 °C via moderate intensity exercise is thought to be optimal, so a warm-up should progress through your training zones and leave you feeling warm and sweaty.

Elevate muscle temperature

By going through your gears during a warm-up, you will effectively be switching on each of the individual metabolic systems that are responsible for delivering energy throughout a 2000m race. This will help ensure you are firing on all cylinders during the start, middle, and end phases of a race!

engage energy systems

Via a 'priming' effect, prior, high-intensity exercise increases the amount of oxygen you can use for energy production at the very start of your race. This 1) increases your average power output, and 2) preserves limited short-term energy stores, which you can save for a sprint finish. Your warm-up should include a 60s evenly paced effort at race pace. Performing this 15-20 minutes before your race begins will help ensure you start your race with elevated oxygen uptake, whilst having time to clear the acute fatigue before your race begins.

activate vo2 kinetics

more info

A warm-up should include explosive, high-intensity exercises on the land and in the boat. This not only helps build towards the intensity of racing but also can improve subsequent performance, utilising the effects of a principle known as post-activation potentiation.

pontentiate muscles

Performing sport-specific movements, that mimic the demands of rowing, helps establish movement patterns and prepares your neural pathways for sending movement signals from the brain to the muscles.

stimulate neural system

more info

Performing explosive exercises early in the morning on race day helps offset the natural decrease in the hormone testosterone that occurs throughout the course of the day. Since testosterone is associated with power production, competitveness, and aggressiveness, this can help boost performance levels in the afternoon.

prime hormonal system

an effective warm-up can be broken down into several elements using the r-map protocol . . .

Build towards the same level of exercise intensity you will use in your race

Switch on key muscles groups via activation exercises

Dynamic stretching will prepare key joints used in rowing and encourage full range of movement

Use an active warm-up to increase body temperature, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood flow

potentiate

activate

mobilise

raise

r-MAp protocol

what will each of these elements achieve physiologically?

60 minutes before your race Begin with an active land warm-up to RAISE body and muscle temperature, as well as elevate heart rate, breathing, and blood flow. This can involve 10 minutes of cycling on a static bike. Start off at UT3 intensity and progress to UT2 in the last 5 minutes

example warm-up

Lower body:

• Inchworms
• Spiderman lunge
• Glute bridge with overhead reach
• 90/90 stretch

Upper body:

• Threadneedles
• Floor scorpion
• Angry cat happy cat

what will each of these elements achieve physiologically?

50 minutes before your race After the bike, perform dynamic stretching to MOBILISE joints and encourage full range of movement. Perform 8-10 reps of each exercise.

example warm-up

Trunk:

• Dead bugs variations
• Side plank with rotation

Lower body:

• Glute bridge variations
• RDL variations
• Banded single leg squats

Upper body:

• Banded pull aparts
• Banded press
• I to W

what will each of these elements achieve physiologically?

+info

45 minutes before your race Next, switch on your key muscle groups using ACTIVATION exercises. These will help stimulate your neural pathways. Exercise selection should be based on your individual requirements. Look to select 1 x upper body, 1 x lower body, and 1 x trunk exercise. Perform 2 x 8 reps of each selected exercise.

example warm-up

40 minutes before your race (hands on the boat) After completing the land element of your warm-up, transtion to the water. In the boat, (35 mins before race) start with technical drills before 5 minutes of UT2 rowing. After this, you can build from stroke rate 18 to 28, increasing by 2 spm every 30 seconds. Going through the gears in this manner and building towards race intensity will PONTENTIATE your muscles and engage the energy systems responsible for delivering power throughout your upcoming race. Importantly, this element of your warm-up should be continuous in nature to help maintain muscle temperature. 20 minutes before your race Intersperse light paddling with passive recovery for 2 minutes before completing an evenly paced 1 minute effort at mid-race speed and stroke rate. This will activate your VO2 kinetics.

example warm-up

what will each of these elements achieve physiologically?

15 minutes before your race After your race effort, catch your breath for 1 minute and have a drink before transitioning back to UT2 intensity rowing. 10 minutes before your race This part of your warm-up should be intermittent in nature, interspersing periods of passive recovery with short, explosive efforts to prepare your fast-twitch muscle fibers and further stimulate your neural pathways. Include 2 x 15 stroke bursts at above race pace. These high-intensity bursts and practice starts will help potentiate your muscles but will need to be brief enough so as not to cause significant fatigue.

example warm-up

what will each of these elements achieve physiologically?

5 minutes before your race After completing the previous steps, rest for 5 minutes to clear any short-term fatigue that could compromise the start of your race. During this period you can have your last drink and get ready to race!

example warm-up

that's ok!

Yeah, I've been warming up the same way for years and I always come out on top...

But look for opportunities to experiment and improve your warm-up even further. Also, consider the physiological mechanisms at play and ensure you are deploying all of them with your warm-up and race day routines.

Hold on, what if I've already got a warm-up that I use?

You might find that with making subtle tweaks to your warm-ups e.g. duration, intensity or incoporating a land warm-up element etc. and experiementing during high-intensity training sessions or pieces that one routine comes out on top and gets you feeling most prepared to perform and deliver a knockout blow to your rivals!

warm-up no.2

warm-up no.1

A pre-paddle is normally performed 2-3 hours before your race. In addition to 'waking up' your body and the physiological systems within it, the pre-paddle is used to familiarise yourself with the course and get a feel for the weather and water conditions. You can also reinforce the technical model and stroke patterning that you are going to use in your race. Pre-paddles are typically 4-6km in duration and can include technical drills. The majority of your pre-paddle will be UT3/UT2 intensity but also consider your intent, do you want to include some intensity e.g. bursts? It is recommended that you include at least a 250m piece at UT1 to get some load on the spoon. You should speak to your coach about this and ensure you have a plan.

other considerations

pre-paddle

+info

Performing these short, explosive efforts early in the morning means you can race with 'elevated' testosterone levels, which is particularly important if you have a race in the afternoon.

The concept of medicine ball slamming, a form of hormonal priming, was first proposed at British Rowing prior to the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing. The aim is to maximally engage large muscle groups with short, exposive efforts early in the morning, which in turn helps offset the natural decline in circulating testosterone throughout the day.

other considerations

medicine ball slamming

other considerations

In cooler conditons, wearing layers of clothing (e.g. leggings) will help maintain muscle temperature, so you should remove them as late as possible pre-race. You should also avoid unecessary cold exposure, so try to avoid splashing cold water on large muscle groups, such as your legs and arms. Also, avoid having meetings with your coaches and crewmates halfway through your warm-up as this could negate any increases in muscle temperature! It is important to consider the environment you are competing in. If it is particualrly hot on the day of your race, you might really want to splash cold water on your legs and arms. You might also want to wear less layers of clothing when warming up to avoid overheating. You should also consider how a particualrly hot day might impact the individual components of your warm-up - will you decrease the length of your pre-paddle from 6km to 4km to spend less time in the sun? Will you shorten your race warm-up? Will you perform only 1 practice start instead of 2? These are all factors you should consider, along with your coach, prior to arriving in Canada.

environment

other considerations

You might want to think about the meetings you've had with your coach and crew in the days leading up to the race. Remember what you've spoken about and reinforce your race plan! Everyone prepares differently so think about what works for you in the hours leading up to a race and what gets your ready to go. Routines are incredibly important in giving you confidence and a mental edge. Also be aware and respectful of others e.g. you may like chatting and listening to loud music in the hours before your race, but others might not!

mental mindset

other considerations

Use the elements discussed previously as a guide to plan your own warm-up and make adjustments based on individual requirements. Think about using different modalities as well as your race day schedule and logistics when forming this plan. Also, consider what parts of your warm-up can you do individually and what parts can you do together as a crew? Practicing your warm-up is essential, so look for opportunities to experiment during high-intensity training sessions or pieces. You may find that you initially strike the wrong balance, for example, your warm-up being too intense leaving you short of breath and too tired at the start of your race. So experiment and refine until you have an effective warm-up routine that gets you ready to go!

Planning & practice

that's all folks

Important

• Medicine ball slamming should be done at least 20 mins after getting out of bed
• Ensure you perform a mobility warm-up before beggining slamming

Medicine ball slamming

Protocol:3 sets of 6 reps3-4 kg medicine ball3 min rest in between sets