4 Drills to Make You A Better Paddler

4 drills to make you a better paddler

Many recreational paddlers have a big challenge of improving their stroke mechanics with the very little amount of training that they receive over the weekends. I have seen many novice paddlers get stuck with bad habits in their paddling skills due to the lack of time spent on developing their fundamentals. I hope that through this post, we can close up this gap in poor fundamentals and make you a better, more efficient paddler in your team. This post is by no means exhaustive in the list of ways that can make you a better paddler. These are just ways I have tried to ensure executing the best possible technique for myself.  

There are four (4) basic phases of paddling: 

1. “Catch” as you lean forward, rotate your body slightly toward your the bow of the boat and submerge ensuring no visible cavitation when your paddle enters the water. Make sure that the full blade catches water.

2. “Compression” is the phase where you lean back to pull water. Propulsion of the boat is based on countering that water resistance during this compression phase. The boat therefore, reaches its maximum propulsion force when 20 paddlers catch and pull at the same time.

3. “Recovery” is the phase where you pull the blade out of the water. This phase signals the completion of your first stroke and preparation for the next stroke.

4. “Reach” as you lean forward again to prepare for the “Catch” phase of your next stroke.

The following drills should make you more proficient in each of the phases of paddling and ensure strong fundamentals in your entire stroke. 

Catch drill - Silent Catch

Simple as it may sound, this drill requires you to paddle on your own either in the boat or by the side of the beach. Perform this drill with an understanding that a good catch is a quiet catch. Do only the front catch and perform it 10 times. Catch the water as cleanly and as silently as possible; no splashing and sloshing noises.  No need to pull the water. Just catch. Take note of the number of times you catch it silently out of 10 times. If its at least 9 out of 10, go on to higher repetitions. Your confidence in the silent catch drill will help ensure a strong fundamental in the proper way of catching the water for the next phase of the stroke. 

Compression - " one arm dumb bell row" 

Most people, especially recreational paddlers do not realise that they will tend to use their arms unconsciously to initiate the movement of the compression phase which will not be beneficial in the long run. A drill to counter this would be the "one arm dumb bell row". The name suggests the same exercise used in the gym replicated in the water. Taking a right paddler as a reference, the correct form should focus on using your shoulder to initiate the movement in the lower arm while having the upper t-grip in the left hand at eye level. Finish off the stroke at with the blade at mid-thigh level and recover for the next stroke. Do this 20 times. Feel your right shoulder starting the motion at each repetition. 

Recovery - Clean exit

The exit would be like a synonym of the entry. Clean in, Clean out. This drill is to be performed either as part of the stroke or at the end of the entire stroke.  You have to ensure that the paddle comes out of the water as "cleanly" as possible which means no splashing of the water away or into the boat. A clean exit reinforces good positive stroke technique while reducing drag at the end of the stroke via unnecessary movements. Repeat the drill 20 times to reinforce this skill.  Many seasoned paddlers will find this terribly difficult to execute because they may be used to splashing the water out for no good reason or just flicking the paddle which is a terrible waste of energy. 

Switch Sides

There is no better way for a paddler to improve in his stroke mechanics than to paddle on both sides as often as possible. This provides clear advantages for the team as well as for the paddler. 1) The paddler will gain more interest as it becomes an extension/challenge to the paddler to improve his technique on his weaker side. 2) The paddler will cognitively try to improve his stroke mechanics on his weaker side which will consciously lead to a better performance on his stronger side. Focus on the same catch, compression and recovery drills as mentioned above and improve as time goes by your stronger side will improve dramatically with the increased awareness of the weaknesses in the stroke.  

Well it may be true that some teams may emphasize stroke rate over mechanics of the stroke propulsion to deal with the resistance of the water. Yet, there is no substitute for basic execution, including timing and synchrony that makes up the a large part of competitive dragon boat racing.  Well that is another post from myself to help those who have trouble keeping up in their teams. In my next post, I would cover my experiences of training with a GPS and how it may help you as an athlete.