10 reasons Why LKY Could Have Been an Awesome Dragon Boat Coach

To commemorate our founding father's, Mr Lee Kuan Yew's 90th birthday, I thought I'd put up a tongue in cheek post of something no one thought about.. If he could have been a dragon boat coach.. Here's what I imagined him to be... 

How to Choose a Dragon Boat Paddle

Choosing a paddle can be a nightmare 

I guess choosing the right dragon boat paddle for your own individual needs is no less important than choosing which colour of the next oakley shades you're gonna buy. There are a variety of dragon boat paddles that range from many different prices and materials that you can choose from. Yet, the most important considerations would have to be your skill and style, Strength and Fitness and of course your budget. 

You can be sure that no two paddles that you try out while shopping for one will be the same and it's performance can vary tremendously based on the individual. You can always base on the few guidelines that we will be looking into and that we have to seriously consider before you make your virgin purchase of your paddle.

5 Step Workout You Can Use Today with a TRX!

Suspension trainers have been out on the market as a big hype to the fitness industry as the next big thing in body weight training. Few, however have utilised the potential that suspension trainers can result in the ultimate functional workout for your body. The TRX suspension trainer has been my best friend ever since I bought it and it has allowed me to train almost everywhere and anytime I want. I just want to share with my fans how I tried out a 5 step workout with my TRX and just bodyweight movements to provide the most ultimate workouts you can imagine. Get ready and hustle!

Paddle comparisons 2013!

courtesy of asia.ru

Paddles have developed over the years from its wooden predecessors to its current Carbon fibre iterations. For those looking to shop for a new paddle, look no further and check out the paddle comparison chart, courtesy of http://sfldbt.wordpress.com. 

All rights to the information are to the blogging team from SFLDBT!

Here it is!

Paddle comparison 2013

Have a good weekend everyone!

5 Things the Singaporean Dragon Boater MUST HAVE!

Ever since I started paddling in 2003, I have seen dragon boat in Singapore evolve from the days of yore. I never used to have the things we have today due to the access to more information on the internet and the influence that dragon boaters have had on the sporting community in Singapore. From my observations, many dragon boaters have become more involved in the sport that we have created a subculture in the way we look, feel and act like a the uniquely Singaporean dragon boater. In this post, I just wanted to highlight the TOP 5 things that the dragon boater in Singapore MUST HAVE to announce to the world, "Yeah! I'm a dragon boater.."

5 Tips I Use to Teach Novice Paddlers

It seems like its been forever I've been in Dragon boat but the my path through coaching has only just begun. I'm still tackling multiple problems on site on the water and I recently figured out a way to coach novice paddlers how to paddle properly. I feel I just have to find a way to teach them the proper basics; not like how I was taught way back almost 8 years back I though I could share with people how I teach paddlers especially people starting out how to paddle properly and with form. 

1. Teaching how to hold the paddle properly.

This must be quite a duh step to put in but I believe it is one of the most critical to teach a novice. Handling a paddle and holding the it properly must be an essential step to how to paddle properly because if the paddler is holding it too far up or too far down the shaft of the paddle, he/she will essentially stick to that position for as long as he will go on in their dragon boat career. I think as coaches we should emphasise this even more because a minute difference in the way the paddler holds the paddle can make a difference into all the steps that follow. 

2. Look at your blade!

I always emphasize to each and every paddler on my team to keep a clean catch in the water. They should keep a clear and precise 'catch' with every entry and avoid any visible splashing especially when they are learning. 

3. Listen to the water!

With reference to entry of the blade, I also like to emphasize an extremely silent catch where theoretically they should hear a pin drop when they enter the water. No sound, nothing. All they should hear is an insertion of the blade into the water that brings an orgasmic feeling of perfection. No pun intended. Yet, i make it clear to them that it is all about the catch that will prevent the loss of any distributed water across the blade of their paddle and allow them full resistance as they pull through the water. 

4. Focus on one thing at a time. 

I think many of the paddlers try to get everything right the first time but I never like that. As a coach, I feel it is important to emphasize how important it is to do one thing right and then move on to another mistake in your stroke. For example, if both a paddler's entry and exit in his stroke is lacking, I will just get him to focus on just the entry. Think about that and that and nothing else. He will become better at his entry and eventually when he gets better, we move on to his recovery. Its that simple. 

5. Posture, posture, posture!

Sitting posture in a dragon boat is one of the most critical factors that always elude the novice paddler. They fail to take notice that dragon boat is a sport that requires a full body range of motion that requires perfect posture to execute. If you hunch, its as good as paddling with your arms. If you straighten out, you acquire more than 90% of your body to execute the stroke. So small stuff do make sense in the long run. 

I don't think this list is as exhaustive, but I stick to this system to really teach them the basics. Paddling through their habits will only serve to deprive them of future performance improvements and its only right to get the basics in their subconscious as quickly as possible.