Day 1 - Foot Drive - Ivan Lawler Kayak Technique Series

[@pablo.4421]

Hello Ivan. My name is Pablo and I write you from Spain. I wold like to thank you because I have learnt exercises and technics in a way I haven't seen before. THANK YOU very much for your effort and generousity. Regards from Madrid.

[@hiking090909]

This is the best series of sports coaching episodes of all walks I've ever watched! They're systematic, scientific and practical! 👍👍

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Thanks!

[@theaccidentalsailor2312]

Great Video. The white piece of tape is great am surprised that I have never heard that before but it really demonstrates what needs to be done. Great stuff

[@andycanning8425]

Adding the heel bar should be the ticket. I am finding my legs locking out on the end of stroke often. My boat (Epic Legacy) has the half footboard and I realized watching this that I am shoving the heel forward. Game changer

[@zachhandler]

Thank you for doing this Ivan! It is much more helpful than most of the technique instruction that can be found on the web.

[@koreenfahey3363]

Just found your series- Awesome videos for the”average” person and older adult paddler- helps to also prevent so can paddler longer! Merci from Canada!

[@koreenfahey3363]

*prevent injuries!

[@harisuno3295]

Utilissimi video per tutti che vivono vicino al mare e non hanno un insegnante a disposizione per imparare ad andare in kayak/canoa. Grazie

[@matthewrosen2394]

Ivan - while we we deeply disappointed not to get your face to face expertise at the Berkeley California paddling and rowing club, this is a great substitute. Thanks so much.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

I was equally disappointed! Next time I am over we still need to do it!

[@tonywilson9942]

I’m doing the Coast to Coast in NZ, my only canoeing experience is from slalom. This is really helping me to transition from a couple of minutes of explosive paddling to a 5 to 6 hour slog.

[@andyengland5488]

Thanks for putting this together at this difficult time - really good to put things out there in a way we can do something positive at this time when most folk only have limited resources 👍

[@thibautvariengien4510]

I struggle to rotate my hips without pushing my hips down in the boat. Great exercise and very clear explanations. Thanks

[@michaeldixon908]

Ivan, great instruction and well described. Thanks for taking the time to go through this so thoroughly.

[@Szechung]

Just when I was about to work on some technique clips based on your presentation, yours popped up! It has been a long wait to see some practical analysis and drills for club level paddlers and yours is perfectly fit! Thanks and will give it my biggest support. Look forward to seeing some more of this series soon. Cheers!

[@giff06]

Thank you Ivan! I will view these time and time again. As a paddler for the last 30 years I still practice technique every session and much like the perfect golf swing, still tryin' to get it right! Stay safe!

[@kylanali9575]

I dont mean to be off topic but does anyone know of a tool to log back into an Instagram account..? I was stupid lost the account password. I appreciate any help you can give me.

[@kylanali9575]

@Chase Dexter Thanks for your reply. I got to the site through google and im waiting for the hacking stuff atm. Seems to take a while so I will reply here later with my results.

[@kylanali9575]

@Chase Dexter it did the trick and I finally got access to my account again. I am so happy! Thanks so much you saved my account :D

[@chasedexter4975]

@Kylan Ali Glad I could help :D

[@accel5922]

Very clear explanation, thanks Ivan! I agree with others here, that the white spot tape is a very useful teaching aid. And let's not forget the blue blocks behind your feet on the ergo, which provide a datum and help to highlight the position of the feet, these blocks really helped visualise the dynamic. I've now started on the leg drive exercises and I'm subscribed to your channel. Can't wait to see the rest of the series.

[@lizellekemptherapy359]

Thanks Ivan. Love the white tape idea & really good land based drill.

[@driesse1]

Thanks for this video. I’m a starting kayaker and love to learn the technic. But why is wearing socks such a problem

[@nicolasmith1460]

Very useful vid. Thank you. ... you’re a better coach than Physiotherapist but I’m looking to watching more. Brilliant!

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Thanks for the career appraisal Nicola. I will bear that in mind when applying for my next job. 😉

[@sash9315]

Absolutely love your videos! Thank you thank you! So difficult to get material of this level of detail of instruction! And from someone who, given your success in the sport, actually knows what he's talking about... Especially for us old people who want to do things correctly, but do not have the benefit of some youngsters' development camp or similar. Awesome!

[@davidryder3374]

"If I see someone wearing socks in a boat, we've got a problem; we will never be friends." What about socks INSIDE shoes, Ivan? Because I wear socks inside my various paddling shoes...it lessens the effect of grains of sand getting in there and, inexplicably, it totally removes the tendency for wet shoes to smell. Great video, btw. I'm sharing. I find it interesting that I've never seen a kayak with heel rests, even boats made in the UK.

[@faerchjakob]

Hi Ivan, this is me signaling you on the internet thing to say thanks for a great video and excercise. Please keep these coming!

[@b1lyb]

Great instructor by a great guy. I finished a surf ski 14 mile race once and when I got out of the boat I could hardly walk. My thigh muscle was quivering. I guess I had good leg drive that day. Or I need to get stronger legs.

[@gerryneckebroeck]

Really nice en clear explanation. I will follow. As a seakayker I would like to improve my technique. This will help for sure.Thanks

[@kayaksurfskisantaeulalia]

Thanks a lot Ivan 🙏 !! your videos are always very interesting 👍👍

[@jeanmartiny527]

good theory and training suggestions i wld also like to require suggestions with regard to improving stability in rougher water/waves and not only the statics that we often see on the internet and i am talking about k1 i actually add weight in the center to prevent from tipping to much and do the 4 times paddling left than right and 1 full stroke and lifting the paddling for 3 secs in the air

[@judesanchezjr6929]

Hi Ivan, thank you for sharing your knowledge to us.

[@datawookie]

Thanks, Ivan. Very informative!

[@hernanacuna87]

Muchísimas gracias. Gran explicación.

[@giampieronicoli4381]

Great Clinic videos. As a slalom paddler I see the same concepts applied in a different environment. Do the phisical limits with ww K!1 hull (reduced torso rotation and legs bending) explain why high arm extension is still taught? Regards.

[@George-bb9yi]

I love this video series; this sort of instruction is simply not available for the general public. I would have benefited from a brief introduction and overview of the entire paddling stroke: showing it from multiple angles and overhead as well before you address the various elements. It would also be incredibly beneficial if you could make a short video with observations of how these racing techniques might apply to sea kayaks, but I understand if you have no interest in doing that.

[@hansb5107]

Hi there. Thank you for being down to earth and step by step oriented. That was simply the most inspirational youtube-lesson, and I will explore how I can fit a footboard into my sea kayak. Just made a switch from euroblade to greenland paddle, and I want to stop using a rudder and start rely on edging for steering, thus making room for footboard. Greetings from Norway.

[@odieostrich7718]

hey Hans. I'm at a similar point and would be interested to see what you've done in terms of conversion.

[@jonsweet3761]

Thanks Ivan. Looking forward to the rest of the videos

[@newsubscriptionlinkindescr4270]

Such incredible detail! Thank you for sharing.

[@jeremycarter1186]

This is a great series of videos. Thanks Ivan.

[@gregiscastaway]

Great stuff Ivan ! Love the white dot!

[@evanshaw17]

A discussion about limiting the stroke ie entry and exit so water is not pushed down nor lifted and water isn’t pushed away from the boat nor towards it. No wasted effort only energy exerted to move the boat forward. And secondly using muscles in proportion to their strength and when they effect the proper stroke

[@pammolloy5666]

These vids rock. You rock. Thank you Ivan so much for producing these and sharing your expertise. Such good technique lessons - how to and importantly why. Plus entertaining to watch. I have a question regarding leg drive. Boat is Epic sport surf ski. How do you push on foot plate without inching back slightly on the seat towards stern of boat. Is that not enough hip rotation or not enough weight on the blade in water. Need borders to open so I can come over for lessons (NZ) after my holiday.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Thanks Pam! If the leg drive is not opposed by the top shoulder pushing forward and down then the hip will push back toward the stern more. I think it is impossible (undesirable) to have it not move back at all though.

[@pcbif]

Hi Ivan, I just found these and I love them. These vids are not just for coaches though!!

[@ralphwhiting4011]

Thank you Ivan. We definitely dont spend enough time on boat set up.

[@gpalmer456]

Great material, Ivan. Thank you!

[@mikeerny4208]

Hi Ivan, thanks for taking the time and effort to pass on the techniques, a question I have is regarding the hand grip. When say the blade is in the water on the right hand side should the left hand grip the shaft tightly to help prevent rotation or just lightly.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Definitely not a tight grip. Just enough to resist the upward force from the water during the front part of the pull phase. As that pressure reduces through the stroke so too does the top hand grip and it finishes the stroke fully relaxed.

[@ndewet]

Perhaps a misplaced fear is putting too much pressure on foot pedal cables in a surfski. Pretty much have the keep plate and pedals at same angle and then do heel based drive because if the pedals are angled forward the heel has to be lifted to turn (and sometimes a hard turn surfing on a downwind) there goes the leg drive, albeit briefly.

[@MrMjt888]

Thanks. I’m not a kayaker, trad open boat only, but I got a lot out of your Richmond session. Looking forward to the rest of this series . If you were to have a little section of how it might apply to kneeling in a trad boat, or a short vid at the end of the series, that would be awesome. Assistant got much better towards the end :0)

[@pjcho9180]

Great video. Just want to point out that you can actually adjust the bottom of the modern nelo footrests to get the same angle with a heel rest.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Thanks Pjcho. I am a Nelo dealer. You are right that the bottom half of the footrest moves, but for me not enough to give the support I would like but everyone is different.

[@astar63]

*Thank you for doing this Ivan!*

[@vasconcelosavelar]

Thank you for this explanation, and this video continue the good work you are amazing.

[@raikmulowiskij5302]

Thank you Ivan, your video has a tremendous value to me. Hq information on foot and leg drive are hard to obtain, e.g. the official training book of the German Canoe Association starts with the entry/reach and I always felt that is not where I start. I'm curious, what's your stance on pullbars and on high back seats?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Thanks Raik. pulbars and high back seats are both things that come down to opinion. My personal opinion is that people are better off, especially in the learning phase, without them. They both are additions to good basics and do not substitute for poor basics. Youn will get 1000 different opinions on this though, which is why I deliberately avoided the Pullbar issue in the series.

[@nickbarnett1584]

Great video - looking forward to more of these!

[@duncanjack2335]

I assume the heel rest attached to the seat rails. Can you get a heel rest that works with the older style pin seats?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Heel rest has its own channel stuck on the floor of the boat. paddle-lab.com/suporte-calcanhares.html

[@Svetlomir_Ivanov]

Love your paddling videos!!

[@thomasfabricius-bjerre5401]

Thanks for this great instruction, I will have to revisit my footwork :-)

[@Alastair510]

Getting numb heels; can you suggest a cause?

[@olivertickell1345]

Ivan, you mention the danger of letting your foot go floppy and simply absorbing all the leg drive that's meant to be going into your hips. But what about the opposite? Using your foot to accentuate the leg drive? Flexing your foot off the ball of your toe on the foot rest, to move your heels back in the boat on each stroke? I think (I haven't actually seen it happen down there in the boat) that this is what I do. It comes quite naturally to me as I also run a bit and have trained myself to be a forefoot strike runner, so my feet are used to generating quite significant forces equal to 2-3 times my whole body weight. Isn't this a good way of generating additional drive to your rotation?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

All of that makes sense to me. The only caveat I would have is that once the heel leaves the floor of the boat stability is compromised. Not a big deal for 99% of the time but at the end of a race or after a long time it could be an issue I guess. Certainly the pressure on the heel will reduce at the end of the leg drive if you are a toe pusher like me (and it seems you). Thanks for the question.

[@olivertickell1345]

@@ultimatekayaks6499 I think you're right. I can only do this in a boat I'm feeling stable in. Thanks for the explanation!

[@Karovaldas]

Brilliant observation about the loss of power with the 'negative' bend of the ankle on the power leg. Do you think we could utilize the 'negative' ankle bend on the passive leg? I am thinking of it as a wind-up much like the torso is winded up at the catch and unwound during the power phase. The ankle is quite strong--there's serious power in that joint. We bend the knee to store some potential energy for release during the power phase. Why not store some by driving the heel under the plate in the same manner and then release it by stretching the ankle during the drive? Curious to hear your opinion.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

I am just struggling to see when in the cycle you would actually get the heel under the plate? I see the idea though.

[@Karovaldas]

Same time you’re bending the knee, moving the top shoulder forward and reaching to plant the blade

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

@@Karovaldas I think that is too complicated for my brain! Bending the knee brings the foot toward you and at the same time push the heel away? I am going to try it but it sounds like it will take a lot of learning!

[@Karovaldas]

@@ultimatekayaks6499 , early in my paddling journey a coach used a metaphor: squeeze the lemons between the balls of your feet and the footpeg with every stroke. It really engages the boat. It would work with the metaphor you're using: 'stand up on the power stroke". Just add "stand up on your tiptoes". I see what you mean with knee bend canceling the heel-under-footpeg. But the idea is to bend the foot back as you're bending the knee or at least relax it. Then, at some point of foot/leg engagement during the power stage add a couple of extra inches of push by extending the ankle--tiptoe.

[@Karovaldas]

I did an experiment. Sat down on the floor with my heel against the wall foot pointing straight up at the ceiling and bent the knee about as much as I would during the forward stroke. Mark 1. Did the heel drive and the butt (the white tape mark on the hip) slid down to Mark 2. Then pushed off the ball of the foot to Mark 3. I got about the same distance on the heel drive as I did on the foot push-off. That's about two inches of extra vertical paddle in the water. I don't see any drawbacks.

[@storebjrn6427]

can you eksplain why straps slows you down if you pull much on them

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

My feeling is that many people who use straps prioritise pulling on the strap over pushing on the footrest. It becomes a distraction for the body for those who have yet to master the fundamentals. Once the principle movements are well drilled then a strap or pull bar have a place. This series is about getting the fundamental principles right.

[@lov2playtn]

Awesome!

[@sandyswift9776]

How do you do the knee drive with knees tucked behind side brace !

[@tommyrq180]

You don’t. It’s one of the silent issues with sea kayak types. They get some torso rotation into their paddle strokes but minimal power compared to leg drive. To get leg drive the feet and knees have to be amidships and not braced (as demonstrated by Ivan). But when in difficult seas, you might want to brace instead of use leg drive, which would compromise power. I’m just getting into it and even “fast sea kayak” companies like Rockpool with their Taran do not provide or even retrofit a center foot board allowing leg drive. Epic and Tiderace (Nelo) do but I think it’s a trend that will eventually catch on as surfski people transition to decked boats. Who knows?!? Always tradeoffs…

[@rhanacek]

Until I watched this video I couldn't explain why the full footplate angle doesn't feel right to me. Thank you, Ivan. Can you point us to any source on where to get and how to install the heel support? There's no rail in my brand new Viper 48 :/

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Nelo sell the heel rests , they come with a rail that fixes in the boat. You will need some sikaflex or epoxy to stick that in.

[@alfredschiess395]

Excellent thanks

[@joshmc5448]

Thanks for your video, I know what ive been doing wrong now and can work on fixing it.

[@colesavoy1577]

Hey Ivan. Where do you buy the heel rest? Googled but can’t find anything even similar. Thanks for the great information !

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Your local Nelo dealer will be able to supply. They sell them as “heel supports”. Failing that you can buy direct from their site but shipping costs can be high. paddle-lab.com/suporte-calcanhares.html

[@johnjessup2933]

Great video, really interesting and well explained. You said that you had seen videos of people with makeshift ergos. I tried to get proper one at the start of the lockdown, but it was too big an investment, Do you have any ideas or know any links to videos that do a build for an ergo that are any good?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Sorry John, no I don't. There are loads of ideas out there right now though on the social media channels.

[@mistermaster3070]

Thanks so much very interesting video !!!

[@richardlovell343]

Hi Ivan. Great vids. What’s worrying is that most of the kayaking world see this a rocket science. How can we sort out the coach education?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

To be fair Richard this all started as an objection to some of the coach education we are exposed to.

[@richardlovell343]

Ultimate Kayaks I am in total Agreement with you having been part of the coach educational program and having very similar views on technique to yours I am now nothing but a humble coach I am trying to get back in but it seems to be as always a very closed shop.

[@jkara7843]

I do like when my seat is slippery. Use to stick a teflon tape on it. It helps hip drive and prevent sacro illiaque problems.

[@tomashansen7840]

Alguna forma de traducirlo a español?

[@derekkozlowski9867]

Awesome thank you. My heel is definitely moving!

[@jamesprowse6764]

How do you think this works with foot pumps? I guess what I'm asking is would a pump compromise foot drive?

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

The old foot pumps had a solid channel they fitted in so they acted like the toe block. Most people set their pumps on the bottom half of the footplate now. For "toe pushers" it wouldn't make any difference, for heel pushers it would presumably reduce efficiency marginally, but not by as much as a boat full of water.

[@peterleffler2062]

Great info as always Ivan. I found the information about the foot plate and heel plate particularly useful. Are you doing an offer on heel plates at all? 😲 I've been thinking it might help for some time but for some reason there is no written information out there (well I can't find any, not in English) about this level of detail but now you have answered my questions. - So I'm very pleased to see you are planning a series of videos. Thank you

[@elfiebrupr5532]

lecturing the assistaant is so funny that passive aggressive attitude

[@jameskitterhing1311]

Really usefull :)

[@gymmusic1497]

Compulsory viewing for every kayaker.

[@williamlawrenson8345]

I know this is all about the leg drive, but a perhaps useful observation, this also shows the range of movement of the hand without bending the arm, just by efficient leg drive.

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Hopefully we will highlight that further on in the series but 100% agree.

[@plouffedavid4776]

Too much bashing of the helper… could not finish the tutorial. Sad

[@ultimatekayaks6499]

Really sorry the humour passed you by. Sorry it made the video unwatchable for you. If it gives you comfort the helper is still alive and well.