When should you open the body after the catch?

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12 beginner videos:
The 5 Minute Beginner Rowing Course - 6:16 mins
How to row on a rowing machine - 6:00 mins
The importance of the Ergo before the Boat - 8:53 mins
Sculling Balance Exercises - Video 9:55
The correct posture for rowing and common problems - 1:32 mins
Safety on the Water - The Fundamentals - 5:33 mins
How to Feather Correctly - 1:46 mins
Using the Pelvis at Rockover - 1:19 mins
How to use the elbow at the finish to get maximum power - 0:54 mins
Pauses and why you should do them with wobble and flexibility - 5:55 mins
Moving the boat with posture and control, NOT STRENGTH - 5:42 mins
Hamstring Flexibility - How to fix it in two weeks! - 3:05 mins
9 Advanced Rowing videos:
How to avoid slowing the boat at the catch - 10:02 mins
How to avoid using the arms at the catch - 8:03 mins
Learning to relax while rowing - 3:49 mins
Lightweight vs Heavyweight, Who Is Fastest? - 4:07 mins
Relaxation and Rhythm Part 1 - 5:19 mins
Relaxation and Rhythm Part 2 - 3:46 mins
The importance of a program and defined sessions - 11:23 mins
Rowing Stretches - 6:39 mins
Rowing Warm up Exercises and Full Warm up - 9:15 mins
2 Training programs and 1 Training piece
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[@patqmckeon8449]

I don’t see her “opening” her back at the start of the drive but I do think she’s bracing her core so that the leg drive is fully transferred to the boat. Truly working the back against the legs is counterproductive as they’re opposing muscle groups. Watch weightlifters do a power clean: they start the lift with the legs (the strongest muscle group in the body) and only after the weight is moving do they start to engage their back.

[@jimjamthebananaman1]

Her calves go too much forward just before the drive. Her feet are too low and should be much higher to prevent this

[@Bleepurchin]

I was not taught this... I was always told you 'hold the body' and begine opening up and rocking the hips over when the legs are down... rather frustrating to find this video as it's completely thrown me!

[@benheideveld4617]

Your coach and this guy are both wrong. The problem goes back to the fact that the legdrive is so much more stronger than the backdrive. If you open up during the early legdrive, your body surreptitiously holds back the legs in order to enable the back to open up AT ALL. Basically you are losing hard legdrive for medium legdrive. The optimum is in the middle, where your back only starts to open up after your upper and lower legs have more than 90 degrees angle.

[@colinsavill3459]

I knew if I looked long enough I’d find someone advocating “my” technique. 😂

[@benheideveld4617]

This is so wrong! Your legs are a lot stronger than your back. Therefore it is impossible to “open your body” when giving full push by your legs. What happens in reality is that secretly, without telling your conscious self, the legs are commanded to give less force, so that your back can open up the body. It is however possible for your back to statically hold against pushing legs. That is how you should erg and row. The rowing video also shows a lot of arm muscle activity in getting pressure, although on the erg it is a lot better. You should “hang” from your arms, not try to make pressure by flexing the arms just after the catch.

[@chrisgamester9845]

Hooray at last a coach who understands the mechanics of the drive. If you don’t open the body against all of the leg drive your body will sag slightly allowing some of the legs to be wasted - then to make things worse the arms and body have to make up for what was lost in the legs.

[@andyhall7032]

agreed...you end up "bum shoving" unless you really brace the back against the legs...which in turn will always slightly open up the back as you begin the drive.

[@shadowjulien5]

Is this equally true of both sculling and sweeping? I've always used separation of the stroke as a good idea on how to gather the drive through the water, if you know everyone in the crew is driving as long as they can with their legs it's easier (In my opinion) to know that everyone is at the same phase, and then you can really send through the back end together. I suppose at super high levels (and I think I see this in the German 8+) if everyone can drive off the front with their back and legs at the same time you're picking up the boat at it's heaviest with as many muscles as possible, but that just requires incredible coordination of all members of the crew. This isn't meant as an argument against your video, I'm basically just asking why it's faster.

[@archiej6386]

She leans too far back on the erg

[@mathjoker]

That's a common erging technique. I think it's because you get a longer stroke and you don't have to worry about things like getting the oar out of the water or messing with the set of the boat.

[@MattSargentrower]

Very interesting video and intriguing as I would have thought, and have been coached to hold off on the "lean" until the legs are already done.

[@andyhall7032]

agreed...and this very channel _does_ teach that for beginners...but it's essentially a flowing motion with the angle of the legs and body ( almost ) opening as one.

[@501archer]

Very confusing bc in later videos, you actually advocate the opposite! (To wait to open up the body until legs are mostly down... )

[@DecentRowing]

I really depends where you are at in your rowing journey. Beginners mostly need to learn the sequence first. More advanced athletes are looking for maximum power which is typically achieved by opening the body earlier against the legs.

[@chasssss1]

1:24 What are a few 'sh*t' strokes?

[@archiej6386]

Back and legs separate

[@drbonesshow1]

Let the coroner open the body.

[@Jez2008UK]

This is really interesting as there is another rowing channel where effectively he is saying the movement happens in three parts, ie legs, hips and then arms. This didn’t make sense to me because my power curve would have two bumps rather than one big hump. I’m glad I’ve found your channel because I agree with you more . What I’d like to see and no one has discussed this so far is the breathing. So much is talked about regarding the stroke but nothing about the breathing. Finally, please, please, please, can you explain what you mean by ‘turning on the core’ ?? Thanks.

[@davidd8976]

Your core muscles are the abdominals and back. So lock your abs, obliques, and back.

[@AlbertWillemKnop2554]

I alway teach that legs and arms "separated" (arms start when legs are ready) and body movement connects legs and arms. So the backswing starts when the legs are partly gone (the trick i teach is to engage the back when the heels touch the stretcher), goes on when the legs are ready and finishes when the arm are almost ready.