The first Quiske Technique Challenge of 2021 looks at your Rowing Style. For this challenge you will need the Quiske pod attached on the seat or the frame of the erg (depending on if you're rowing static or dynamic).
What is Rowing Style and how do you measure it?
Style measures the relative time within the drive phase at which your legs reach their max speed and it gives a good indication of when you’re opening your back. Measuring Style also requires a pod attached to the seat.
You should first engage legs only, and should not open your back until the later stage of the drive. If you open your back too early you’re not rowing as efficiently as possible, and also you unnecessarily shorten the length of your stroke.
The Style metric is the most challenging for most rowers to get right, but it is very important. It can be a little bit tricky to visually recognize whether you're opening your back too early, that's why it is good to use the pod to measure it.
See below a video showing two rowing sessions: in the first session the back is opening very early (Style score 1/10) whereas in the second session the back opens only after the legs have been extended, showing a clear segmentation between legs, back and arms (Style score 10/10):
TIPS to Improve Rowing Style:
- Think about push with the legs first
- Stay firm and keep your package together in the early stages of the drive
- On the Concept2 you can set the PM5 monitor to show the power curve (when your rowing with a frontloaded segmented rowing style the peak power will be in the early part of the curve, this is another indicator of good technique which you can use if you don’t have a pod).
During the leg push the handle should move with the same speed as the seat (the blue and red graphs have the same gradient in the graph below). Opening your back too early results in the handle speed growing past the seat speed during the early drive and you can learn to avoid this by working on leg drills and keeping your back put. This part of the stroke influences the Style factor of the Quiske Virtual Coach the most. The legs produce about 60% of the full work. The yellow area below shows the drive phase of the legs:
Join the Quiske Style Challenge!
The Quiske Swing Challenge runs until the end of February 2021. You can join the challenge on any type of erg, just make sure to choose the right type in the Settings. Also, to join the challenge, set the recording interval to 2 minutes, and the Coach level to Challenging. Row consistently at 18SPM (i.e. a total of 36-40 strokes). See below sample screenshots with the metrics for the past October (Drive Rhythm), the Christmas Challenge (Legs Stopped), and the New Year Style Challenge indicated with arrows:
Take a screenshot of your result and send it to us by email (contact@quiske.fi) before the 7th of March for a chance to win a Remote Coaching Session with a Quiske coach. All participants will also get the new Quiske Guide to Rowing for free.
Happy Rowing in 2021!
Quiske Team