Technical Lesson #2: Mindfulness Training

Mindfulness Introduction - "Reset"

Rowing is a sport that requires a lot of discipline.

We push our bodies everyday.  We endure extreme cold, and heat, and everything in between. We blister our hands and strain our muscles, and put ourselves through many other physical discomforts that we could easily avoid by staying home. Rowing is just a sport. We don’t have to be here.

But we are here.

Everyday, we show up and we choose how hard we are going to push our bodies. We choose to find that extra gear in the last 500m, we choose to run the extra mile, or spend a few more minutes practicing drills before taking it into the docks.

While our bodies are doing the physical work, our minds are the part of us choosing to be here, and a result they are our most valuable assets.  So today we are going to talk a little bit about training the mind.

Like training the body, training the mind takes consistent concentrated practice over time. Unlike training the body, the results of a trained mind are not always as tangible or visible to the outside world.

But when you look at the highest levels of performance, both in sport and in other pursuits, the calm focus of the expert readying herself for competition is clearly visible. The rower sitting on the starting line at the Olympics is no less nervous then you are during a Manny Flick.  The difference is that through years of high-pressure situations, she has been forced to gain control over her thoughts.

So what is mindfulness?

To be mindful is to be aware of what you are doing while you are doing it. To be cognizant of your physical surroundings and how you relate to them in any given moment. Do you feel the breeze on the back of your neck? Is your face tense with focus or worry? What does the water sound like under the boat?

In sculling we strive to develop a “boat feel” or flow. This requires that we be connected to the boat in every stroke; constantly aware of how our movements are affecting those of the hull underneath us. Further, a master sculler must take note of how the wind and water are effecting the movement of the boat, both while rowing and when sitting still.  When our minds are preoccupied (with stress, or pain, or thoughts of dinner…) then we cannot feel the boat and thus we lose our connection to it and our hope of gaining a flow in our practice. 

In order to be aware of these things we must slow down our thoughts, let go of our stresses and distractions, and allow our senses the space to be present.  In other words we must train our minds to block out distraction in favor of the present moment.  We need a mental reset button – a way to clear our minds from the hectic world happening around us in an effort to regain focus on the task at hand.

We will practice this "reset" together now, and some variation of quiet sitting on a near daily basis for the rest of the season. But ultimately this is your tool, to be used whenever you find yourself anxious, or frazzled, or in need of a perspective check.  

“Reset”

·      Sit cross-legged with your palms on your knees.

·      Sit up tall and relax the shoulders away from the ears.

·      Feel the connection of your sits bone to the ground.

·      Note the heaviness of your body rooted into your seat.

·      Feel the weight of your palms on your knees.

·      Let your shoulders be pulled down by this connection, grounding yourself further.

·      Tuck your chin slightly in towards the chest and relax the muscles of the face.

·      Turn your focus to your breath, noting the rise and fall of your lungs with each breath.

·      Picture the oxygen traveling in with each inhale, reaching every cell in your body

·      And the follow it out as you exhale any remaining tension into the world.

·      If you find your mind drifts away, simply reset your focus on your breathing.

·      1 min Quiet Sitting.

·      Take a deep breath in through your nose

·      Exhale fully through your mouth.

·      Again, deep inhalation through your nose

·      Exhale fully through your mouth.

·      Last time, Inhale through your nose

·      Exhale fully though your mouth.

·      Gently open your eyes. 

 

 

A reset can be done anywhere. In the boat you do not need to let go of your oars to employ a mindfulness practice. Instead focus on the connection of your hands to the oar handles, your toes to the footplate, and your body to the seat. You can run through a reset with as little as three deep focused breaths and quickly regain composure and prepare your mind for the challenges ahead. 

Revised Practice Schedule March 31st - April 6th

The unexpected off day on Sunday, requires that we shuffle our practice schedule around this week to ensure as much water time as possible. Per usual, if you have a conflict with any practice, please submit it in advance to the conflict survey.

Monday March 31st: 5:15-7:30pm @ Vesper (be prepared to run outside)
Tuesday April 1st: 5:15-7:30pm @ Vesper (2k erg test)
Wednesday April 2: 5:15-7:30pm @ Vesper (Varsity ONLY*)
Thursday April 3rd: 5:15-7:30pm @ Vesper
Friday April 4th : 5:15pm-7:15pm @ Vesper
Saturday April 5th: OFF **
Sunday April 6th: Manny Flick #4 (Girls in PM)

* If you have a conflict on Wednesday such as tutoring, test make ups, doctors appointments, driving lessons etc. you will be excused from practice and given a workout to complete on your own at home. (hair appointments aren't a good reason to miss practice....). Please submit your conflict and remind me on Tuesday if you won't be able to attend.

**A number of Varsity rowers have Friday April 4th listed as a conflict date (Kelly, Bonner, Curry, Rachael, Katie, Jenny, Jo, Mary Rose). Depending on how the week goes and what line-ups will be racing on Sunday, we might need to have a short practice on Saturday morning for these boats. We will talk about it at practice tonight.

Conflict Submissions

Early Season Report

While racing is a tangible way to track our progress and show off all of the hard work we are putting in at practice, it certainly isn’t the only way.  As I said yesterday, the entire coaching staff is impressed with the focus, grit, and enthusiasm that you each have demonstrated in our first few weeks of training. Below are some highlights from the season thus far, please share this with your fans (aka: the very supportive NDA Rowing parents)!

Novice Round Up

The whole rowing community has been battling the winter weather for what seems like an eternity, but the Notre Dame novices have had an especially trying start to the season. Nearly all of the novice winter practices fell on one of the many “snow days”, thus postponing the true start of the novice season to just three short weeks ago.  Notre Dame novices didn’t skip a beat. They jumped into the ever-changing chaos of Vesper, trying their first strokes on the erg while national team hopefuls trained intensely around them.  Most seasoned rowers would be intimidated in this situation, but our novices didn’t bat an eyelash. 

At last weekend’s Manny Flick#2, Reilly, Serena, Maura MacDonald, and Casey earned NDA’s first win of the 2014 season, crossing the line ahead of Penn Charter A & B in the Girls Novice 4x.  Despite the pre-race jitters, they rowed with the control and composure necessary for success in novice racing. 

While their teammates raced,  Sara, Emma, Maura Maguire, Caroline, Brenna, and Liv continued to work hard to refine their skills. On Monday and Tuesday, with the mercury hovering at 30 degrees, our mighty novices endured freezing fingers and blowing snow to ensure they were race-ready for Manny Flick#3. Their progress was astounding, and by Saturday morning’s practice all novice boats were rowing well and together. While we are disappointed not to defend last weekend’s win, we are confident that the girls will be even faster and hungrier for next week’s race! Great job novices!

Varsity Round Up

The Varsity group started training in the frozen days of late January. They juggled the admittedly complex logistics to get themselves to practice; erging several days a week and completing cardio and circuit workouts on their own. Though I’ve been told that winter training in years past had been a little lack luster, I never would have guessed this watching the girls in the first few days of erg practice.  Our winter workouts consisted of lots of steady state erg work sprinkled in with some harder 8’ pieces and technical drills, and everyone exceed expectations.

On the water we have been focused on refining our catches and ensuring a powerful, horizontal drive through the stroke. The entire varsity has demonstrated maturity, resourcefulness, and determination as they've welcomed the novices, pushed each other, and adjusted to an entirely new coaching staff. A new head coach couldn't hope for a better group of girls.

Seniors Maria, Kelly, Mackenzie Curry, Rachael, and Mackenzie Bonner have been instrumental in helping me, and the other coaches, get to know the ropes at Vesper. Where they could easily have dragged their feet with the many changes to their rowing experience, these NDA Rowing veterans have been nothing but positive, hard working, and steady. On the water, they lead underclassmen in making technical adjustments to their strokes; not an easy task when you’ve been doing something a certain way for 4 seasons. Despite being injured, Mary Rose made a great impact on the early season: everything from shuffling launches, to helping out with the novices. We are excited to have her back in the boat this week. 

As our biggest class, the juniors play an integral role in linking the foundation set by the seniors, to the energy and excitement of the underclassmen.  While everyone has made impressive gains on the ergometer, Gabby, Katie, and Jenny demonstrated natural power and athleticism early on in winter training with some of the fastest splits on the Varsity side. On the water, they continue to make technical gains each day as they learn to apply all of that power and translate it into fast boat.  Mickey, Jane, Lexi, and Taylor made great improvements on the erg this winter, and continue to impress me with their focus and ability to internalize the technical drills that we do at practice. With continued focus and grit, there is no doubt that the Juniors will develop into a strong backbone for Note Dame success, both this year and next.

Sophomore year is a tough one, not only in school, but also as a rower. Fresh off their novice season, they are thrown in with the varsity group and expected to keep up with the increased training volume and technical skills.  Notre Dame sophomores are clearly ready for the challenge. Brooke and Johanna show great potential on the erg, with continuously improving splits and the lighthearted attitude that often accompanies the “power house” of the boat. With her attention split between steering, calling drills, and rowing, Julia demonstrates the cool composure that marks a great bow seat.  As transfer athletes, Candace from Radnor and Abby from Holy Names Academy in Seattle, bring a valuable perspective to NDA Rowing. Candace translated her sweep experience to sculling with impressive quickness, and Abby continues to develop her naturally smooth stroke while also learning the rules of the river from bow seat. We couldn’t be more excited to have them on board. Last but certainly not least Emily has been instrumental in getting the novices ready for race day. Despite an early season injury, Emily has showed up at practice each day and with a smile on her face and helped out wherever need. Easing back into full health this week, we are excited to see Emily continue to improve!

And of course we can't forget the great efforts of the NDA Rowing assistant coaches. Their patience, commitment and creativity is inspiring and greatly appreciated.

With the bad weather predicted to break this weekend, things will only continue to improve for Notre Dame Crew.  Keep up the good work everyone!

Manny Flick #3 Cancelled

Unfortunately the PSRA has decided to cancel Manny Flick #3 as a result of the rain and the dangerous water flow that will result.


Please check back tomorrow for the adjusted practice schedule.

Enjoy your day off.

March 28th: Varsity Drill Explanations

Stationary Drills

Catch Placement Drill: 10 by pair, 10  whole boat

• ·      Sit at finish squared and buried
• ·      Come up to half slide, brief pause
• ·      Come up to full slide and take the catch (should be quick, back splash!)

Clean Release Drill: 10 by pair, 10 whole boat X 2

• ·      Sit at the finish, blade squared and buried.
• ·      Drop the hands and feather the blade while swinging the shoulders and hands out of the  finish.
• ·      Do it together, sharp and clean movements.

Moving Drills

Cut the Cake (Every other stroke)

• ·      Start rowing from half slide, row continuously full strokes for 10 strokes.
• ·      Add arms and body “Cut”; Swing the shoulders and hands out and over, without stopping swing back to the release.
• ·      Without pause come up to take the full recovery and a full stroke.
• ·      Take one full stroke in between each stroke.

The goal is to swing together, out of the finish. Let the shoulders lead the body out of bow. This a fluid movement, with the goal to disrupt the run of the boat as little as possible.

A.B.C Horizontal Drive

• ·      Sit at half slide.
• ·      Come up to full compression and take Position A (Catch, blades fully buried)
• ·      Hesitation – Say “A”
• ·      Slow leg drive to position B. (half slide legs)
• ·      Hesitation – Say “B”
• ·      Slow motion to position C. (Finish)
• ·      Hesitation – Say “C”
• ·      Reset

Horizontal movement from Catch to Release.

Avoid any upward movement with body/downward movement of blade

“Core to Bow”

Lean body weight against the oar rather then ripping the blade through the water

Square-Feather-Square

• ·      Rowing continuously
• ·      Feather the blade out of the water at the release
• ·      Square the blade at half slide recovery, then immediately feather it again
• ·      Square the blade as usual to take the catch.

This drill forces us to keep the blades at and even distance from the water throughout the entire recovery.

When squared the blade should be 1 inch from the water.