• What your parents should have told you about Training
• Thoughts on strategy
• Body Conditioning
• What you eat is what you are or will become
• Nutrition -Race without stomach cramps
• What your parents should have told you about your heart
• What’s Your Target Heart Rate
• Tips from Top Paddlers

 

What your parents should have told you about Training

 

First take it nice and easy when you begin your training. If you push your body too hard in the beginning, you may strain and injure it. Start slowly for the first few weeks until you feel you are ready to push harder. At first, paddle steadily for 10 to 20 minutes focusing on technique over speed. This will get you ready for the next stage of your training.

 

Once you feel you are ready to increase the intensity, begin with brief bursts of speed followed by a short break. By doing this, you start to get a feel for sprinting. Keep repeating working hard with taking brief rests. For example, you can paddle hard for five minutes and take a two-minute break. Repeat this 10 times. Another variation is pyramids. One minute sprint, two minutes rest, two minutes sprint, two minutes rest, three then four and five minutes of sprinting followed by a two-minute rest period. Then go down five, four, three, two and one. Try to go as hard as you can. Apart from increasing the intensity your body can handle, this is also a good opportunity to practice your starts and improve your acceleration. These are both important factors after making a turn on a flag or trying to catch a bump on the ocean.

 

Another exercise is one-minute sprints with two-minute rests. Repeat this ten times then take a three-minute break. Next, ten 30 second bursts of speed with 15 second rests and 3 minutes rest in between each set. Repeat this five times.

 

Other training tools we have used are a rope and a bucket or tire. By dragging them behind you, resistance is created and the workload increased to move the canoe. Release the rope and the canoe feels lighter than before, and hopefully, you go faster. Another variation is "pulling Oahu". We tied a rope to a tree then to a tire tubing (to give it stretch), then another piece of rope is attached to the canoe. The idea is to paddle against the rope and not get pulled back by the stretched tubing. Another fun exercise is having only one or two people in a canoe paddle while the others rock in time. By inventing your own workouts and experimenting, you keep your training interesting. A variety of training makes you more excited to train harder.

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Thoughts on strategy

 

At the start of a race, the speed of even the best-trained athletes begins decreasing after15 to 20 seconds. At a certain point, your body needs a large increase in power to receive a small increase in speed. The best strategy is to get out fast and then settle into your race pace, working on getting the most efficiency you can from your body and placement & pull of your blade in the water. There are times during the race when you want to add a burst of speed. To fight off a challenger coming up from behind, after a turn when your hull speeds drops and you need to get back up to speed or when catching waves — a little extra effort can mean a big gain.Technique is everything. Try to work the large muscle groups of your back. If you’re on a one-person canoe, spend some time learning what stroke works for you, but in a six-person canoe you must blend. Teamwork and timing is everything, especially during a short quarter-mile sprint. Nobody I know can accelerate a 400-pound boat by themselves. A crew of six talented, strong one-man paddlers thrown into a canoe, all with different styles, will find it hard to get the outrigger to glide. Everyone must bury their blade and pull as one to get the outrigger to run as smoothly as possible.

A few tips I’ve picked up along the way — Ropati.

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Body Conditioning

 

By Jim Hewitt

One of the best things about paddling and racing an OC-l is that it gives you a reliable way to assess your conditioning. If you are not keeping up in races, there is no blaming the steersman or stroker like in the six-man. It’s all you. If your conditioning isn’t what it ought to be, you need to reconsider the way you train. At a recent race, I talked to some of the top competitors to pick their brains about how they train for the OC-1 season.

 

The best piece of advice to start with came from John Foti. He suggests that before you start training, you need to plan out a training schedule. You need to pick the races that you want to peak at and tailor your training towards that goal.

 

He says that the early part of the season should be devoted to building a base. This is accomplished by spending time in the boat; practice sessions of 1-1/2 to 2 hours at 75-85 percent will help to give you a strong base to build on. His rule of thumb is, "The wider the base the higher you can peak."

 

All of the paddlers I talked to share a similar philosophy towards training. First, build a base early in the season with long runs. As the season progresses more, sprint workouts are integrated into the training schedule. All agree that cross training is important to help maintain fitness, to prevent repetitive stress injuries and to keep from burning out on paddling. Weight training was often mentioned as a way to maintain your strength as well as to keep the muscles that work in support of your ‘paddling muscles’ strong. In addition to training, it is also extremely important to make sure that you get enough rest so that your body can heal.

 

Other types of cross training mentioned were running, cycling, chin-ups, sit-ups, surfing, mountain running and soccer. Jim Foti mentioned the last two as ways to "really get your lungs exploding" and give you the ability to push hard at the end of the race.

 

Mike Judd brought up an aspect of training that is often overlooked, and that is mental conditioning. He says,

A lot of time my mental training outweighs my physical training.

He reads books such as Lance Armstrong’s, ‘It’s Not the Bike’ and tries to apply what they have learned to what he is doing.

 

In addition to keeping a positive attitude about training and racing, Mike says he visualizes the racecourse the night before so that his mental side is at its best. He says that in visualizing the course, he takes himself from point A to point B and knows how he’s going to spread what he’s capable of doing over that entire time period.

 

I would like to thank John Foti, Jim Foti, Mike Judd, Kealii Paiaina, Andrew Penny and Kai Bartlett for sharing their thoughts on training with me.

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What you eat is what you are or will become

 

• In this article I will argue that what you eat is what you are, or will become!!

In my view the bottom line is that if you eat well-balanced foods, you will be healthy, wealthy and wise. Different people ask me constantly about supplements, and I will discuss lots of them in the next issue. The only thing that I would like to tell you about supplements is that most are unnecessary if you eat well, and there is no guarantee that they do not cause unwanted side effects.

• How do you boost your energy and fuel your body?

There is no magic formula, but a combination of carbohydrates – 60 percent, fats – 25 percent, and protein – 15 percent will do.

Carbohydrate rich foods are: breads, cereals, pasta, beans, vegetables, fruits, juices, rice, potatoes, etc. Carbs get stored in muscle and too few carbs makes you feel exhausted. If you are on that popular high protein diet and need lots of caffeine to get your day started, now you know why.

Fat is very important in metabolic processes, and you can not cut it out. Actually, most Americans still eat too much fat. Their diet is 40 percent fat. To limit your fat intake, stay away from fast food places and avoid fried and canned foods.

Muscle needs protein like in fish, lean meats, peanut butter and beans. The opinions differ on how much protein we need. I would say that if you are athletic, you can digest up to two grams of protein per Kilogram of bodyweight.

What else do you need? Vitamins: Eat at least five servings of fruits or veggies in a day. They are required for metabolism, heal tiny injuries and protect your body from exercise stress.Minerals like Iron: Especially for females, include dried apricots, lean beef and fish.Potassium: Bananas and dry roasted peanuts.

Look on the labels of products you love, lots of sodium may taste good but is not good for you. Not eating those products might prevent cramping. Other things you do not really need: sugar. You will feel tired and heavy, it also breaks down the good stuff, like vitamins. Coffee and soda will dehydrate your system and exhaustion will follow.

You need H2O and plenty of it. Drink heavily. You know that muscles are 75 percent water. One gram of carbohydrate gets stored with three grams of fluid. Your body loves water.When do you eat during your day? Every four hours. Have a good breakfast; it’s the start of your day. I know you have the time for it. Get the morning paper and enjoy!! Dinner should be moderate, how much food do you need during your sleep?

Have fun eating & drinking!!

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Nutrition -Race without stomach cramps

 

What you fuel your body with just prior to the race has physiological and psychological consequences during that event. A meal high in protein might not be most beneficial, except maybe psychologically. Fat causes the stomach to empty very slowly: not a good idea.Carbohydrates have a strong relationship to performance. Numerous studies have suggested that it will take longer to get exhausted when you ingest small amounts of carbohydrate prior and during the event.

 

Carbohydrate-rich meals prior to the race include pasta and veggies without the meats and cheeses. On race morning, you could eat white bread with jelly or banana. You want to spread your intake, with a full stomach you cannot race.

 

During a long distance event like Molokai, you will have to ingest solutions that have 4-20 percent carbohydrate in them every 15 to 20 minutes, especially by the end of the race when your blood glucose may be dropping. The easiest formulas are the specific beverages like Cytomax. Another way is trying to swallow gel and drinking lots of water. Too much concentrate of carbohydrate will cause an upset stomach, and it will take much longer for your stomach to empty.

 

After you land on the beach at Fort DeRussey and crawl to that BBQ, ignore the sausage and hamburger, but instead continue to ingest small meals of carbohydrates (juice, bagels, cereal, sandwich) every two hours to replete your energy storage.

 

After last issue’s article, paddlers contacted me concerning the video we are producing on specific strength training for paddlers. Email me at to let me know if you are interested. A copy will be reserved for you. Drink water heavily prior, during and after the race. Keep your urine clear before the race

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What your parents should have told you about your heart

 

Some are natural born athletes, and some have to work harder to keep up with the leaders. When starting a training program, each aspect of your race, endurance, strength and mental conditioning must be addressed. A healthy lifestyle, with rest and good nutrition, are all part of the formula to improve your performance. Both physical strength and confidence must be challenged and new levels reached. To do this, a paddler must increase their workload over a period of time. Too much too soon can lead to damaged muscles and tendons. Start slowly.

 

To help gauge the level of activity you should be pushing your body to, it’s helpful to know your target heart rate (THR). By checking your pulse, at the carotid artery on your neck or by using a heart monitor, before and after exertion to calculate your heart rate can help you determine if you are reaching your workout goals. The THR varies with age. See side bar to help calculate yours.To build cardiovascular endurance, you have to increase your heart rate to it’s target and maintain it for 30 to 60 minutes. Repeat this three to five times a week.

 

To improve your muscular endurance, use medium weights, about 50 percent of the heaviest weight you can lift, and do three to five sets, three to five times a week. To build strength, use the heaviest weight you can lift and do two sets of 8-12 repetitions, three times a week. Each week increase your workouts. If they remain constant, you won’t improve. ‘No pain, no gain’. But be careful not to step up the training too fast and risk injury to your body. As the training increases and more demands are made on the body, more time should be spent on protecting it by stretching (20 minutes) every day, drinking plenty of water and eating soon after training; all can help the body to recover after a hard workout.

 

When stretching, do it slowly without bouncing until you feel a slight tension in the desired muscle, and hold that position for 20 to 30 seconds. Stretching is helpful both before a race as a warm-up and after as a cool-down. A period of recovery is also essential to give your body time to repair and build new muscle.

 

Begin by having a plan worked out that keeps you challenged and reaching for new goals, whether it be training with weights to help increase muscle strength, improving on times out in the water, or sharpening your surfing ability.

 

Before a long iron race, carbohydrate load up to three days before. It is helpful before the race to drink a flavored glucose solution before your warm-up. Drink lots of water, at least 20 ounces, two hours before the race and another 20 ounces 15 minutes prior to the race. During the race, drink a sports drink that contains sugar and electrolytes to help prevent fatigue and maintain your endurance, and also, after the race to help your body recover.

 

Compiled from excerpts of other paddlers’ experience in the field and distilled into a guide for ambitious future champions, good luck – Ropati

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What’s Your Target Heart Rate

 

(THR)(Lezotte, 1987)Determine your Resting Heart Rate (RHR)

1. Find your heart rate by counting the pulse at your wrist (radial) or at the side of your throat (carotid) for 15 seconds.
    
2. Multiply that figure by 4.(e.g. a resting heart rate of 15 over 15 seconds multiplied by four equals 60 beats per minute or 60 RHR)Determine your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR)Subtract your age from 220.(e.g. if you’re 25, subtract that from 200to get a 195 MHR)Calculate your Heart Rate Reserve (HRR)(The difference between your MHR and RHR)Maximum Heart Rate – Resting Heart Rate= Heart Rate Reserve(e.g. 195 – 60 = 135 HRR)
    
3. Calculate your Target Heart Rate (THR)Determine the desired heart rate for your workout.For beginners, a target rangebetween 60 and 70 percent.For intermediate and advance training,70 to 80 percent.Calculation: Percent x HRR + RHR= Target Heart Rate(e.g. at 70 percent: 0.7 x 135 (= 95) + 60= 155 THR)

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Tips from Top Paddlers

 

By Jim Hewitt

 

Has this ever happened to you? You’re out doing a Hawaii Kai run on a nice windy day with a good tide. You’re thinking to yourself that maybe you’re starting to get the hang of this thing when all of a sudden someone comes up from behind and just BLOWS right by you. You look back and check your rudder for a bag. Nothing. When you look up they’re gone. And you’re wondering, "How do they do that?". Well, this has happened to me enough times that I figured that I had to go to the source for answers. So at the first OC- I race this season, I decided to ask some of the more experienced paddlers and coaches to share some of their training techniques.

 

The first person I talked to was Karel Tresnak, Jr. At 17 years old and only paddling OC-I competitively for three years, you’ll consistently find his name among the top 10. His training regiment leaves little doubt why.

 

Karel Tresnak, Jr.:

I try to go out a lot, two hours usually but mostly every day of the week. I try to take one day off or cut it down to an hour or an hour and a half but with intensity. My dad coaches me… we do intervals. 30 minutes to get warmed up then sprint I minute… rest 1 minute, sprint 2 minutes, rest 1, etc. Then go at your regular pace of training for an hour and a half to 2 hours.

All the people that I talked to had one thing in common; sprinting is an important part of their training.

Courtney Seto:

A lot of interval sprinting. We feel you need to do that because whether you are doing flat water or bump chasing, you’re doing intervals you blast hard, you ride, you blast hard. If it’s flat water, at least you have the wind work in.

Mark Rigg is another proponent of interval training. Although he admits it’s not nearly as much fun as a good Hawaii Kai run.

Mark Rigg:

It is the hardest type of training to do. It’s high intensity, it’s very repetitious. It’s hard work. But I think that’s where the biggest gains can be made. The interval stuff pays off.

Lanikai coach and OC-I builder, Karel Tresnak, emphasizes that paddlers must know their body’s limitations and with that in mind must set goals for their training.

Karel Tresnak:

You’ve got to listen to your body. You’ve got to train smart. Sometimes the recovery is more important than going back out. Sometimes too much is not the way to do it. Endurance, strength and speed. Decide what it is you need. If you don’t have the endurance, you can’t work on the strength because you can’t handle the training. If you don’t have the endurance and strength, how are you going to have the speed?

Finally, Walter Guild gives us 3 types of training days that he uses.-

I paddle 1 – 11/2 hours constant speed the whole time.- I do either 5, 10 or 12 minute pieces where we’ll go as hard as we can for 5 minutes then go long for 1 minute. Regroup, then burst again.- On sprint days, I’ll do very short intervals or ladders where I’ll sprint for 1 minute, go long for 1 minute, sprint for 2 minutes, go long for 1 minute up to 5 minutes. Or maybe a dozen 2-minute sprints.

Walter says that he’ll mix these days around, and they get longer as the season goes on.

I hope this helps you to have more fun as a paddler and a competitor. I want to thank all of the contributors for generously sharing the knowledge and experience that has taken them countless miles and time to learn. Mahalo. See you in the water.

 

Distance Preparation

 

By Francine Summers

 

Going from short regatta sprints to long distance racing safely, successfully and competitively needs a different approach. Long distance races run between 18-42 miles in length. Training errors are the greatest single cause of injuries that will prevent paddlers from participating on race day. The first philosophy that "more is better" often results in training too hard, too quickly, without their body being able to keep up, resulting in injuries. The second problem is inconsistent training and missing workouts, which can lead to fatigue and possible injury during a race.

 

Ask yourself if you possess the discipline to complete a necessary training program. Most people can "fool" their way through months of training leading up to the first race, but this can lead to "surviving" instead of enjoying a race. The biggest challenge is not the ability to finish the race, but being able to be a competitive participant throughout the duration of the entire race. Your teammates will definitely appreciate you much more for it. What can you do to reach this goal?Cardiovascular fitness is the key and is achieved through cross-training. Aerobic-based cross-training is especially important. In any competition which lasts longer then 30 minutes, most of your energy is derived from aerobic sources, which requires increased oxygen uptake. Oxygen is necessary for muscle use, and the most efficient use of it creates greater muscle force and a higher paddling velocity. What does this all mean? In short, any aerobic activity done out of the canoe will make you a better, more efficient paddler in the canoe.

 

A benefit of cross-training, like running, is to add variety to your workouts and decrease the chance of burnout. Certain activities that strengthen the core muscles, such as sit-ups and other torso exercises, along with shoulder and leg strengthening, are helpful in delaying fatigue while increasing the economy of the motion. Cross-training can also serve as an injury prevention measure, but remember, over-exercising can be just as harmful to your performance. Rest days, at least one day per week, should be scheduled prior to a long paddle or race. Rest is particularly important, as it is crucial for your body to recover in order to perform.

 

Over-training can also lead to a variety of injuries. Remember to stretch before and after all activity. Be sure to warm-up your muscles by walking briskly or by lightly jogging. The cool down stretch is often neglected but is as important as the warm up. Whether you use a fitness center’s exercise equipment or your own, it is vital that you obtain instruction in its proper use and for the specific sports you select for cross-training. It is very important that you perform these activities utilizing proper form, technique and posture to prevent injury. A licensed and certified instructor can provide guidance in these areas.

 

Another part of training is nutrition. As a general guideline, water is the drink of choice for overall health and for events lasting up to 60 minutes. Sport drinks should be consumed, with water, for runs over 60 minutes in duration. Do not rely on your thirst mechanism to indicate signs of dehydration. It is virtually impossible to "catch up" on your fluid requirements once you sense that you’re thirsty. It is vital to stay well hydrated throughout the day. Hydration is the most significant performance and health consideration for any distance event, especially if the weather is hot. Drinking lots of water and electrolyte replacement liquids (sports drinks) during your distance training, so that your stomach adapts to the intake while you exercise, is key. Some drinks may not agree with you, be too sweet, salty or bad tasting. Try them before race day on practice runs to see if they work for you.

 

During exercise you can lose a lot more water through perspiration than you can drink. If you don’t have the urge to urinate at least every hour it is a signal that you are dehydrated and need to significantly increase your fluid intake, preferably with water. Dehydration can lead to serious health problems, such as renal failure, which is life-threatening and creates a performance problem where just finishing the race becomes challenging.

Last but not least, in a complete race strategy is proper nutrition. During distance races, you will need to supplement your energy reserves with carbohydrates. Sport drinks work well and often contain needed electrolytes. Fruit juice, V-8 juice (salty), fruit, cookies, pretzels and jelly sandwiches are common sources of carbos. Don’t experiment during a race, do it before, during a long practice. See what works for you individually. Distance paddling allows you to eat and drink when you are on the escort boat. Take advantage of that time to rest, rehydrate and refuel. While there is much debate regarding the proper mix of foods, aim for 65 percent of your total calories consumed coming from a variety of carbohydrate sources. Emphasize healthy and nutritious foods in your diet while limiting your intake of fried and high fat foods. If you have any question concerning preparation and healthy paddling contact us at Action Rehab Inc. P.O. Box 11973, Honolulu, Hawaii, 96828 or ph: (808) 597-1555.

 

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call Action Rehab at (808) 597-1555.