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Getting there? How do you prepare for a dragon boat season? First, you must look at the specific requirements of dragon boat paddling. Then you break down each of them so you can train properly in the gym and use other cross-training modalities that will assist your goal of becoming the best you can be come race day. Dragon boating is a unique sport. It requires all energy systems: ATP-CP and LA; LA-O2; and O2. Combined with these energy system requirements, success in dragon boating demands maximum strength, power, muscular endurance, core flexibility/stability, and power endurance. To prepare correctly, you must understand what you are trying to accomplish so that you can plan, that is, periodize, your training accordingly. Having knowledge about the energy systems that you are training and looking at the most efficient way to train them to accomplish strength gains in all areas is important. As well, proper warm-up, cool-down, and dry land options are crucial to dragon boating.

Energy production is both time- and intensity-related. Paddling at a high intensity, as in a start or sprint, means that an athlete cannot operate effectively for long. Paddling at a low intensity, as in gentle paddling, means that an athlete can sustain activity for extended periods. Training introduces another variable; the 200-metre specialist who uses sound training principles will be able to paddle at a high intensity for longer periods. Similarly, the 2,000-metre dragon boat specialist who uses sound training methods can sustain higher intensities during a set period. The goal is to create the all-round dragon boater who can be effective at all events — 200, 500, 1,000, and 2,000 metres.

What a great exercise and mother-daughter-time sport. We both are muscle girls and this sport is toning our bodies like no other sport I have done. The competition is fierce and the rewards are worth all the hard work.

— Michelle Thiessen, Chilliwack, British Columbia

Energy Pathways

In their book The Physiological Basis of Physical Education and Athletics,¹ the authors, Matthews and Fox, divide the running requirements of various sports into the following energy pathways: ATP-CP and LA; LA-O2; and O2, all of which can be directly related to dragon boating.

ATP

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is a complex chemical compound that is formed with the energy released from food and stored in all cells, particularly muscles.Cells can perform work only from the energy released by the breakdown of ATP and it is this breakdown that produces energy and adenosine diphosphate (ADP).

CP

Creatine phosphate (CP) is a chemical compound stored in muscle. When it beaks down, CP aids in the manufacture of ATP. The combination of ADP and CP produces ATP.

LA

Lactic acid (LA) is a fatiguing metabolite of the lactic acid system. It results from the incomplete breakdown of glucose. Although excessive lactate production is part of the extreme fatigue process, the protons that are simultaneously produced further restrict performance.

O2

The energy pathway of O2 is the source for aerobic paddling when ATP is manufactured from food sources, mainly sugar and fat. This system produces ATP copiously and acts as the primary energy source during endurance activities.

Running Duration Compared to Dragon Boating

All these energy pathways have time limits. A specific pathway is no longer used once a certain time elapses. Although there is some controversy about these limitations, the preceding chart relates the running duration with the approximated race components of dragon boating to show the use of the energy systems.

Muscle contraction produces ADP that is regenerated when coupled with CP. When muscles are actively contracted, they obtain ATP from the glucose that is stored in the bloodstream and from the breakdown of glycogen that is stored in the muscles. For exercise that lasts for longer periods, the complete oxidation of carbohydrates or free fatty acids in the mitochondria is required. The carbohydrate supply lasts approximately 90 minutes and the free fatty store lasts several days.

At the start of exercise, all three energy systems are actively contributing. The contribution, however, depends on the individual, the effort applied, and the rate at which energy is used. The following graph shows how the energy systems contribute to the manufacture of ATP over time when exercise is at 100 percent effort. The thresholds (T) indicate the point at which the energy system is exhausted. Training will improve the threshold times.

Because dragon boat paddling is one-sided and upper-body dominant, energy system training that simulates the motion of the stroke as much as possible is highly recommended. To properly and specifically train the energy systems for dragon boating, the suggested dry land training apparatus is the Multistroke, the first ergometer specifically designed for dragon boat athletes. Unlike any other ergometer, Multistroke replicates the catch, resistance and glide to give the on-the-water feel of dragon boat paddling.Mechanics of blade entry and the relationship between the forces on the shaft and the top guiding hand all are replicated. If a Multistroke is unavailable, a rowing ergometer, commonly called the “erg,” is the next best alternative for dry land training.

Energy Systems and Production of ATP

The Graph adapted from Brian Mackenzie’s Energy Pathways.

http://www.brianmac.co.uk/energy.htm

The Multistroke Ergometer replicates in-the-boat paddling action for dry land training with computer monitoring of distance, time, stroke rate, heart rate, and speed.

The erg is a rowing machine that consists of a handle affixed by cable to a flywheel. A counter ticks off the revolutions of the flywheel, a timer paces the rower, and an adjustable brake can be set for body weight and the level of work.

Running Distances Compared to Paddling Times

Running Distance (metres)	Approximate Paddling Time (seconds)
20	2-4
40	5-7
60	7-11
100	11-20
200	21-40
400	60-90
800	120-210
1000	210-360
1200	360-480

If you have access to an OC-1 or OC-6, paddling on an outrigger is the best way to simulate a dragon boat stroke on the water — highly recommended for specific system training.

If these options are not available, running is another way to train effectively. The training distances outlined above relate running distances to paddling times.

Many dragon boaters find that paddling in small boats, like the OC-1, is the most effective way to improve water feel and connection.

ANAEROBIC (ATPATP-CP) ENERGY

System

The supply of ATP in the muscle lasts for approximately two seconds and the re-synthesis of ATP from CP will continue until the CP stores are depleted in about four to six seconds. Approximately five to eight seconds of ATP production is available.

• To develop this energy system, sessions of four to eight seconds of high-intensity work at near peak velocity are required, for example:

• 3×(10×30 metres) with recovery of 30seconds/ repetition and five minutes/set;

• 15×60 metres with 60 seconds recovery;

• 20×20 metres shuttle runs with 45 seconds recovery. A shuttle run consists of continuous running between two lines.

ANAEROBIC LACTATE (GLYCOLYTIC)

SYSTEM

The body resorts to stored glucose for ATP when the CP supply is depleted. In anaerobic conditions, the breakdown of glucose or glycogen results in the production of lactate and hydrogen ions. The accumulation of hydrogen ions is the limiting factor that causes fatigue in runs of 300 metres to 800 metres. Sessions to develop this energy system are outlined below:

• 5 to 8×300 metres fast — 45 seconds recovery — until pace significantly slows;

• 150-metre intervals at 400 metres pace — 20 seconds recovery — until pace significantly slows;

• 8×300 metres — three minutes recovery (lactate recovery training).

Within the anaerobic lactate system, there are three different working units: Speed Endurance; Special Endurance 1; and Special Endurance 2. Each of these can be developed, as follows:

Working Units of Anaerobic Lactate System

Aerobic Energy System

Proteins, fat, and carbohydrate (glycogen) are used by the aerobic energy system to re-synthesize ATP. To develop this energy system, various intensity (tempo) runs can be done, such as the types of tempo runs described below:

Continuous Tempo: Long slow runs at 50 to 70 percent of maximum heart rate place demands on muscle and liver glycogen. The energy system responds by enhancing the capacity of muscle and liver glycogen storage and glycolytic activity associated with these processes.

Extensive Tempo: Continuous runs at 60 to 80 percent of maximum heart rate place demands on the system to cope with lactate production. Running at this tempo assists the removal and turnover of lactate and enhances the body’s ability to tolerate greater levels of lactate.

Intensive Tempo: Continuous runs at 80 to 90 percent of maximum heart rate result in high lactate levels as these runs border on speed endurance and special endurance. Intensive tempo training lays the base for the development of anaerobic energy systems. Sessions to develop this energy system are:

• 4 to 6×2 to 5 minute runs — 2 to 5 minutes recovery

• 20×200 metres — 30 seconds recovery

• 10×400 metres — 60 to 90 seconds recovery

• 5- to 10-kilometre runs

I thoroughly enjoy the mental and physical challenges of training.Racing is a rush and competitive success is pure joy. However, it’s sharing these moments — the many highs and lows of training and competition — with 22 teammates-turned-friends that makes dragon boat more gratifying than anything I ’ ve previously experienced in sport.

— Andrew Simpson, Toronto

ENERGY SYSTEM RECRUITMENT

All energy systems turn on at the same time and the recruitment of an alternative system occurs when the current energy system is almost depleted. Given that most dragon boaters compete at all events — 200 metres, 500 metres, 1,000 metres, and 2,000 metres, often competing in three to seven races a day — the breakdown of energy systems is estimated best by averaging most of the races at two to four minutes in length. The percentage contribution of the energy pathways for dragon boating has been estimated in the chart that makes comparisons with other sports.

Contribution of Energy Pathways In Sports

Table adapted from Fox E. L. et al,

The Physiological Basis for Exercise and Sport, 1993

Now that the energy systems have been described, a brief look at muscle composition will show how the periodized dragon boat training program, to be outlined next, has resulted in over 1,000 world championship medals and has continued to produce world champions.

FAST AND SLOW TWITCH MUSCSCLES

Are you a better 200-metre dragon boater or 2,000-metre dragon boater? Many people believe that having more fast- and slow-twitch muscle fibres may determine what distances dragon boaters excel at and how they respond to training.

Bundles of individual muscle fibres, or myocytes, make up the skeletal muscle. Each myocyte contains many myofibrils, strands of proteins (actin and myosin), that grab on to each other and pull. This activity shortens the muscle and causes muscle contraction.

Muscle fibres can be broken down into two main types: slow twitch (Type I) muscle fibres and fast twitch (Type II) muscle fibres. Fast twitch fibres can be further categorized into Type IIad Type IIb fibres.

How muscles respond to training and physical activity are influenced by these muscle fibre distinctions. And, each fibre type is unique in its ability to contract in a certain way. Human muscles contain a genetically determined mixture of both slow and fast fibre types. On average, you have about 50 percent slow twitch and 50 percent fast twitch fibres in most of the muscles used for movement.

Slow Twitch (Type I)

The slow twitch muscles are more efficient at using oxygen to generate more fuel (ATP) for continuous, extended muscle contractions over a long time. They fire more slowly than fast twitch fibres and can last a long time before fatigue. Slow twitch fibres are beneficial in helping athletes run marathons or paddle for hours.

Fast Twitch (Type II)

Because fast twitch fibres use anaerobic metabolism to create fuel, they can generate short bursts of strength or speed much better than slow muscles. However, they fatigue more quickly. Although fast twitch fibres generally produce the same amount of force per contraction as slow muscles, they earn their name by firing more rapidly. Given this, more fast twitch fibres can be an asset to sprinters who need to quickly generate a lot of force.

Type IIa Fibres

A sub-category of fast twitch muscles are Type IIa fibres, also known as intermediate fast-twitch fibres. These can use both aerobic and anaerobic metabolism almost equally to create energy. In this way, they are a combination of Type I and Type II muscle fibres.

Type IIb Fibres

The second sub-category of fast twitch fibres are Type IIb fibres that use anaerobic metabolism to create energy. These are the “classic” fast twitch muscle fibres that produce quick, powerful bursts of speed. Of all the muscle fibre types, this one has the highest rate of contraction, or rapid firing. At the same time however, it has a much faster rate of fatigue and cannot last as long before rest is needed.

Fibre Type and Performance

Your muscle fibre type can play a part in determining which distances you are naturally good at or if you are fast or strong. Genetic makeup can determine the sport that is pursued by elite athletes. For example, Olympic sprinters have been shown to possess about 80 percent fast twitch fibres. Athletes who excel in marathons tend to have 80 percent slow twitch fibres.

The key is to determine what your strengths and weaknesses are by testing all physical parameters and training accordingly. Training programs that have been designed in this chapter will allow all beginner and elite dragon boaters to excel with high-intensity training. This is because there is evidence that muscle fibre types, specifically Type IIb, can be changed into Type IIa with proper training. Conditioning can improve personal performance.

This finding is important in the dragon boat world. You can train the fast-twitch, strong, powerful fibres to operate under both anaerobic, as well as aerobic, situations and create highly efficient power endurance muscle fibres.

TESTING

Before the specifics of training are outlined, a brief testing regime with some standards has been put together for reference and comparison.

Testing

BW = Body Weight

R/L = Right/Left

Multistroke = Ergometer

TRAINING PROGRAM

Finally, what you have been waiting for — how to get better on the water by training hard off the water. Before piecing together the perfect program, you must understand your goals and the goals of your crew. Look at the season to come and schedule accordingly. Consider all the regattas, training camps, on-water practices, et cetera, so that the dry land strength and conditioning program can guarantee that you and your crew are strongest and fittest by the final regatta of the season. Too often, paddlers and coaches train hard all winter to peak at the start of the season as opposed to the end of the season. And, paddlers make great strength gains in the winter, then neglect strength training through the spring and summer months, only to start at their same strength level come the following year.

The program is designed to improve your strength and conditioning throughout the year so you peak at the end of the season and continue to improve every year going forward.² With this program, paddlers have seen their bench presses increase more than 300 percent in three years, pull-ups as much as 500 percent, with other lifts and exercises yielding similar results. These workouts can be done by anyone. The program is designed so that you can adapt at your own pace. There are no secrets; the harder you work and the more weight that you try to lift, the faster you will adapt and progress. You need to complete the specified sets, reps and times. The key, again, is to lift the heaviest weight possible for the reps given for a particular exercise. If the program is six sets of eight reps, the target should be within three reps of the given amount of reps on your last two sets. For example, on your 5th and 6th set, the expectation is that you squeeze out a minimum of five reps and a maximum of eight reps using the above example. This is an important rule because the program is designed for neural activation so that the nervous system fires more motor units that recruit more muscle fibres. These, in turn, make you, as a dragon boat paddler, stronger and assist in the ultimate goal of turning your Type IIa fibres into fatigue-resistant powerhouses. The program is periodized with the assumption that the season ends in September and begins in October, and that the big regatta is in August. The goal is identified at the top of each program. A proper warm-up and cool-down of an easy jog or bike ride is needed to get the blood through the muscles for quicker recovery.

Training: Phase 1

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

Training: Phase 1: Workout #1

DB = Dumbbell

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 1: Workout #2

Training: Phase 1: Workout #3

Training: Phase 1: Workout #4

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 1: Sample Week

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

(left) Shoulder Press: Position dumbbells on each side of shoulders with elbows below wrists.

(right) Shoulder Press: Exhale and press dumbbells until arms are extended over head. Inhale as you lower the dumbbells.

Training: Phase 2

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

Training: Phase 2: Workout #1

DB = Dumbbell

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 2: Workout #2

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 2: Workout #3

DB = Dumbbell

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 2: Workout #4

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 2: Sample Week

(left) Squats: With feet shoulder-width apart, hold the bar with an overhand grip as it rests on the shoulders.

(right) Squats: Inhale, contract abs, and bend knees until the thighs are horizontal to the floor. Return to start position and exhale at the end of the movement.

Training: Phase 3

HxS = Hypertrophy Strength Adaptation

Training: Phase 3: Workout #1

DB = Dumbbell

Tempo – 1st number in seconds for up; 2nd number is pause; 3rd number in seconds for concentric

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 3: Workout #2

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 3: Workout #3

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 3: Workout #4

X = Full Speed

Training: Phase 3: Sample Week

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

One-Arm Row: With your back level to the floor and one hand on the bench for support, start with the weight down by your side.

One-Arm Row: Exhale, lift dumbbell, and concentrate on using your back and shoulder muscles, rather than biceps.

Training: Phase 4

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

Training: Phase 4: Workout #1

Training: Phase 4: Workout #2

DB = Dumbbell

Training: Phase 4: Workout #3

Training: Phase 4: Workout #4

Training: Phase 4: Sample Week

Bench Press: Use an overhand grip wider than shoulder width on the barbell. Inhale and lower the bar to the chest.

Bench Press: Exhale and extend arms.

Training: Phase 5

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

Training: Phase 5: Workout #1

Training: Phase 5: Workout #2

Training: Phase 5: Workout #3

DB = Dumbbell

Training: Phase 5: Workout #4

RM= Rep Max

1.This workout is designed to move a light weight (40% of max.) as fast as possible for minimum reps.

2.Make sure that you do not fatigue yourself. Everything should feel extremely light.

3.The goal is to recruit fast-twitch fibres without the extreme load of doing maximum effort lifts.

4.Workouts 1, 2 and 3 are designed to maximize strength. The high sets are strictly for warm-up and activation, building up to max weight. An example of the weights you should be lifting follow below.

Training: Phase 5: Workout #4: Sets Example

70 lb for 3 reps (40% RM)

95 lb for 3 reps (50% RM)

115 lb for 1 rep (60% RM)

135 lb for 1 rep (70% RM)

155 lb for 1 rep (80% RM)

175 lb for 1 rep (90% RM)

190 lb for 1 rep (103% RM)

This setup is for someone who lifts 185 lb for their 1 rep max (RM). 45 lbs for 3 sets of 5 reps (25% RM)

Training: Phase 5: Sample Week

LSD = Running a Long Slow Distance at a moderate pace.

Training: Phase May-June

CLIENT:	You
PHASE:	May-June
LENGTH:	4 weeks
GOAL:	Main./Spec.Endurance
LEGEND:	Paired = #’s

Training: Phase May-June: Workout #1

Training: Phase May-June: Workout #2

Training: Phase May-June: Sample Week

These workouts are designed to maximize all strength systems within the season.

Training: Phase July-August: Workout #1

CLIENT:	You
PHASE:	July/August
LENGTH:	4 weeks
GOAL:	Peak
LEGEND:	Paired = #’s

Phase July-August: Workout #1

X = Full Speed