Diary Of A Junior Gig Rower – Winter Training

Now that the nights are dark, cold, and often wet, our junior midweek row has moved inside, which means winter training on the rowing machines.

We have 9 ergos neatly secured down one side of our newly built gig shelter. The shelter was opened in June 2023, after many years of applying for planning permission, working with architects, finding building contractors, fundraising and I’m sure much more…in my 15-year-old opinion, it was so worth it! It is more than a shelter to store our gigs, Lightning and Volante, it’s rapidly becoming a community space, where we can meet, socialise, organise and now, train during the winter. 

Indoor training for juniors is every Wednesday night at 4.30PM so the rush home from school is slightly easier!

We have spent time ensuring that all junior rowers are safe on the ergos. Our coach continuously reinforces the importance of using the correct technique. Legs, body, arms, arms, body, legs, repeat… ensuring that we engage our core, don’t overreach at the catch, or lean too far back at the finish. The focus for the juniors over the winter is to develop aerobic endurance. 

Our aim is to develop stamina, but also to foster a sense of longer-lasting grit, and determination to keep going, with the knowledge that your body is strong, healthy, and capable.  To achieve both these aims, we are using progressive interval sessions, for example, 4 minutes on, 2 minutes rest, x 5 with changing rates. We place a big emphasis on working as a crew. Even off the water we have seats and we follow the stroke while also using the ergo screens!

My coach often tells me, “What you do in the winter is what you get in the summer!”