The idea behind this is to build an aerobic base and to get stronger and in good general condition and then in the spring, during the pre-competition phase, do shorter and more specific work, such as 1 or 2 minute loops. This is what many racers throughout the world do for their training. And it is ineffective.
Here is why it doesn't work:
First, it does not empasize the major requirements of the sport such as skill, technique, speed and power. You waste a lot of your time working on things that have little relation to your event and spend a great deal of time doing things that don't improve your technique, don't make you faster and don't make you more powerful.
There is very little speed work, when speed is crucial in our sport. Speedwork should be done year-round. The endurance training actually keeps you from increasing your power. Power cannot be built if you are doing endurance training at the same time.
So, there is no power or speed development, what about technique? The emphasis on the workouts is generally on a physiological principle (aerobic, anaerobic, etc.) rather than a technique emphasis. Rather than saying, this is an upstream workout or this is a reverse workout, you say, this is an aerobic workout or this is an anaerobic workout. Thus, the mindset is that of just training a particular physiological principle during the workout with little regard for the quality or technique involved.
Furthermore, notice that there is little if any feedback during most of the year. Little, if any coaching, videos, timing of courses, counting penalties, planning, etc. Most of your workouts should have varied forms of feedback, such as coaching, video, timed runs and penalties counted, watching other boaters, etc. If you aren't getting feedback, it is likely that your technique is stagnating, not improving.
Moreover, it is not specific enough to our sport. Yes, general strength is important and doesn't have to be specific. However, much of the training is done at speeds that are slower than race pace and therefore, the training isn't very specific. Also, the conditions are not very specific to our sport. Much of the training is done without gates and/or on flatwater instead of working on whitewater or at least moving water gates.
Third, the resistance training is probably the most effective part of this typical plan, but is still not ideal. It employs bodybuilding exercises which target isolated muscles, rather than functional or complex exercises that use multiple muscle groups and train the central nervous system. It builds excessive bulk, rather than strength and power. It keeps the same type of workout over months, rather than using a varied, undulating program, so the athlete is likely to stagnate after a month or two and stop developing strength. You should be constantly changing your resistance training to avoid stagnation.
Also, the resistance program uses weights that are too light and repetitions that are too high. This type of workout builds muscle size more than strength. You don't want muscle size- you only want strength, so the reps should be much lower- more like 3-5 reps. Increasing size just gives your boat more weight. The goal should be to increase strength without significant weight gain.
And the resistance program is somewhat negated by the concurrent endurance training. You can't build power at the same time you are doing endurance training. So, with no power training while you are doing resistance training, you are likely to actually lose power with this plan. This typical resistance program is also deficient in that there should be some power training as well, such as in-the-boat resistance training, ergometer, plyometric exercises, compound lifts, complex training or medicine ball exercises, which are more dynamic and faster paced so as to build power.
Additionally, the typical program does not really include active recovery as part of the program. Active recovery is not just an afterthought. It is important to help the muscles rebuild between workouts. Between workouts is when the muscles get stronger. Training breaks down muscle and without sufficient recovery, they stay broken down rather than rebuilding stronger than before.
The running part of the typical program could be considered active recovery if it were a little shorter and slower, such as running a mile at a jogging pace and then shower and then stretching. This is a very effective form of active recovery. If you go too far or too fast though, the run isn't really active recovery, but endurance training for running.
If you do the typical sort of program, you will have the typical sort of results. However, if you can improve your program and develop more speed, power, and technique in the off-season, you will have improved results in your races.
You can either do the same sort of typical training as everyone else to fit in or you can do higher-quality training in order to stand out.
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