I believe these 3 steps are held together by world-class basics.

Here’s today’s podcast

Episode Home:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/161-intention-process-results

There is one movement in rowing that’s super powerful, it’s easy to see, but few would know how much power it’s generating, it’s in the body swing.

I’ve always thought that the power of a rowing stroke comes from linking the core muscles to everything else.

Remembering that you push before you pull, what connects those two movements is the invisible core muscles, they are activated during the body swing.

The core muscles take time to train and develop because you can’t see them, they lay deep inside our core.

Here’s today’s podcast:

Episode Home:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/170-invisible-super-powered-movements

If world basic basics is a personal thing, world-class consistency is something others can value.

I’ve been thinking about the difference between basics and constancy, I think the former is something to focus on as an individual and the latter something that others observe more so.

Can you do one without the other?

Which comes first?

Here’s today’s podcast:

Episode Home:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/159-world-class-consistency

I always preferred rowing with a crew.

Here’s the thing when I was rowing at Auriol Kensington Rowing Club I learnt that crew boats were my thing and I enjoyed a quad more than anything, a quad is 4 scullers.

You can learn to row on a rowing machine or in a single scull but I think the most fun is to be had when you row with other people.

So here’s the thing about the Hydrow rowing machine that I think few have mentioned, but I will, when you row on a Hydrow rowing machine your rowing with someone and because of that it’s simply more fun.

And if it’s more fun there is a strong chance that you’ll stick at it longer, which means you’ll get fitter…..

Knowing this made me smile.

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/158-hydrow-rowing-machine-made-me-simile

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

I think and what I have learnt over the years is what people say and what people do can often be very very different.

When it comes to high performance, goal setting or just doing something better than others, sometimes you don’t want to share how you’re doing it or you might not realise just how good you are.

Are you curious enough about your performance?

So here’s the thing, I’ve been thinking about world-class basics, how do people live to deliver them, and what type of people optimise them.

Knowing that you have a talent comes through allowing others to see it, you have to share it, even the slightest hint that you think you might have a talent.

Once you have shared your talent perhaps with someone you trust, you’d do best to try and understand how you make it simple, simple enough to you, understand the parts, train all the parts, be curious how to maximise the parts.

Do the smallest parts, the basics to a world-class standard.

I was listening to a recording of Muhammad Ali this week when he shared his most memorable quote “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”.

What he said at that moment made what he did in the ring invisible to his opponents.

He carried out world-class basics.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/157-float-like-a-butterfly-sting-like-a-bee

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

I've got that winter feeling, a January feeling, one that's very familiar.

For a few years, I spent some time at Quintin Boat Club on the Thames by Chiswick bridge.

The club had an open fire, we would recover after a session by it.

This poem that I heard today reminded me of the feelings of January.

January by Henry Wadsworth

Janus am I; oldest of potentates; Forward I look, and backward, and below I count, as god of avenues and gates, The years that through my portals come and go. I block the roads, and drift the fields with snow; I chase the wild-fowl from the frozen fen; My frosts congeal the rivers in their flow, My fires light up the hearths and hearts of men.

This poem is in the public domain.

Here’s today’s podcast and my reading of the poem.

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/156-my-frosts-congeal-the-rivers-in-their-flow

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

Do you go faster because you slide faster, or is it the hand speed, or is it more a leg thing… Eric Murray knows 💪

I listened and watched a series of coached sessions with Eric Murray, a multi times winning Olympian.

When you listen closely to world-class athletes, leaders, entrepreneurs and business people it’s often what they don’t say or share that you need to listen out for.

Eric talks about smooth hand speed around the turn at the front and back of the stroke, which is interesting to hear. He also talks about “gradually” pushing more power out during the leg drive throughout the session, so as you get more into the session and weaker you focus on pushing more out or you, seems counter-intuitive, but the more you focus the more YOU CAN push more.

Give it a try.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/155-power-and-hand-speed

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

It’s the welcome back weights session, make sure you’re up to speed with your technique.

There are 4 key exercises to focus on, each builds towards maximising power.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/154-push-pull-hinge-and-drive

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

I simply love low rating, it requires a good deal of personal coaching, meaning you, yes you have to think about what you're doing.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/153-welcome-back-session

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

Sounds simple, build blocks and your progress faster.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/152-train-in-blocks

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

You can’t get to greatness without some help.

Fact.

You’ll need to believe in a coach, a coach who believes in you, a coach that has your goals and performance in mind.

The Playbook series on netflix’s shares a few moments of insight that could change how you think about getting fit in 2022.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/151-the-playbook

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

Yes, it’s the start of 2022, and the start of the rowing stroke is called the catch so it seems rather fitting to be writing and sharing today’s podcast called "{catch 22}.

Get the catch right and the rest can be worked on.

But here’s the other catch 22, if you’re not fit, and you don’t think you have time to get fit, you’ll never get fit. But if you make time to get fit you will.

Your health is an investment, time is something you can give yourself at no cost at all, and the return in value and quality of life is huge.

So if you change how you manage your time, and pay that time to you to get fit and healthy, given time you will.

I always think the hardest thing to do when you’re considering better health and fitness is getting started, the small thing, the small change.

I think doing small is easier than doing big.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/150-catch-22

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

So the race is done. 2021 is done.

How did we do?

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/149-looking-down-the-race-track-of-2021

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

It’s that funny time between Christmas and New Year, a time when we get a chance to reflect on the year that’s past, a chance to look at where you are, a chance to think about who we might want to be in the new year ahead.

I think getting fit is not just about the physical aspect of “doing it” but also the mental health aspect of “doing it”, getting fit that is.

The quote that is never wrong in my mind is, “have a healthy mind and body”, one comes with the other, and to be honest it’s more important to balance this now more than ever before.

One of the aspects of rowing (be that indoors or outdoors) that is not often talked about is the freedom you can experience physically and mental from being fit.

Fit to handle what life throughs at you.

I love rowing, and each and every stroke helps to strengthen the mind and body better than nearly any fitness program or sport.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/148-get-fit-in-2022

Yes, the leg is better, but I’ve lost strength.

Here’s the thing, and it’s something worth sharing but keeping fit, and getting fit once your past 30 is a must in my experience.

As you all know having strained my hamstring whilst playing 5 a side football I’ve been out of action for just over 3 weeks.

The fitness seems the same now I’m back in the gym, but the strength has defiantly fallen off, and this happens to anyone and everyone over the age of 30……

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/147-weak-but-focused

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

I’ve learned by studying myself very closely that my daily training habit keeps my mental health strong.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/146-heart-rate-mental-health-and-wellness

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

I know it sounds too simple, but, once you’ve got fit to row, the next step is learning to row.

But, at this point of writing this blog and preparing for today’s podcast I don’t yet have a place or a boat to coach people to learn to row, but I’m giving it some serious thought.

If learning to row is something you might be interested in perhaps you could make contact with me and see if you can help bring the idea to life.

Here’s today’s podcast:

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/145-complete-rowing

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?

Ok, let’s be honest I haven’t yet met anyone who likes carrying out the 2000m test.

But, I’ve also learnt that people don’t put enough focus into the mental prep and planning around the test.

So, I’ve given it some thought and have done a podcast around doing a 2k test.

How to think before, during and after a 2k test.

Here’s today’

https://www.getfittorow.com/get-fit-to-row-podcast/144-preparing-for-a-2k-test

What about your fitness and rowing, are you ready to get started?