Concept2 Forum

Wondering of there is any core benefit rowing without foot straps? Googling the Q have read that it supposedly helps improve technique, but have yet to read anything about "extra" core benefits. Thank you in advance.

Myopic Squirrel wrote: ↑

September 29th, 2024, 12:54 pm

Wondering of there is any core benefit rowing without foot straps? Googling the Q have read that it supposedly helps improve technique, but have yet to read anything about "extra" core benefits. Thank you in advance.

If you don't use footstraps you use primarily your hamstrings to move your body forward. If you use footstraps (and pull on them with your feet) you use primarily you hip abductors. If you keep your footstraps loose and don't pull on them, they have little effect.

I'm not sure if by "core" you mean core muscles or core benefit in a generic sense. If you mean the former, I would think that using hamstrings would require more core activation than hip abductors. But that's just a guess.

The real secret is to pull very gently on recovery, regardless of which muscles you are using. Use the finish of your stroke to stop your backward momentum, and don't be in too much of a ruch to skoot forward. I would think that removing the footstraps might encourage that.

Personally, I wear bare feet or socks, and never cinch the straps.

My take on this is that unstrapped shouldn't be better for the core than strapped in rowing, but probably will be in practice because form has to be better to row strapless and that requires a strong core. If strapped in you can be lazier with the core and rely on the straps to stop you flying off the back and to drag yourself forward again. Without straps you're relying on the core alone. But strapless has its limits in both attainable rate and pace so its a training aid but not an end in itself.

If you want to work on your core do planks, leg raises (or start using knee raises if necessary) using a captain's chair and back extensions on a Roman chair.

Imo, it is better, but it's only marginal and probably will be difficult to easily see the benefit.

Seeing how I have progressed with strapless rowing from when I first did it and wondered how I stayed on the seat, to now being able to, just about, maintain r27 and circa 1:43 pace, this has got to be based on having a better centre of gravity, which in turn will be helped by a strong core.

As there's no straps to at least slightly stop the momentum, I'm sure it has to involve the core to a bigger extent, as that energy and the force of the lean back at the end of the stroke has to be dissipated somehow, which involves a slightly downward direction of the force