1 Biomechanics for Rowing Technique and Rigging Dr. Valery Kleshnev Rowing Science Consultant President, BioRow Ltd. www.biorow.com
Contents 2 Model of rowing efficiency; The main principles of effective rowing technique; Biomechanical basics of rigging; Biomechanical measurements and tools; Biomechanical feedback;
Efficiency and effectiveness of technique Result Performance Level Metabolic Power (Physiology) Technique (Biomechanics) Psychology Race Strategy Effectiveness Efficiency Analysis Level Rowing Power Force Curve Rowing Style / Rower s Efficiency Boat Efficiency Blade Efficiency Measurement Level Horizontal Oar Angles Handle/Gate Force Segments Velocities Rigging Boat Velocity & Acceleration Vertical Oar Angle
How we define rowing technique efficiency? Internal (muscle) Efficiency Consumed Power Handle Power Waste Heat Energy Boat Velocity Efficiency Minimal required Power Blade Propulsive Efficiency Waste Power Propulsive Power The three main parts of rowing as a process of energy transformation
Power (W) 2000 5.3% 1.3% 1600 1667 1200 800 400 400 328 310 93.4% 0 Total energy Handle Power consuming Propulsive Power Minimal Required Power Internal Losses Blade Shift Losses Velocity Fluctuation Losses Amounts and Losses of energy during rowing (example values)
Rowing Styles DDR style Simultaneous Timing Adam style Trunk Emphasis Rosenberg style Consequent Timing Ivanov style Legs Emphasis Rosenberg - Large, forward declination of the trunk at the beginning of the stroke, then strong leg extension without significant trunk activation; Adam - Comparatively long legs drive and limited amplitude of the trunk. Simultaneous activity of legs and trunk during the stroke; DDR - Large, forward declination of the trunk, which begins the drive, followed by simultaneous activity of the legs; Ivanov - consequent timing and emphasis on the legs drive.
Rosenberg Style Rosenberg style 3000 2500 2000 1500 Pow er (W) Total Legs Trunk Arms 1000 500 0 Angle Large, forward declination of the trunk at the beginning of the stroke, then strong leg extension without significant trunk activation
DDR style DDR style 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 Pow er (W) Total Legs Trunk Arms Large, forward declination of the trunk, which begins the drive, followed by simultaneous activity of the legs 500 0 Angle
Adam Style Adam style 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Power (W) Total Legs Trunk Arms Угол Comparatively long legs drive and limited amplitude of the trunk. Simultaneous activity of legs and trunk during the stroke
Ivanov Style Ivanov style 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Power (W) Total Legs Trunk Arms Angle Consequent timing and emphasis on the legs drive
The main principles of effective technique 1. Catch through the stretcher; 2. Using the most powerful muscle groups first; 3. Optimisation of the velocity of the muscles contraction; 4. Strong posture: efficient back curve; 5. Emphasis of the force application at the front, front-loaded drive, the earlier, the better; 6. Coordinated and fast switching of the muscles- antagonists; 7. Effective acceleration of the centre of mass of the rower; 8. Efficient finish of the drive through the handle. 11
The main principle of effective CATCH Vboat Vhandle Vstretcher Catch through the stretcher Lin Fulcrum Vbl.prop? Vbl.trans. Lout Vblade In case of Catch through the handle : Vblade = Vhandle (Lout / Lin) Catch through the handle In case of Catch through the stretcher : «Catch through the stretcher» gives 46% higher velocity of the blade at the same handle velocity; «Catch through the stretcher» is preferable because of using of more powerful muscle groups. Vblade = Vstr. ((Lout + Lin) / Lin)
Using of the most powerful muscle groups The most effective sequence of the segments: Velocity The legs start the movement The trunk continue and accelerate the movement The arms finalize the movement Drive -> < -Recovery The sequence is mirrored during recovery Angle
Strong posture: effective back curve 14 Drysdale Waddell Straighter lumbar area can help to transfer the force better from hips to shoulders and prevent injuries; more curvature in the thoracic area can be more economical because it uses more elastic properties of the muscles rather then its strength.
Analysis of Lumbar and Thoracic angles E α β D A C B 180 170 160 150 180 170 160 150 140 Lumbar Angle α (deg) Thoracic Angle β (deg) Tufte Neykova Karsten Drysdale Waddell Catch Middle Finish 15 The best scullers have significantly straighter lumbar angles and more curved thoracic angle
Advantages of the front loaded-drive drive 6 Force (N) F1 F2 4 F3 2 0 15 10 5 0 80 60 40 20 0 Velocity (m/s) Power (W) P1 P2 P3 60 Distance P1 travelled (m) P2 40 P3 20 0 V1 V2 V3 Front-loaded drive (F1): Gives 47% higher average velocity and distance travelled during the drive; Creates much more even distribution of the power; Provide better utilization of the most powerful muscle groups Hydro-lift force on the blade can be used better.
Force/Body mass (N/kg) Boat Acceleration How the front-loaded drive looks like? Boat Velocity 1 2 1 2 Drive It is important to increase force quickly up to 70% of maximum; Trampolining effect? R3-D1 D2 D3 D4 1 2 1. Front-loaded 1. Middle-loaded
Force Acceleration Velocity ` Gate Stretcher Boat Rower System Vertical angle Boat speed Drive D1 Blade immersion; D2 Initial Rower s s Acceleration Catch: the oar change the direction of the movement by means of legs kick through the stretcher. R2 R3 D1 D2 D3 Legs Arms Trunk Handle D4 D5 D6 R1 R2
Force Acceleration Velocity ` Gate Stretcher Boat Rower System Vertical angle Boat speed Drive D3 Initial Boat Acceleration Extending knees using quads, Pushing the stretcher through toes. R2 R3 D1 D2 D3 Legs Arms Trunk Handle D4 D5 D6 R1 R2
Finish Fhandle Finert. Fblade Fstr.vert. Fstrertcher. G. M инерт. 1. Finish through the handle creates additional force of the blade, which propels the boat-rower system; 2. Finish through the handle does not push the boat down; 3. Finish through the handle uses more effective leverage of the oar, 4. Finish through the handle allows earlier relaxation of the legs muscles. Finish through the handle is the only effective way to finish the drive!
Biomechanically based rowing drills Drill 1 Rowing with feet out 2 Late squaring of the blades Purpose Emphasise the stretcher pressure and fast arms drive at finish of the drive Preventing feathering in the water and developing good balance 3 Arms with shoulders 4 ¼ slide fast trunk 5 Catch legs only Active using of the shoulders, arms shoulders coordination. Push the stretcher through heels using gluts and hamstrings, fast horizontal trunk drive Fast blade placement into the water, quick kick to the stretcher through toes using quads
Catch legs only drill Fast blade placement into the water, quick kick to the stretcher through toes using quads
Fast trunk drill Push the stretcher through heels using gluts and hamstrings, fast horizontal trunk drive
Biomechanical basics of rigging Span (sculling) Overlap (sculling) Spread (sweep) 24 Overlap (Sweep) We will discuss: Gate Height Seat Height from water Stretcher Angle Heels Depth Stretcher position Work through Seat Travel Gate Height Slides Angle Oar dimensions; Gearing ratio; Span/spread and; Gate height and pitch; Pitch
Inboard Definition of the Gearing Oar Length 25 Actual Inboard Pin Actual Outboard Gearing = Actual Outboard / Actual Inboard = (Out.-SL/2- SW/2) / (Inb.-Hnd/2+SW/2) Blade Travel Handle Travel The standard definition of the gearing is the ration of velocities (or displacements, travels) of output to input; In rowing, velocity of the output is defined by actual outboard, input by actual inboard; The span/spread does NOT affect gearing; Blade efficiency or slippage DOES affect Gearing.
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Dynamic Gearing Ratio (Outboard/Inboard) G(a) = G/cos(a) 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 Handle Velocity Oar Angle (deg) Boat Velocity Dynamic Gearing Blade Velocity At sharp oar angles only part of blade velocity is parallel to the boat velocity; Effect of the oar angle is small until 45deg; Gearing ratio became twice heavier at the oar angle 60deg; Gearing ratio became three times heavier at the oar angle 60deg; Gearing ratio became six times heavier at the oar angle 60deg; The most common catch angles are between 55deg (sweep) and 70deg (sculling).
The span affects gearing indirectly b a a > b A B > A B Effect of the span on the catch angle: Two centimetres of shorter spread gives only 0.5 deg of extra catch angle; If we change inboard accordingly to maintain overlap, this would gives us 0.8 deg of extra catch angle for every 2cm of extra spread.
Cost of one degree of the oar angle at catch, when change the stretcher position 2.6 2.4 Cost (cm/degree) 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 Catch Angle (deg) 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 One degree equal about 1.5cm of the arc length in sculling and 1.75cm in sweep rowing Change of the stretcher position affects more catch angle than finish angle
Rigging Calculator /RigChart.aspx 29
Stroke lever Bow lever Centre of the shell Stroke lever Bow lever Centre of the shell Centre of the shell Stroke lever Bow lever Catch Middle of the drive Finish Lever of force of bow rower is longer Levers are equal Lever of force of stroke rower is longer The difference in force lever is the main reason of boat rotation in a pair
Handle Force (N) Coordination of forces in a pair 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100-60 -40-20 -100 0 20 40 Average force of the stroke rower must be about 5% higher than of the bow rower 0 Stroke Bow A (deg) Bow L. BowF1 BowF2 To prevent rotation of the boat: Stroke rower must apply higher force at catch; Bow rower must apply higher force at finish; Ratio of Levers and Forces (%) 60% 40% Str.L. 20% StrokeF1 StrokeF2 0% Oar Angle (deg) -60-40 -20 0 20 40
Fbl R R Big boats with the normal rig Fbl R Levers of the blade force in the pair, four and eight Pair Four Eight Fbl R. Mass moments of inertia in various boat types (kg m 2 ) Boat 15 243 3360 Rower s 88 882 7400 Total 103 1125 10760 In the four and eight with the normal rig the sum of the levers turns the bow to the port side; The stroke rower can turn the eight at catch to the same side; Each stroke with synchronous force application creates the boat yaw angle: 0.37 deg in a pair, 0.076 deg in the four, 0.015 deg in the eight
4 The normal and Italian rigs in the four -60-40 -20-2 0 20 40 Seat: 3 2 1 Normal rig 4 3 2 1 Sum 6 4 2 0-4 -6 Lever (m) Oar angle (deg) 4-60 -40-20 0 20 40-2 Seat: 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 Sum Italian rig 6 4 2 0-4 -6 Lever (m) Oar angle (deg) 1000 800 Handle Force (N) Average levers in fours (in meters) 600 400 Stroke and 2 seat 200 3 seat and bow 0-60 -40-20 0 20 40 Oar Angle (deg) Seat 4 3 2 1 Sum Normal 2.66-2.90 3.13-3.36-0.47 Italian 2.66-2.90-3.13 3.36 0.00 In the Italian rig the sum of levers is zero, so the boat goes straight at the equal force application; The boat with normal rig can go straight, if stroke rowers apply force earlier and/or higher (5% difference in the average force).
Effect of the span on the torque in pair Catch Levers Bow. Stroke. Bow. Stroke. Finish A rower with longer span produces higher torque relative to the centre of the boat (CB) at the same force (or the same torque at lower force); This in not a real gearing because the ratio of velocities and forces on the handle and the blade remains the same irrelative to the span.
Handle and seat forces Lift force depends on the height of the handle relative to foot-stretcher stretcher: Flift = H / Lw * Fh Handle force is limited at certain handle height and rower s s weight: Fh.max = Lw / H *W Seat force can be good indicator of rowing technique. Fhr Fh H Mh Seat Force (N) Rower s Weight Recovery CM W Flift Lw CM Recovery Good Bad Angle (deg)
Gate height and pitch 36 12deg 4deg Pitch angle In case of the most common pitch 4 deg, only 0.24% of the propulsive force is lost; the height of the handle (and gate) is defined mainly by a comfort for a rower at finish; a lower gate height requires more pitch and more significant arms grubbing and vice versa; Lateral pitch is useful to overcome the difference in comfortable height of the handle.
Biomechanical Tools and Devices 37 Telemetry system; Immediate feedback tools; Stroke coaches and boat check meters; Mobile rowing tank.
Averaging 2 1 0-1 - 2 Velocity (m/s) BioRowTel Telemetry System v.4.5 Analysis Legs Trunk Arms Handle Time DDR Adam Vertical Angle 6 1 Recovery 2 3 Catch Water Level 0-50 -25 2 3 Finish -3 5-6 Release Slip Catch Slip Drive -9 Horizontal Angle Rosenberg Ivanov The system is quick to setup (30-90 min for 1x - 8+) and remove. It does not affect any rigging settings, which is important before regattas. Two-dimensional (2D) oar angle sensor measures position of the oar shaft in horizontal and vertical planes, which allows to define a path of the blade relative to water. Position sensors of the seat and shoulders allow to derive their velocities and power, which defines a rowing style.
Visual Immediate Feedback System: The System can be used with any standard video camera. The transmitter is attached to the video camera. VFS system worn by the athlete and the integral headphones allow the coach s s comments to be heard. VFS can be used for immediate feedback on various elements of technique: oar blade work, leg work, arm work, synchronization of the crew, etc.
Pattern of boat acceleration as a fingertip -12-15 9 6 3 0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8-3 Time (s) -6 Olympic Champions LM2x -9-12 10Boat Acceleration (m/s 2 ) 9 6 3 0-9 5 0-5 -10-15 Zero before catch Boat Acceleration (m/s 2 ) -3 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 Time (s) -6 Recovery Boat Acceleration (m/s 2 ) Recovery Negative peak. Catch Catch Catch Drive hump First peak Zero after catch Olympic Champions M2- National level M2- Drive Drive Second peak National level LM2x M2- at 39 str/min Finish LM2x at 35 str/min Finish Time (% of cycle) Finish Recovery Recovery Magnitudes of both negative peak and the first peak of the boat acceleration are highly dependent on the stroke rate. No significant difference was found between sculling and sweep rowing. The pattern is quite similar in all boat sizes. The best rowing crews have the highest magnitude of the negative peak of the boat acceleration at catch and the highest first peak.
New check factor for ActiveTime stroke rate meter Delta boat acceleration (DA) was selected as the most appropriate parameter for evaluation of technical skills of the crew. New algorithm was developed and implemented in the latest version of ActiveTime stroke rate meter. The quality of each stroke is displayed as a score F from 0 to 100: 0-20 Beginners 20-40 - Club rowers; 40-60 - National level; 60-80 - International level; 80-100 - Champions
Rowing Machines 42 M flywheel = F(N) M boat = 17kg 800 Concept 2 F handle Mr. F inertia 600 400 Mr. F stretcher F inertia F inertia 200 F inertia 0 T M = F(N) 800 RowPerfect F handle 600 F stretcher 400 200 0 T Catch Drive Release
Mobile Rowing Tank (MRT) 1989-2008 Dr. Valery Kleshnev Mobile rower s workplace Advantages of MRT compare to a stationary tank: Resistance unit Fdrag Fprop V+ There is power transfer through the stretcher, which contribute nearly 40% of power production in on-water rowing. Water tank There is a gearing effect similar to onwater rowing, where the stretcher force is 40% higher than the handle force. Similar to on-water rowing, MRT requires more legs power, while stationary rowing requires more upper body power. The stretcher acceleration makes vestibular sensations of the rower very similar to the sensations during on-water rowing. Rowers can interact through the stretcher to develop an accurate synchronisation, similar to on-water rowing.
44 Thank you for attention Dr. Valery Kleshnev Rowing Science Consultant e-mail: kleval@btinternet.com Rowing Biomechanics Newsletter