Lockdown in the UK as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic provided many challenges, but also highlighted the importance
of other aspects of life. Like many, I found keeping active became more
important and finding different ways to exercise has been great fun.
Prior to lockdown, the majority of my
training was based on the water or in a typical gym setting. However, with both
of these ‘out of bounds’, I had to become creative and find new ways to
continue training.
I am thankful for being in the lucky
position to have been able to convert our old childhood summer house into a
mini gym and managed to borrow weights and some equipment off a very helpful
neighbour. Some days, despite having a gym less than 100m from my bed, it was
still difficult to get motivated, but I knew that in the long run it will be
beneficial, and I felt better after getting active. It was then, that my
experience as an athlete and skills in self-discipline were even more
beneficial.
"Discipline is doing
what you hate to do, but nonetheless doing it
like you love it.”
Mike Tyson
Training off the water for a water-based
sport has been interesting, and I have learnt a lot. Some of the exercises and
workouts below have been written by fellow athletes and coaching staff. Below I
have compromised some of my favourite exercises and workouts to hopefully
inspire others to keep active. Although the gyms are soon planning to reopen,
this time in lockdown has really taught me a lot and a degree of home training
may remain for me.
Disclaimer: I am not a personal trainer
or trained in sports exercises, this is purely suggestions that I have found
useful for my own kayaking. Before any exercise, it is important to warm up and
stay within your capabilities while exercising. If you have injuries, or are sedentary,
it is important to consult a health professional before taking part in any
exercises.
Bench press and bent over row
As a classic, stereotypical gym move, the
bench press focuses on the chest and arms and therefore is a great move to
build upper body strength. I have always enjoyed this move and found it useful
to combine with a bent over row in a superset. The row helps replicate the pull
of a kayak paddle and both can be performed with weights or resistance bands.
When super-setting these moves, I
typically alter the number of sets and repetitions as well as weight to build a
variety of power and strength endurance depending on the point in the
competitive season.
Sandro’s conditioning circuit
500m run, 10 press ups, 10 squats, 10
burpees, 10 triceps dips (repeat 5 times, record total time).
I actually find this circuit quite
difficult and am always out of breath when doing it (especially because finding
a relatively flat 500m by my home is quite difficult). However, it has also
been great to work on my weaknesses and feel these are the areas where the
biggest gains can happen.
The circuit itself seems friendly, but
involves around 25 minutes of all-out energy, working almost every muscle in
the body. This has also been great during lockdown as has provided focus to
getting outdoors and requires no equipment (I just used a park bench to dip
off).
Wood chop
This again is another tough exercise that
I can always feel working but is also great for kayaking as it works your
obliques and core rotation.
Russian twists
Russian twists are my go-to core move to
support my kayaking. There are so many variations, using weights, with pauses,
on a swiss ball, I have learnt over the years which provide great core
activation.
Each week during lockdown, I have also been
more able to find time, energy, and motivation to work more on my endurance and
sustained cardio activities. Since stopping playing hockey to focus on
kayaking, I have had periods where I have got into routines with running but
while at University, this was largely restricted to treadmills. While at home,
I took the opportunity of having the countryside to get back into running
outdoors and have really enjoyed being able to get outside with purpose and
focus, being able to improve over the weeks.
In addition, it has been great to get
outside on bike rides around the Malvern Hills (despite the steep terrain in
places) and in the nascence of my two-wheeled commute, still find time to get
out on my bike. When training outside, being ready for all weather conditions is critical. A lightweight, breathable waterproof shell jacket has been essential, and allowed training to adapt.
During this time, challenges are
inevitable, but I have enjoyed also being able to try new activities, take more
time to focus on my training, and get active each day. I have learnt that
having a routine and something to focus on and progress with has allowed me to
also keep focus in other aspects of my life, including revising and completing
University.
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