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Good technique, load management and injury prevention exercise training are key factors to prevent injury in dragon boating. Read on for how to keep yourself feisty, bendy, stretchy and paddling forever. There are 3 levels, so once you’ve mastered Level 1, move on through the rest.
Mobility and Strength Exercises
Here are some excellent exercises to incorporate into your gym routine. They will help keep you supple, strong and injury free while paddling.
Back Pain Stretches
Occasionally dragon boaters experience back pain. This is commonly due to poor technique, tight hamstrings and glutes, lack of core strength, spending too much time sitting or with poor posture at a computer, or failing to do any of-water exercise to strengthen back muscles. Here are some exercises to strengthen back and abs.
When exercising, our brain produces hormones that help us with pain relief. So it is important to return to activity quickly after an episode with back pain.
Rotator Cuff Injury Prevention
The rotator cuff is a term for the muscles around the shoulder blade. Shoulder impingement is a very common cause of shoulder pain in athletes and often occurs from many repeated movements. The tendons of the muscles can also be injured if they become impinged between bones in the shoulder joint during certain movements. Tendinosis of the rotator cuff is very common among athletes in sports that involve a lot of movement with the arms raised above shoulder height. This activity places extreme demands on the shoulder.
Therefore it is crucial for dragon boaters to so exercises in:
- Mobility of the shoulder
- Strength and coordination of the rotator cuff
- Control of the shoulder blade
