It’s dragon boat season! This traditional sport can be a lot of fun, but it also places physical demands on the body. The strong, repetitive movements used in the sport can cause overuse injuries if you are not careful with your technique, and/or haven’t built up the strength to meet the demand.

By building endurance to withstand the force placed upon the body during training and racing, you’ll be able to minimize injury. Focus on targeting the main muscle groups worked as well as smaller stabilizing muscle groups to help you find better stability and control. The more you can strengthen for protection, especially around areas that you use often in dragon boating – shoulders, arms, core, chest, hips, glutes and legs – , the more you can protect yourself from injury.

Adding to strength training, proper shoulder mechanics is hugely important. Due to the repetitive nature of the rowing motion, focus on regularly stretching the chest and rotator cuff muscles to help maintain flexibility. It’s important to strengthen this area as well to avoid shoulder impingement injuries. Keep shoulders as relaxed as possible and the rowing motion smooth. 

Considering this is a primary area of work, ensuring that you have a good grip on the paddle – firm but not too tight – is essential. This reduces the likelihood of you developing tendonitis or carpal tunnel syndrome. And of course, as already mentioned, making sure to strengthen these areas, even when you’re not in the boat. 

As it is with most things, core strength is of huge importance. Adding this to your regular training routine will allow you to maintain strong posture and can help to prevent soreness, especially in your lower back. Focusing on the entire trunk – adding the glute and hip flexors – can help your stability and reduce the risk of lower body injuries.

Especially after sitting (while working) for extending periods of time, it’s important to stretch to maintain some flexibility and mobility within your body. Consider adding in dynamic stretches prior to training – focusing on the chest, shoulders and hips –  and static stretches afterwards, especially to areas which you have been working repetitively. 

While it might not seem like it at first, there is a lot of endurance needed for dragon boating. Training your cardiovascular system out of the water can help you while you’re in the water. By focusing on building stamina, you can also work to improve your breath, which not only can improve performance, reduce fatigue and help with proper positioning. 

Of course, it’s always a good idea to come in for a screening. Doing one of UP’s movement assessments can check for imbalances in the body. With the guidance of our physical therapists you can focus on those weak mechanical links and build full-body strength, allowing you to perform at your best and have fun.  

Best of luck to those racing this season! If you are interested in coming in for a screening or to talk to one of our physical therapists, book your appointment today!